Gluten Free Recipes from Gluten-Free-Desserts.com

Gluten-Free & Wheat-Free
Turtle Cheesecake Recipe

Exclusive recipe from our Gluten-Free Gourmet Desserts Cookbook collection (pages 34-35)

Gluten-Free Turtle Cheesecake: An incredibly decadent cheesecake that will satisfy even the most ferocious cravings for an over the top dessert.

Caramel, pecans, and chocolate abound in this awesome Turtle Cheesecake!

Crust Ingredients

2 Cups Nut Meal or Finely Chopped Nuts (such as pecans, walnuts or hazelnuts)
6 Tablespoons (¾ Stick) Butter
¼ Cup Sugar

Filling Ingredients

1½ Pounds Cream Cheese (three 8-Ounce packages)
¼ Cup Mascarpone Cheese
¾ Cup Sugar
1 Tablespoon Vanilla
3 Eggs
½ Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Topping — Toasted Pecan Ingredients

¾ Cup Toasted Chopped Pecans

Topping — Chocolate Sauce Ingredients

½ Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips
1 Tablespoon Milk

Topping — Caramel Sauce Ingredients

5 Ounces Caramels
2 Tablespoons Milk

Yield

One 9" round cheesecake.

Baker's Tip

Leave the cheesecake in the springform pan until completely assembled. Remove sides of pan when ready to serve.

Crust Directions

Hand mix in a medium bowl the nut meal, butter and sugar. Mix until just combined.
Line bottom of 9" springform pan with parchment paper; apply cooking spray to all inside surfaces (including parchment). Gently press crust mixture into place on bottom of pan (only on bottom of pan, not sides).
Bake at 300° for 20 minutes.

Filling Directions

Cream together cheeses, sugar and vanilla. Add eggs and mix until blended — mixture will look similar to a thick cake batter when done.
Once crust is baked, remove it from oven (leave in pan). Sprinkle chocolate chips on top of crust, then pour the cream cheese filling into pan.
Bake at 300° for 50 minutes or until center is almost set — note: overcooking may cause cracks in center of cake. Allow cheesecake to cool in refrigerator overnight.

Toppings Directions

Caramel sauce: microwave caramel and milk until caramel is completely melted (roughly 3 minutes), stir until smooth. Pour caramel sauce over chilled cheesecake.
Toasted pecans: place chopped pecans in 400° oven for 6 minutes to lightly toast. Sprinkle toasted pecans over caramel sauce.
Chocolate topping: microwave chocolate chips and milk for 2½ minutes; stir until smooth. Pour melted chocolate into small zip lock bag. Cut a very small piece of one corner off bag (you now have a pastry bag) and drizzle chocolate over top of cheesecake.