So when I started getting entries for HHDD#10 Cheesecake, I was surprised at how many people had never made a cheesecake before. Though my own mother has never either! So I was really touched that so many people entered the contest who had never made a cheesecake before…very brave and I hope you learned that making a cheesecake is not that hard to do!
I could not help but think of what cheesecake I would have made had I been able to enter the contest. I had a lot of ideas. After my Samoas cheesecake, several people asked me to make a Thin Mint cheesecake(I am actually thinking about making a Thin Mint cupcake instead)…but I wasn’t in a minty mood. I thought about an orange mascarpone one…no mascarpone cheese in the apartment. What I did have was apples though. I love caramel apples. So something involving caramel apples was it. I didn’t just want a plain cheesecake with caramel apples on top. Luckily I had a bag of toffee bits…and I thought, “how perfect.” I had really wanted to make a brown butter cookie base for this, but we had very little butter in the fridge(highly unusual). So plain old graham cracker crust it was.
You have just ONE more day to vote. We have several front runners and 1st place seems to change just about every time I go and check my email. So vote, vote, vote!!!

Caramel Apple Toffee Cheesecake

1 ¼ cups graham cracker crumbs
2 TBSP sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 lbs cream cheese
2 cups sugar
2 TBSP flour
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
¾ cup toffee pieces

3 Granny Smith apples
3 TBSP butter
¼ cup sugar

1 ¼ cups sugar
1/3 cup water
2/3 cup heavy cream

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, 2 TBSP sugar and melted butter. Press this into the bottom of a 10 inch spring form pan.
Bake crust for 10 minutes at 350F and set aside.
Mix the cheese and sugar with paddle attachment on medium speed, about 3 minutes.
Add in the flour on low speed. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides and bottom after each egg. Add the egg yolks and vanilla. Fold in the toffee pieces.
Pour the batter into the preparend pan. Wrap aluminum foil on the outside of the ban and bake in a water batch at 350F for approximately 1 ½ hours. A knife inserted should come out clean when the cake is done.
Chill the cake overnight and then remove from the pan. Make the topping. Peel and core three apples(Granny Smith). Slice apples thinly.
In a heavy saucepan melt 3 TBSP butter. Stir in ¼ cupsugar and cook until the sugar starts to caramelize. Add the apples and cook them until they are tender. Cool.
Make the caramel. Pour the sugar into the center of a deep saucepan. Carefully pour 1/3 cup water around the walls of the pan, trying not to splash any of the sugar onto the walls. Do not stir; gently draw you finger twice through the center of the sugar, making a cross, to moisten it. Over high heat, bring to a full boil and cook without stirring, swirling the pan occasionally to even out the color, until the mixture is medium caramel in color, 5 to 10 minutes. Immediately turn off the heat and use a wooden spoon to slowly and carefully stir in the cream(it will bubble up and may splatter).
Top cheesecake with apples. Drizzle caramel over top of the apples.
Serves 14-16 people or 4 if you are in my family