Turtle Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients:

Turtle Cheesecake Crust:

3 cups finely chopped pecans
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cheesecake Filling:

24 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup full-fat Greek yogurt or sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 large eggs
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Toppings:

1 cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted
1 11-oz bag caramel candy, unwrapped
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons milk, divided

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Line a 13x9 pan with parchment paper, so that parchment extends over long side of pan.

In a bowl, mix crust ingredients together with a fork; press mixture onto bottom of prepared pan.

Bake crust for 20 minutes; while crust bakes, prepare filling.

Cream together cream cheese, yogurt or sour cream, sugar and vanilla.

Beat in eggs, one at a time.

After crust bakes, remove from oven and immediately sprinkle on 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Pour filling over chocolate chips and return to oven; bake for 50 minutes.

Allow cheesecake to cool for about hour, then place in refrigerator to chill overnight.

When ready to serve, remove cheesecake from pan using parchment paper and place on serving platter, then prepare toppings:

Toast pecans in oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Unwrap caramels and place in a microwave safe bowl, along with 4 tablespoons milk.

Microwave in 30 second intervals until caramels have melted and sauce is smooth.

Pour caramel sauce over cheesecake and immediately sprinkle on toasted and chopped pecans.

Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl, along with 2 tablespoons milk, and microwave in 30 second intervals, about 2 minutes total.

Stir until smooth and drizzle over caramel-pecan topping.

Allow chocolate to set before serving.

Source: Connie Brumley Sutton