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Philly Caramel Cheesecake Bars

"Take cheesecake bars over-the-top with a drizzle of caramel and a dusting of chopped pecans."

By allrecipes · From Open Recipes · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Butter and cream cheese match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and 2,746 recipes mention both. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓

The recipe

32 bars
Prep15 min
Cook45 min

Ingredients

Contains: egg, milk, tree nuts (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)

Directions

Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.

  1. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 9x13-inch pan with foil, leaving some overhang on the sides.

  2. Mix the graham crumbs, half of the chopped pecans (1/2 cup) and the melted butter until evenly moistened. Press firmly into the bottom of the pan.

  3. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then remove it from the oven and let it cool slightly. Keep the oven on.

  4. Beat the softened cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined.

  5. Pour the cream cheese filling over the warm crust. Drizzle the caramel ice cream topping over the top and swirl gently with a knife.

  6. Sprinkle the remaining chopped pecans (1/2 cup) over the top.

  7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the edges are set and the center is just barely jiggly. The center should reach 160°F (71°C) for egg safety.

  8. Cool on a rack for 1 hour, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Lift out using the foil and cut into 32 bars.

By allrecipes. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

  1. Butter + cream cheesetop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together2,746 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  2. Butter + creamtop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together41,494 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

  3. Sugar + vanillatop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlaplow
    Mentioned together35,031 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  4. Honey + vanillatop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together1,262 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  5. Pecans + cream cheesetop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together465 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

Sugar and vanilla share little aroma chemistry, yet 35,031 recipes mention both: they likely work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Flavor stand-ins for the pecans

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (honey, butter, cream cheese, sugar, cream, vanilla, egg):

  1. Pecansthe original
  2. Almondabout as good a flavor fit

Fit is the average pairing score against honey, butter, cream cheese, sugar, cream, vanilla, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).