Cheesecake and Pecan Pie together in one dessert. How could anything be better?
This outrageously good Pecan Pie Cheesecake has a crust made from vanilla wafer crumbs, a nutty and sweet pecan pie layer topped off with a cool and creamy cheesecake layer. I’ve become obsessed with the Crock Pot Dulce de leche I made recently so I drizzled that on top.
This was the first cheesecake I’ve made in eons. I’m surprised I even still had my springform pan.
Note: The recipe (from Taste of the South) did not call for a water bath and I didn’t use one. I thought about it, but I didn’t have any aluminum foil to wrap around the bottom of my springform pan.
When I took the cheesecake out of the oven, it looked absolutely perfect. Completely smooth on top. But when I walked past it about 10 minutes later, it had a giant crack down the middle. Easily fixed with some Dulce de Leche.
Water Bath
But if you don’t want a crack, try using a water bath. Although I’m not sure how much they really help. I’ve heard of plenty of people who have used a water bath and had their cheesecake crack and others who never use a water bath and never have cracks. I should probably check my oven temperature to see if it is running hot.
Anyone have any cheesecake baking tips?
But crack or no crack this is a truly decadent dessert. I love a pecan pie but it is an insanely sweet dessert. This Pecan Pie Cheesecake is perfect for when you want something sweet, but not something sickeningly sweet. You still get to enjoy the flavor of a pecan pie, but the cheesecake layer cuts down on the sweetness.
I’m going to try to start making 1 cheesecake a month, but this one is going to be hard to top!
Storage
Leftover cheesecake can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days. Serve chilled.
How to Serve
Top with whipped cream and a pecan half and drizzle with either Dulce de Leche or Caramel Ice Cream Topping.
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Try These Other Pecan Pie Recipes
- Pecan Pie Cobbler
- Salted Caramel Pecan Pie
- Pecan Pie Cupcakes
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars
- Mocha Pecan Pie
- Crescent Pecan Pie Bars
- Pecan Pie Bubble Up
Pecan Pie Cheesecake
Equipment
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 3/4 cups vanilla-wafer crumbs
- 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1/3 cup butter,, melted
Pecan filling
- 1 cup sugar
- 2/3 cup dark corn syrup
- 1/3 cup butter,, melted
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cheesecake filling
- 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese,, softened
- 1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
- 2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine vanilla-wafer crumbs and brown sugar in a medium bowl. Stir melted butter in with a spatula. Press into the bottom and halfway up the sides of a 9-inch Springform pan.
- Bake for 6 minutes and let cool.
- Combine all Pecan-Filling ingredients in a medium saucepan.
- Stir well and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring continuously, until mixture thickens, about 8 to 10 minutes. Pour into prepared crust.
- Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add brown sugar and flour and beat until fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Use a rubber spatula to scrape doen the sides of the bowl to make sure everything mixes evenly.
- Add cream and vanilla and beat just to combine. Pour mixture over pecan filling.
- Place in oven and bake for 1 hour. Turn oven off but leave cheesecake in oven with door closed for 1 more hour.
- Remove cheesecake from oven and run a knife around the sides to make sure they are not sticking. Let cool completely. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Serve with Dulce de Leche,
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Sharing with the Country Cook’s Weekend Potluck.
Originally published Octover 15, 2014.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
I made this recipe exactly as described- except that I did not pre bake the crust and I only cooked the pecan mixture for about a minute after boil. The cheesecake was absolutely perfect- no cracks- with the hour left in the oven after cooking with the door cracked. No water bath or oven water needed. The pecan level was still challenging to cut through but it wasn’t hard at all. It had a chewy consistency. To be safe I wrapped the outside based of my springform with foil- but it wasn’t needed. When I removed the foil there were no leaks. I was patient and let it cool completely at room temp before removing the sides- and after running a fork around the sides I had nothing stuck at all. It was really picture perfect. I made six pies from scratch for Thanksgiving but this cheesecake was gone first. Gorgeous texture to the cheesecake! Will make again!
Thanks for taking the time to leave all your tips! I’m so glad the cheesecake was popular. Wow! six pies from scratch! I wish I could have been at your house for Thanksgiving!
I really loved this cheesecake and so did my dinner party guest. I did follow some of the suggestions I only cooked the pecan filling for a few minutes and it was not hard but the crust I baked for about 5 min. and it was rock hard and butter melted all over my oven floor. It tasted great, some of the guest were scraping it off the pan bottom. I will make this cheesecake a few more time further tweaking it since it has such potential.
