Literally my FAVORITE dessert! Creamy, rich, and so decadent, this Caramel Cheesecake is easy to make and such a delicious dessert recipe. Perfect for any occasion!
Caramel Cheesecake is the new favorite dessert in our home! We added some pumpkin spice seasoning to the caramel sauce to make it autumn ready, but you can easily fix this Caramel Cheesecake either way.
We like to enjoy Caramel Cheesecake after a holiday inspired meal with roasted turkey, mac and cheese, sweet potato casserole, and dinner rolls.
Caramel Cheesecake
Caramel Cheesecake
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Caramel Cheesecake Ingredients
Caramel Cheesecake Crust
- Graham crackers – Try to get these smashed as fine as you can. It’s best to use a food processor. You can even buy them pre-crushed these days!
- Sugar – Regular white sugar works great.
- Butter – I prefer salted butter. It makes a great sweet, with a touch of salty, combo.
Caramel Cheesecake Filling
- Cream cheese – You’ll want a full fat plain cream cheese for this. Make sure you’re not getting whipped cream cheese.
- Sweetened condensed milk – We use sweetened condensed ilk for our cheesecakes and it works wonderfully! Make sure to open the entire can with a can opener and scrape the insides with a spatula to get it all out.
- Lemon juice – just a small amount to add acidity.
- Vanilla extract – Use real vanilla extract for this recipe, not imitation vanilla extract.
- Eggs – Beat the eggs in slowly to avoid large air bubbles.
- Flour – A small amount of flour will help keep your cheesecake from sinking as it cools.
Caramel Sauce for Cheesecake
- Sweetened condensed milk – It’s really the only ingredient you need for caramel sauce!
- Optional: pumpkin pie spices – If you want to spice up your caramel sauce, add some nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon before cooking.
Caramel Cheesecake for the Holidays
Desserts like this Caramel Cheesecake remind me of holidays growing up in a huge family. We would all gather for massive dinners with dozens of aunts and uncles and cousins. Dinner was set out buffet style in my grandmother’s kitchen and we’d all eat and hang out at the table until dessert.
Dessert would replace dinner on the island and we’d all fill our plates again and then settle in for a long evening of catching up. It’s a tradition we’ve continued with our own kids and I hope they have as many fond memories when they’re adults as I do.
How Do You Make a Caramel Cheesecake?
⭐ First, combine crushed graham crackers, sugar, and butter and press into the bottom of a springform pan.
⭐ Then, beat cream cheese, pour in sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice and vanilla extract.
⭐ Next, add eggs one at a time, then beat in flour. Pour filling into pan and bake. Allow cheesecake to set at room temperature, then in the refrigerator.
⭐ Finally, when cheesecake is cooled, top with caramel sauce.
Scroll down to the printable recipe card toward the bottom of this article for ingredient measurements and detailed cooking instructions.
How Do You Make a Caramel Sauce for Caramel Cheesecake?
INSTANT POT (MY PREFERRED METHOD)
- Pour sweetened condensed milk and spices into an oven safe bowl.
- Mix well if you have added spices.
- Add water into the inner pot of the instant pot, then place bowl with sweetened condensed milk in, too.
- Cook on manual, then allow for natural pressure release.
- Blend until smooth.
SLOW COOKER:
- Pour Sweetened Condensed Milk and spices into a glass canning jar.
- Mix well if you have added spices.
- Close lid and place jar into slow cooker.
- Add enough water to cover mason jars and cook on low.
- Blend until smooth.
STOVE TOP:
- Pour Sweetened Condensed Milk and spices into a glass canning jar.
- Mix well if you have added spices.
- Close lid and place jar into a pot.
- Add enough water to cover mason jars and simmer on low – make sure to keep the water level so that it is covering the jars.
- Blend until smooth.
Tips for Making Cheesecake
✅ Allow ingredients for filling to come to room temperature before beginning.
✅Tap the side of your pan with a wooden spoon to release any air pockets that may have been created when mixing.
✅ Use Sweetened Condensed Milk instead of granulated sugar for a smoother, creamier finish.
✅ When the cheesecake is finished cooking, the center should still be a little bit wobbly. It will firm up as it cools.
✅ Add the eggs one at a time and beat slowly to avoid creating large air bubbles in your filling.
✅Don’t skip the flour – it will help keep the cheesecake from sinking or falling as it cools.
✅ To cut the perfect slice of cheesecake use a sharp smooth blade knife (not serrated) and swipe it with a small amount of vegetable oil before cutting. Slice in a single downward motion (not back and forth).
Caramel Cheesecake with Sweetened Condensed Milk
I absolutely love using sweetened condensed milk in desserts. It’s a great way to simplify recipes while also making them sweet, creamy, and delicious.
In this Caramel Cheesecake recipe we use Sweetened Condensed Milk in both the filling and the topping.
