Maple Caramel Apple Cheesecake
Apple Cheesecake, a tasty apple pie filling makes this a delicious Fall Cheesecake Dessert. A Maple Caramel Topping makes it perfect.
This is the latest cheesecake recipe I have made and I have to say it is the best yet! It’s sort of an Apple Pie meets Cheesecake. And I have to admit baked cheesecakes always seem to taste better.
My eldest daughter had a flight to Rome and usually when she does she comes home for a visit, or as she says to eat!
But this time she came on the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, so we celebrated our own Thanksgiving. Unfortunately no turkey for us as the Italian does not like poultry of any kind. I know I know, weird!
So we went with a Pot Roast, Peas, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy and Yorkshire Pudding. And of course Dessert had to be good!
Recipe Ingredients
- Graham cracker crumbs (or digest cookie crumbs which I prefer)
- Pecans – finely ground
- Butter (melted)
- Apples – I like to use fuji or gala apples
- Cinnamon
- Brown sugar
- Cornstarch
- Cream cheese – whole fat cream cheese
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla
- Egg
- Caramel sauce – homemade or a good quality store bought
- Maple syrup
- Pecans for sprinkling
How to make a Maple Caramel Apple Cheesecake
Mix together crumbs, ground pecans and butter and spread evenly on the bottom of prepared cake pan. Bake.
In medium pot add the butter and melt over low heat, add the brown sugar, chopped apples and cinnamon, stir to combine and continue cooking, stirring often, then add the cornstarch, stir to combine and cook until the mixture thickens, once it has thickened remove from heat and let cool. Pour some of the mixture over the baked crust.
In a medium bowl whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy, then add the sugar, vanilla and egg, and beat until smooth. Pour over the apple mixture. Bake in the pre-heated oven. Cool and refrigerate before serving or even over night. Top with Maple Caramel Sauce before serving.
And as far as I am concerned you can’t get much better than Cheesecake. So I decided I was going to make a cheesecake with my favourite fruit, apples.
I have seen other Caramel Apple Cheesecakes recipes but most of them used a can of Apple Pie filling. For one, no such thing available here in Italy and two it’s so easy to make your own and I believe so much tastier.
I actually used the apple filling from my Italian Apple Pie recipe and it worked perfectly. I also added some ground pecans in my cookie crust, because, well why not?
In the last few weeks I have been sharing a few pumpkin recipes …. but I knew it was time to move on. So hello Apples!
Some Pumpkin Recipes you may enjoy!
- Easy Homemade Pumpkin Gelato
- Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
- Maple Glazed Pumpkin Cinnamon Cake
- Easy Homemade Pumpkin Puree
- Pumpkin Baci di Dama with Mascarpone Filling
What you will need to make this Amazing Apple Cheesecake with a Maple Caramel Topping.
- Springform Cake Pan – For most of my cakes I use a springform pan.
- Pure Maple Syrup – I prefer real maple syrup instead of flavouring.
- Hand Mixer – I love my Bosch hand mixer I use it for everything.
- Caramel Sauce – Nothing like Caramel Sauce and Apples.
If you try no other dessert of mine this Fall Season I would love if you tried this Maple Caramel Apple Cheesecake and let me know if you loved it as much as we did. Enjoy!
Maple Caramel Apple Cheesecake
Ingredients
COOKIE CRUST
- 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs (or digest cookie crumbs which I prefer)
- ½ cup ground pecans
- ¼ cup butter (melted)
APPLE FILLING
- 3 apples (chopped)
- 1½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ⅓ cup + 2 tablespoons butter (103 grams total, if doubling the recipe then double this amount)
- ⅓ cup brown sugar packed
- 1½ teaspoons cornstarch
CHEESECAKE FILLING
- 12 ounces cream cheese (whole fat room temperature, remove from fridge 30 minutes before using)
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (63 grams total, if doubling the recipe then double this amount)
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla
- 1 large egg (room temperature)
MAPLE CARAMEL SAUCE
- ¼ cup good quality caramel sauce
- 1 tablespoon real maple syrup
- broken pecans for sprinkling
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350°. Grease and flour a 7 inch spring form cake pan.
COOKIE CRUST
- Mix together the crumbs, ground pecans and butter and spread evenly on the bottom of prepared cake pan. Bake for 5 minutes.
APPLE FILLING
- In a medium pot add the butter and melt over low heat, add the brown sugar, chopped apples and cinnamon, stir to combine and continue cooking on low medium heat for approximately 10-15 minutes, stirring often, then add the cornstarch, stir to combine and cook for approximately 3 minutes or until the mixture thickens, once it has thickened remove from the heat and let cool. Then pour ¾ of the mixture over the baked crust. (the other ¼ set aside and refrigerate until needed).
CHEESECAKE FILLING
- In a medium bowl whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy, then add the sugar, vanilla and egg, and beat until smooth. Pour over the apple mixture. Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes**. Cool and refrigerate 3 hours before serving or even over night. Top with Maple Caramel Sauce before serving. Enjoy!
MAPLE CARAMEL SAUCE
- In a small pot add the remaining apple filling, the caramel sauce and the maple syrup heat just until warm, stirring to combine. Pour over chilled Apple Cheesecake and sprinkle with broken pecans. Serve.
Nutrition
Recipe adapted from – Paula Deen
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I’m in the middle of making it now. It calls for one egg( which is less than I would usually use) but in the directions it says add eggs, plural. So I’m a bit confused.
Hi Michele, sorry about that it should be egg. I hope you enjoy it. Take care!
Excellent recipe. October here in England we are in the midst of the apple harvest. So many varieties each with their own flavour or property to impart. Maple syrup is so good. My son and family live in Canada and because of visits to Maple Syrup farms, I am a fan of the product. Have you tried Maple sugar, the most concentrated flavour. This recipe is a winning combination and Pecan nuts are my favourite. Thank you.
Hi Yolande, thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed it. I actually have a recipe that uses Maple sugar. https://anitalianinmykitchen.com/maple-leaf-sandwich-cookies/ . Take care!
My Husband & Son are allergic to anything Apple, can this be made without them?
Hi Mel, yes I think that would work out. Let me know how it goes. Take care!
Can I use an “8” springform pan for this recipe?
Hi Jade, sure a springform pan would be perfect.
This looks amazing! Some questions before I jumpinto making this… do you leave the sides of the spring form pan on while chilling it? When its done I would like to transfer it to another plate without crumbling it to pieces or cutting it, will it slide off the bottom of the spring form pan on its own or will it be sticky? Is there something I should put between the crust and the pan to help? Do you happen to have a good recipe for the caramel? And lastly, when I put the toppings on will it melt the cheesecake. I’m wanting to make this as a gift so I’d like the topping to go on before I deliver it. Is this possible?
Thanks!
Hi Shanna, I would advise you to cover the pan in parchment paper, for easier removal. And I actually just posted a really good homemade maple caramel sauce https://anitalianinmykitchen.com/caramel-sauce/ . The caramel sauce should be cooled so it won’t melt the cheesecake, although it may be kind of messy in the box, what if you brought the sauce in a mason jar as part of the gift and they could drizzle it before serving? Hope that helps. And I hope you enjoy it. Have a great weekend.
Omg this was so amazing, making it again today. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Hi Vanessa, so glad you enjoyed it.