This caramel Brownie Cheesecake is the ultimate mashup of two of the most decadent and delicious sweet treats -- brownies and cheesecake! It’s the perfect indulgent sweet treat that packs in the best of both worlds. The fudgy brownie base pairs perfectly with the rich and creamy cheesecake filling! And the finishing touch, a salted caramel drizzle, to take it over the top.
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I’ve got to confess -- I have a bit of a brownie obsession. I’ve tried everything from brown butter brownies and the chocolate chip brownies to some fun Halloween brownies, and even a rich brownie ice cream.
So of course, I had to take my love a step further and try yet another variation with this creamy cheesecake with a brownie crust!
Why You’ll Love This Brownie Cheesecake Recipe
- Wickedly delicious: Imagine enjoying two different desserts in the same slice! A slice of this brownie bottom cheesecake will transport you to dessert heaven!
- No fuss recipe: The recipe is super simple and straightforward. With the no-bake cheesecake filling, you simply can’t go wrong!
- Perfect for parties: It’s the perfect extravagant and indulgent dessert to make for a special occasion or party that you’re hosting.
Ingredients
For the brownie bottom cheesecake base
- Semi-sweet chocolate: Use the best quality chocolate you can find to make the most decadent chocolate brownie crust. You can also use chocolate chips if you want to.
- Butter: I used unsalted butter and then added a bit of salt. You could totally use salted butter instead, if that’s what you have at hand.
- Sugar: To sweeten the brownie and make it tender.
- Eggs: For the moisture and richness. Use room temperature eggs.
- Vanilla: Just a bit, for that incredible aroma and natural warmth and sweetness. You will also be using it in the cheesecake layer and sauce too!
- All purpose flour, baking powder, and salt: Works together to give the brownie crust its structure.
For the cheesecake layer
- Heavy whipping cream: Creates the rich yet light fluffy texture of the cheesecake.
- Sour cream: To lend some tanginess to the cheesecake mixture.
- Cream cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese for best results.
- Sugar: Powdered sugar works best, as it gets incorporated into the cheesecake mixture easily, creating a creamy texture.
For the salted caramel sauce
- Corn syrup: To give the sauce that glossy shine, and to keep the sugar from crystalizing and turning the sauce grainy.
- Butter: Adds richness to the sauce.
- Sugar: I used a mix of white and brown sugar for a deeper caramel flavor.
- Whipping cream: Gives the sauce a bit of extra creaminess.
- Lemon juice: To enhance the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Butterscotch or caramel extract: To add an extra depth of flavor to the sauce.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Topping swap: Swap the classic caramel topping with some other toppings of your choice. Go for a classic chocolate sauce or hot fudge sauce, strawberry sauce, or top the cheesecake with some roasted nuts of your choice for a bit of texture.
- Brownie swap: Ditch the classic brownie crust here and try a unique brownie recipe like butterscotch brownies or Reese’s brownies to make this brownie crust cheesecake even better!
How to Make Brownie Cheesecake
Before you begin, preheat the oven to 325 degrees and adjust your oven rack to the middle position. You’ll also need to grease your 9 inch springform pan with some cooking spray and set it aside.
Step 1: Prepare the chocolate. Combine the butter and chocolate in a small bowl and microwave on low in 30-second intervals, giving a stir after each one. Repeat until the chocolate melts.
Step 2: Prepare the egg mixture. Combine the eggs, sugar, vanilla, baking powder and salt in another bowl.
Step 3: Combine. Add the chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and mix until you get a smooth batter.
Step 4: Add the Flour. Mix in the flour to finish the brownie batter.
Step 5: Pour the batter. Pour the batter into the greased springform pan and spread it evenly using a spatula.
Step 6: Bake and rest. Bake until the top of the brownie starts to crack, which should take around 24 minutes. Remove it from the oven and allow it to rest and cool down completely.
Step 7: Whip the cream. Whip the heavy whipping cream until it has formed stiff peaks. Set this aside.
Step 8: Whip the cream cheese. Whip the cream cheese in another bowl until it becomes light and airy. Add the powdered sugar and continue to whip until you get a uniform mixture. Last, add the sour cream and vanilla to the bowl and mix again.
Step 9: Mix it. Fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture just until everything is combined well. Avoid overmixing.
Step 10: Assemble it. Carefully line the inside edge of the springform pan with parchment paper as the brownie cools down. Spread the cheesecake mixture on the top. Cover it up and refrigerate for a few hours or until it sets.
Step 11: Make the sauce. Combine all the ingredients for the sauce except the lemon juice, vanilla extract and caramel extract in a small saucepan. Cook over medium low heat until the butter and sugar have dissolved, then bring to a boil. Once it boils, turn down the heat again and cook for another few minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice, vanilla and caramel extract.
Step 12: Cool and top. Transfer the sauce to a heat proof container and allow it to cool down for at least 30 minutes. It will thicken as it cools. Pour the thickened sauce over the cheesecake mixture while the parchment paper is still in place. Once this is done, refrigerate the cheesecake again for an hour or so to allow the caramel topping to harden up a bit, and then slice and serve!
⭐️ Hint: Serve extra sauce at table or store in an airtight container for up to 10 days in the fridge and use as an ice cream topping. Sauce will become firm when refrigerated and will need to be gently reheated before using. Do not overheat or sauce will become quite thin. For a thinner sauce increase the heavy cream to a half cup.
If you love no bake cheesecake recipes like this one, you may also enjoy this Orange Creamsicle Cheesecake or this Rainbow Cheesecake!
