Caramel Toffee Crunch Cheesecake

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2/3 cup butter, cut into small chunks

Filling:

• 4 8-oz cream cheese
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 8-oz toffee bits, about 1 1/2 cups

Sauce:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup butter, cut into small chunks
• 1/2 cup 35% whipping cream
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• pecan halves (optional)

Directions

1. To make the crust, preheat oven to 350F. Lightly butter sides and bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Stir flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Cut in butter just until mixture resembles small crumbs. Turn mixture into buttered pan. Press firmly and evenly over bottom of pan. Bake in centre of preheated oven until golden, from 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven.

2. Meanwhile, make the filling. In a large bowl, using an electric mixture, beat cream cheese with sugar and flour until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down sides of bowl between additions, until well mixed. Then, stir in sour cream until evenly mixed. Fold in toffee bits. Scrape batter ove hot crust. Smooth top. Bake in centre of preheated oven for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 300F. Continue baking until centre of cheesecake is almost set when jiggled, 60-70 minutes more. Remove from oven and place pan on wire rack. Let stand for 10 minutes, then run a knife around edge to help prevent cracking. Cool completely, then cover and refrigerate.

3. To make the sauce, place sugar in a small, heavy saucepan. Pour water over top. Do not stir. Set over high heat and swirl saucepan gently by the handle until sugar is dissolved. When the mixture starts to bubble, gently swirl pan again until mixture turns a light golden colour, from 4-6 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter. Stir in whipping cream and vanilla. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Sauce will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 5 days. Reheat before serving.

4. To serve, slice cake into thick wedges, then drizzle sauce over top. Garnish with toasted pecans, if you wish. Leftovers will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 3 days. Reheat before serving.