Oh Splendida Cheesecake

Total Time: 25 hrs 20 mins Preparation Time: 24 hrs Cook Time: 1 hr 20 mins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs ricotta cheese (whole milk ricotta works best)
• 1 lb cream cheese
• 6 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons orange extract
• 6 tablespoons flour
• 1 pint sour cream
• 1 cup splenda sugar substitute (or 1 cup sugar)
• 1 (1 lb) package sugar-free caramels (or 1 pound package kraft caramels)
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 (1 lb) package pecan halves
• plain breadcrumbs (for dusting pan)

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 325ºf.
• 2 cream together the ricotta and cream cheese (if using regular sugar beat it into the ricotta and cream cheese mixture until well blended).
• 3 if using splenda hold and add at step 6.
• 4 add the eggs one at a time, beating each in well.
• 5 add the vanilla and orange extract.
• 6 spoon in the flour, sour cream and splenda (if using), mix well.
• 7 mixture will be loose; don't worry.
• 8 grease a 10 inch spring form pan with butter or margarine and dust with bread crumbs (merely helps cake not to stick) pour cheese cake batter into prepared pan and bake at 325ºf for about 1 hour (cake has a tendency to crack. don't worry, the topping will cover any crack).
• 9 (tip: if you didn't beat properly and discover you have lumps of cream cheese at the bottom as you are pouring into the pan, since there is no crust you can use an electic hand mixer and beat the cream cheese right in the pan) cool cake completely.
• 10 in the top of a double boiler melt the caramels with 2 tablespoons of oil stirring until nice and smooth.
• 11 spread the melted caramels over the top of the cooled cheesecake.
• 12 arrange the pecan halves in a nice pattern pressing them gently into the still warm caramel.
• 13 refrigerate the cheesecake preferably overnight.