Salted Caramel Cheesecake (No Bake)

27/04/2018 by thebakingexplorer 47 Comments

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This Salted Caramel Cheesecake has a buttery biscuit base, is infused with salted caramel in it's creamy no bake filling, and then a rich luxurious salted caramel sauce is drizzled all over it. It's easy to make, there's no baking involved, and the decoration is simply a gorgeous golden sauce.

Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information

It is really important to stick to the ingredients and use full fat cream cheese and double cream (a cream with a 48% fat content), both of these ingredients are essential to ensure the no bake cheesecake sets. If you want to make a low fat version, I suggest doing this in small dessert glasses or ramekins as they will not set well enough to be sliced.
I am based in the UK and I find that Philadelphia cream cheese is the thickest and best quality cream cheese to use for no bake cheesecakes. I have made many cheesecakes with supermarket own brand cream cheeses too, and they have worked great. If you can though, I think it is worth spending a little more for Philadelphia (and no they haven't paid me to say this!)
I like to use digestive biscuits (Graham crackers if you're in the US) for the base, but you could substitute if for another similar biscuit like Hobnobs.
You can use either butter or baking spread for the biscuit base, I find that baking spread makes the cheesecake easier to remove from the tin as it doesn't make the base set as solidly.
If you need a caramel sauce recipe, try my Homemade Caramel Sauce.
You can find lots of answers to common no bake cheesecake questions on my How To Make A No Bake Cheesecake guide. If you've never made a no bake cheesecake before, I highly recommend reading through my guide first!
Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales*. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50) .
For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons* and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to make Salted Caramel Cheesecake

To make the biscuit base, blitz the biscuits in a food processor until they become crumbs. Stir in melted butter or baking spread, then press the mixture into the tin until compact and even. Put in the fridge to chill. For the filling, mix the cream cheese, icing sugar and caramel sauce together.

Mix in the double cream until the mixture is very thick and holds its shape. Spoon the filling into the tin over the biscuit base and smooth it out. Put in the fridge for at least 4 hours to set.

To decorate and serve, put the salted caramel sauce in a bowl and microwave it for 15 seconds or until you have a pourable texture, then pour it over the cheesecake.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

Why is salted caramel so popular?

Mixing salt with super sweet caramel started in France, and it's taken the world by storm. You can now get salted caramel ice cream, salted caramel drinks at your favourite coffee shop, salted caramel fudge, salted caramel chocolate... the list goes on! I have to admit I was skeptical when the flavour first started getting popular, it just didn't sound right to me. But now, well nothing could sound more right! It's the perfect balance of salty and sweet and we all can't get enough of it.

What caramel sauce is best to use?

My favourite caramel sauce to use is my Homemade Caramel Sauce, it's rich, smooth and absolutely divine! You can also easily add salt to it to make it into a salted caramel sauce. If you don't want to make your own, it's quite easy nowadays to find a good quality ready made caramel (or salted caramel) sauce in the shops or online. I have used Tesco's Finest, Bonn Maman and Carnation Caramel in the past with great results.

How do you make sure the cheesecake sets?

When you’re mixing the filling, you want it to get to a stage where you can scoop some up with your spatula or spoon and you have to give it a tap on the side of the bowl or slight flick of the wrist to get the mixture off the spoon. If it’s sloppy and slides right off the spoon without any encouragement needed, then you need to mix it more. Always use an electric mixer for best results. It’s also very important to use full fat cream cheese and double cream (heavy cream), as any low fat versions will affect the setting of the cheesecake. I always set my cheesecake overnight in the fridge, I’d suggest a minimum of 4 hours.

How long does the cheesecake last and can it be frozen?

The cheesecake should be stored in the fridge and will last for 3-4 days. You can freeze the undecorated cheesecake, however you do need to let it set in the fridge first. Setting it in the freezer will affect the texture and it won't be as nice. Once it's set in the fridge, you can remove it from the tin and put the cheesecake in a box or tupperware. You could also slice it up, and freeze in portions. Then you can easily defrost a few slices at a time depending on when you'd like some cheesecake!

How do you remove a no bake cheesecake from the tin?

To see step by step photos and a video showing you how to remove a no bake cheesecake from the tin, as well as the answers to lots of other common no bake cheesecake questions, check out my How to make a No Bake Cheesecake guide!

Can this cheesecake be made gluten free?

Yes! To make this recipe gluten free, swap the biscuits in the biscuit base for gluten free biscuits. I would also recommend that you check the packaging of everything you're using in the recipe in case of cross contamination. And especially if you're serving this to someone with an allergy or intolerance.

Can you use mascarpone instead of cream cheese?

Yes, you can swap the full fat cream cheese for full fat mascarpone cheese. I prefer using cream cheese as it has that slight 'tang' that you expect from a cheesecake. I find mascarpone to be much creamier and a little too rich. But, if you prefer it then you can absolutely use it instead!

Troubleshooting

If you have any questions about this recipe, or if something went wrong and you need help, please use the comment form below and I will get back to you. You can also get in touch with me on my Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to hear from you!

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