Storage Directions
- Storing: Store your leftover salted caramel brownie cheesecake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: You can actually freeze it if you want to! Refrigerate the cheesecake with brownie crust until it has set completely (minus the salted caramel topping) and cover it tightly in plastic wrap. Transfer it to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Then, when you want to enjoy it, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and serve it the next day!
Serving Suggestions
I love making this decadent brownie cheesecake for special occasions or when I’m hosting.
It’s such a nice sweet treat after a round of delicious appetizers like ham and cheese pinwheels, air fried pepperoni rolls or homemade pizza rolls, and some fried pickle and ranch dip, or a cheesy bacon dip.
Serve it up after indulging in these maple glazed pork chops with your favorite side dishes!
Expert Tips
- Slice smart: The easiest way to get those perfect sharp slices is to dip your knife in hot water every single time before you cut through the cheesecake.
- Temperature matters: For this and almost all cheesecake recipes out there, you’ll need to make sure the cream cheese is nice and soft, ideally at room temperature before you use it. This will ensure you have that perfect silky smooth texture.
- Mix right: When making the cheesecake filling, remember not to overmix the batter. Mix just until everything is well incorporated and you have an even mixture.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you definitely can! The store-bought version works perfectly if you’re putting this dessert together in a time crunch, or just don’t want to make it from scratch. You can also buy regular caramel sauce and add some salt to make it into salted caramel sauce.
I wouldn’t recommend doing that, since it is a no-bake cheesecake filling, which needs a fair amount of fat to set and hold its shape, even without being baked. If you use a low-fat cream cheese, it might fall apart and not have that structure you’re looking for.
How to Make Brownie Bottom Cheesecake Video
More Cheesecake Recipes
Do you like cheesecake? Here are some more recipes you may also like to try.
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
Caramel Brownie Bottom Cheesecake
Equipment
- Small saucepan or microwave safe bowl
- medium and large bowl
Ingredients
Brownie Base
- 3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chopped
- ½ cup unsalted butter cut into pieces
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
- ⅔ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- cooking spray or butter for greasing
No Bake Cheesecake Layer
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- 20 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Salted Caramel Sauce
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon caramel or butterscotch extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Adjust your oven rack to the middle position. Grease your 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray or butter. Set aside.
Brownie Base
- In a small saucepan, melt butter, over low heat. Add chocolate and stir until combined and set aside to cool sightly. OR Using a small bowl or measuring cup melt butter and chocolate together in your microwave, on low, stirring every 30 seconds or so, until melted and totally blended together. Set aside to cool slightly.
- In a medium to large mixing bowl, combine sugar, eggs, vanilla, baking powder, and salt. Use a whisk to mix the ingredients together.
- Add chocolate mixture and continue to whisk until smooth.
- Add flour and whisk until totally incorporated.
- Next, dump your batter into your prepared springform pan. Do your best to spread the batter as evenly as possible across the bottom of the pan, trying not to get any brownie batter on the sides of the pan.
- Bake until top of brownie begins to crack and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean. A few crumbs are ok! It will take around 24 minutes. Sometimes a little less, sometimes a little more. I always rotate the brownies at about the 12 minute mark.
- Once brownies are cooked, remove them from your oven and place on a wire rack to totally cool inside the pan.
No Bake Cheesecake Layer
- In a mixing bowl, beat heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
- In another mixing bowl beat cream cheese to whip it for a few minutes on medium high speed until airy and light.
- Add powdered sugar and continue to beat until no lumps remain. Add sour cream and vanilla. Continue to beat until incorporated.
- Using a spatula, gently fold in whipped cream.
- Once brownie is cool, carefully open your springform pan, slide parchment around the entire edge of brownie and close your springform pan once again. Your parchment paper must be above the edge of your springform pan. It will help hold your no bake cheesecake layer on top of your brownie base.
- Pour and spread your no bake cheesecake layer all over your brownie base inside your springform pan.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours but ideally overnight or cheesecake is firm and set.
Salted Caramel Sauce
- Mix all ingredients except the lemon juice, vanilla and caramel extract in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over medium low heat, stirring, until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved.
- Increase heat to medium high and heat to boiling, stirring.
- Reduce heat to medium low and gently boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and caramel extract. and the lemon juice.
- Pour into a heat proof cup such as a measuring cup. Put in fridge and allow to cool 30 minutes. Sauce should be thickened up but still pourable or spoon able.
- Pour or spoon roughly 1 cup of the sauce over the cheesecake while parchment is still in place and refrigerate for at least an hour to harden caramel sauce somewhat.
- Refrigerate cheesecake until needed for serving. Remove from springform pan.
- Serve and enjoy every bite.
- Serve extra sauce at table or store in an airtight container for up to 10 days in the fridge and use as an ice cream topping. Sauce will become firm when refrigerated and will need to be gently reheated before using. Do not overheat or sauce will become quite thin. For a thinner sauce increase the heavy cream to ½ cup.
Notes
- Slice smart: The easiest way to get those perfect sharp slices is to dip your knife in hot water every single time before you cut through the cheesecake.
- Temperature matters: For this and almost all cheesecake recipes out there, you’ll need to make sure the cream cheese is nice and soft, ideally at room temperature before you use it. This will ensure you have that perfect silky smooth texture.
- Mix right: When making the cheesecake filling, remember not to overmix the batter. Mix just until everything is well incorporated and you have an even mixture.
- Use storebought sauce. If you want to save some time you can buy caramel sauce and add ¼-1/2 teaspoon to it.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in July 2021. It has been updated with new images and content.
Colleen says
Very good. Caramel sauce can be used in a variety or other recipes or even as an ice cream topping.
Karin and Ken says
It’s absolutely wonderful! Thank you for noticing! All the best. Karin