sister herb
Official TTI Chef
Yield: 6-8 servings, depending on size
16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup caramel sauce, warm enough to pour, but not hot*
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs, about 10 crackers worth
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup light brown sugar
Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar and butter. Set aside. Cream together the cream cheese and the sugar until smooth. Slowly add the cream, mixing until well combined. Stir in the lemon juice and vanilla. Set out 4-6 small jars and scoop 2-3 tablespoons of the graham cracker mixture into each jar. Press the crumbs down to form the bottom crust. You'll want to use about 2/3 of the crumb mixture for the bottom layers.
Scoop about half of the cheesecake filling into each jar and spread it across the crumb layer. Drizzle a tablespoon or so of caramel over the filling and then scoop another layer of cheesecake on top of the caramel. Top with another drizzle of caramel and sprinkle with the remaining graham cracker crumbs. Chill for an hour or overnight before serving.
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*Caramel Sauce
Vanilla Bean Salted Caramel Sauce
Yield: about 1 1/2 cups
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 vanilla beans, about 1/2 teaspoon scraped seeds OR 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a heavy saucepan, combine the sugar and the water. Stir to combine and then cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves; about 5 minutes. There is no need to stir, simply swirl the pan over the burner occasionally as the sugar dissolves.
Raise the heat to medium high and cook the sauce, swirling the pan occasionally, until it is amber colored; about 7-8 minutes. (It will go from amber to burnt in just moments, so keep a close eye on the pan!) Add the butter, be prepared for it to bubble and sputter, lightly stir or swirl to melt, do not scrape the sides of the pan or splash sauce up the sides of the pan. (This will cause crystallization, if you scrape the uncooked sugars back into the sauce.)
Once the butter is melted, remove from the heat and add the vanilla beans, heavy cream and salt. It will bubble again, but will calm quickly. Whisk or stir to combine (again, not scraping sides of the pan) and then let cool before transferring to a jar and refrigerating for storage.
