Turtle Cheesecake Bars

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.