Dulce de Leche Cheesecake (A.mazing.)

This cheesecake is a Giles haus favourite. It shows up here and there and is often devoured on site. Your "crazy bad for you" siren should be going off right about now just looking at it, but oh boy is it ever good.  “Dulce-de-Leche“ is Spanish for “milk-candy” and is the basis for many classic Latin and South-American desserts. It is a delicious, caramelly sauce that you can actually make by yourself by boiling a can of sweetened condensed milk for about 40 minutes. Or, to go on the safe side, you can pick it up at any grocery store (I often find it in the honey, jams and peanut butter section). ¡Buen provecho! 

By the way, if you're keen to try the starbursty top, here's a great link

Ingredients:

Crust

- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs 

- 3 tbsp. butter, melted
- pinch of sugar

Filling

- 3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese (24 oz. total) – softened to room temperature

- 1 cup superfine granulated sugar 

- 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour 

- 2 tsp. vanilla extract 

- 3 eggs 

- 1/3 cup whole milk 

- 1/2 cup Dulce de leche sauce (+ more for serving)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). 

2. Mix crust ingredients together, and press into the bottom of a lightly buttered 9-inch springform pan. Place pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature. 

3. Reset oven temperature to 325°F (160°C). 

4. With an electric mixer beat cream cheese, sugar and flour together until well mixed and smooth. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat until smooth. Add milk and mix until well blended. 

5. Measure 1/2 cup of the cheesecake batter and pour into a small bowl. Add Dulce de Leche sauce and stir until well combined. 

6. Pour plain batter over crust. Top with Dulce de leche batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter and gently swirl into plain batter with the tip of knife or spatula. 

7. Bake in preheated 325°F (160°C) oven in a water bath for 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. The water bath helps prevent the cheesecake from cracking. After the cheesecake looks done, just turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour so that it cools very slowly (again, this helps prevent cracking). Remove from oven and gently run metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cheesecake (cracking...). Let cool 30 minutes outside of oven before covering and placing in the refrigerator. Refrigerate 4 to 6 hours or overnight before serving. If desired, serve each slice drizzled with a little bit of dulce de leche sauce, or pass around a bowl of dulce de leche sauce for guest's to help themselves.