This was AMAZING!!! I made it for our Christmas Eve party and everyone loved it! I had never made a cheesecake before and was fairly certain that I had ruined it due to my lack of experience and some oven issues but it turned out perfect! I followed some of the advice on previous comments and didn’t bake the crust or boil the pecan mixture and it was ooey gooey goodness! I tried the dulce de leche recipe and that didn’t turn out so well so I topped with whip cream and a drizzle of caramel instead. Thank you so much for a fabulous recipe!!
Glad you enjoyed it Tracey! 🙂
I always use a 9″ springform pan. I bought a silicone pan that fits over the springform pan. Then purchased a 11″ metal watering dish from tractor supply store! Put the springform pan inside the silicone pan and place both in watering dish. Fill dish half way with water and bake at 300 degrees until tiny circle in middle of cheesecake wiggles only.. Always let sit in oven after turning off oven! I never have a cheesecake crack!!
I have a question: Should i serve/drip the dulce sauce hot or cold?
recently made this made me giggle a little in the baking instructions. i did not follow them instead i baked the cheese cake at 300° for 1 hour and about 20 min when the center and side put up the same amount of resistance. also in my bake shop we dont use sping form pans, i used a 9in cake pan with parchment on the bottom and on the sides to aid in the removal. i also froze it so that way i was able to get a very clean cut line.
oh every body enjoyed it thanks
forgot to mention i bake the cheese cake in a water bath a must
Okay so this cheesecake was a HIT! I made it for thanksgiving and my entire family absolutely loved it. I followed the tips I found in the comments such as leaving the cream cheese out overnight so it’s nice and soft when you use it, I did not pre bake the crust, I only cooked the pecan filling in the pot until the edges rose and got bubbly, and then I poured it right in the crust. I then poured the cheesecake right over the top (it will start to kinda mix together). Then I baked for a little over 1 hour at 300 degrees and let it sit in the oven for 1 hour with a wooden spoon in the door. AMAZING. No cracks, baked to perfection.
Wow..this was delicious. The only thing I altered from was keeping the oven door propped open with a wooden spoon the 2nd hour. Oh, and I used store bought caramel. The crust was amazing. The cheesecake even better. Wow.
Is there any substitute for the heavy whipping cream in the cheesecake layer? Would I just be able to leave the cream out and have the cheesecake turn out fine?
Hi Megan. Wish I could give you good advice but I have never tried making it without the heavy cream so I can’t say for sure. Let me know how it turns out if you give it a try. You could probably get away with using half-and-half if you have that.
My husband made this for the first time last night and after chilling it overnight in the fridge I had it for breakfast. AMAZING. He will have to tweak the recipe a bit however. Our advice is to NOT pre-bake the crust or Pecan pie filling before hand. It already bakes for a whole hour. The Pecan pie filling was delicious but many parts were super chewy, I’m guessing because the corn syrup and sugars caramelized a bit too much. Also, we took the advice from previous commenters and lowered the oven temp to 300 degrees during baking and cracked the oven open with a wooden spoon during the cooling part (second hour). If you can, chill it overnight to get the real cheesecake feel. The cheesecake portion was amazing and it’s a good recipe to keep if you just want plain cheesecake! It’s not a difficult recipe but it does require some work! Well worthwhile!
So glad you enjoyed it Monica and thank you so much for sharing your tips for making this recipe better! 🙂
Just wanted to leave a tip! To prevent your cheesecake from cracking cut out some parchment paper and lay it directly on top of the cheesecake. Remove it after the cooling period. I’ve made a lot of cheesecakes and this trick works just about every time! (Oh and my cheesecakes are gluten free…this recipe worked with gluten free flour!)
Sounds interesting. My honey loves pecan pie. As for tips, I have some. I make a lot of cheesecakes, here’s what i do. Room temp ingredients. Don’t over beat, esp. when putting eggs in. Lower the temp to 300. It takes longer to cook but you will have a flat top, even color and no overcooked raised edges. Also, I never use a water bath either. I do put a pan of water (I use my 9×13 pyrex cake pan) and fill it 2/3 to 3/4 full of boiling water after I set it on the bottom rack of the oven then put the cheesecake on the rack above it. When done, turn off the oven, leave the door shut for an hour, run a knife around the edges (do not remove the the side) leave it in the oven to finish cooling. I rarely deal with cracks doing this and when I do its because I used cool ingredients or overbeat the filling.