More Recipes like Caramel Cheesecake
- Pecan Pie
- Pumpkin Cake
- Carrot Cake
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe
- Low Carb Cheesecake
- Cranberry Upside Down Cake
- Apple Bundt Cake
What to Serve with Caramel Cheesecake
More Delicious Recipes with Sweetened Condensed Milk
Other fantastic cheesecake recipes
- Pumpkin cheesecake recipe
- Rocky road cheesecake
- No bake blueberry cheesecake
- Key lime cheesecake recipe
- Classic cheesecake recipe
- Caramel apple cheesecake
- See all our cheese cake recipe ideas!
Tools we love
- Springform pan – We use a 9 inch springform pan for this recipe.
- Spatula – These ingredients are ooey gooey and sticky. You for sure want to be using a spatula to make sure you’re properly measuring and using all your ingredients.
- Electric mixer – You’ll want an electric mixer for beating the filling to the proper consistency.
- Parchment paper – If you want to get your cheesecake off the bottom of your springform pan, definitely line it with a circle of parchment paper!
- Instant Pot – The Instant Pot is my favorite way to make caramel sauce with sweetened condensed milk. It comes out so great!
- Stainless steel bowl – I like to use a stainless steel bowl in my Instant Pot for making the caramel sauce to put over our Caramel Cheesecake!
- Glass mason jars – If you don’t use an Instant Pot to make your caramel sauce, then you’ll want to use a glass mason jar.
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How to Make Caramel Cheesecake
Caramel Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ½ cups crushed graham crackers about 8-9 whole crackers
- ¼ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup salted butter melted (about 5 tablespoons)
Filling
- 32 ounces cream cheese
- 14 ounces Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 4 eggs
- 2 tablespoons flour
Caramel sauce
- 14 ounces Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Optional: ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger (or 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice)
- Optional: salt to taste
Instructions
Crust
- Combine crushed graham crackers, sugar, and butter until mixed well. Press into the bottom of a parchment lined 9 inch springform pan. I find that using the bottom of a flat glass works well to get the crust pressed in tightly.
Filling
- In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until fluffier and increased in volume slightly. Slowly pour in sweetened condensed milk while continuing to mix.
- Beat in lemon juice and vanilla extract.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and add eggs one at a time. Do not beat quickly as this will create air bubbles in the cheesecake mixture. Lastly, beat in flour.
- Pour filling into springform pan and bake on center oven rack at 300 Fahrenheit degrees for 70 - 75 minutes. Center should still wiggle slightly when cheesecake is finished. It will firm up as it sets.
- Allow cheesecake to set at room temperature for one hour, then in the refrigerator for at least three hours. When cheesecake is completely cooled, top with caramel sauce. Either pour over the entire cake or drizzle on individual pieces depending on how you prefer to serve.
Caramel Sauce
- Instant Pot (my preferred method): Pour sweetened condensed milk and spices into an oven safe bowl that will fit into the interior pot of your pressure cooker (I used a small stainless steel bowl). Mix well if you have added spices. Pour 2 cups of water into the inner pot of the instant pot, then place bowl with sweetened condensed milk in too. Set to manual for 45 minutes, then allow to natural pressure release. Blend with an immersion blender (or in your upright blender) until smooth.
- Slow cooker: Pour sweetened condensed milk and spices into a glass canning jar. Mix well if you have added spices. Close tightly with a canning jar lid (not a plastic lid!). Place jar(s) with sweetened condensed milk into slow cooker. Pour enough water to cover mason jars. Place lid on slow cooker and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours. (My preference is 8 hours for a lighter more pourable caramel sauce). If you have lumps, blend with an immersion blender (or in your upright blender) until smooth.
- Stove top: Pour sweetened condensed milk and spices into a glass canning jar. Mix well if you have added spices. Close tightly with a canning jar lid (not a plastic lid!). Place jar(s) with sweetened condensed milk into a pot. Pour enough water to cover mason jars. Place lid on pot and simmer on LOW for about 90 minutes. Make sure to keep the water level so that it is covering the jars - check this frequently. If you have lumps, blend with an immersion blender (or in your upright blender) until smooth.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Caramel Cheesecake
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Sometimes when I focus a lot of effort on dessert, it’s nice to whip up something simple for dinner like stir fry noodles with chicken!
Recipe FAQS
Can you make caramel cheesecake with sweetened condensed milk?
Yes, sweetened condensed milk is used in both the body of the cheesecake and to make the sauce.
What should you serve with caramel cheesecake?
Cheesecake is typically served at the holidays with dishes spiral ham, prime rib, roasted potatoes, and green bean casserole.
Sylvia Roberson says
If pressed for time, simply use Leche Quemada instead of making the caramel sauce.
April says
great tip, thank you!
Julie says
What a beautiful cheesecake that is just perfect for a special get-together! I just love that caramel drizzle!
Sandra Shaffer says
Creamy cheesecake is my absolute favorite dessert and what a tasty addition with the caramel sauce. Thank you for including a variety of ways to bake this. I just got an Instant Pot, so I’ll be trying that method right away.
Bry says
Oh yum!!! I love both Caramel AND Cheesecake! I think I might have to make this for my husbands upcoming 30th!