1-First, preheat your oven to 350ºF (175ºC) and mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter; press this into a 9-inch springform pan that’s at least 2½ inches deep to hold all the batter. Bake it for 8 minutes and let it cool while you work on the filling this step gives your crust a nice base without much effort.

2-Next, in a large bowl, beat one package of the cream cheese with ⅓ cup sugar and the cornstarch until it’s smooth and lump-free this is where using room temperature ingredients really helps. Add the remaining cream cheese packages one at a time, mixing well after each to keep things even. Then, crank up your mixer to medium speed and blend in the rest of the sugar, vanilla extract, eggs one by one, and finally the heavy whipping cream, being careful not to overmix so you avoid extra air bubbles.

3-Pour the filling over the cooled crust and wrap the pan sides with aluminum foil to keep water out. Place it in a water bath with hot water about 1 inch up the sides for even baking, which takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes until the top is light golden and the center jiggles a bit. Let it cool at room temperature before refrigerating until it’s cold this is crucial for the layers to set properly.

4-Melt the caramel candies, sweetened condensed milk, and butter in the microwave in 1-minute intervals, stirring until smooth, then let it cool slightly.

5-Heat the heavy cream to boiling, pour it over the chopped chocolate, let it sit for 2 minutes, and stir until smooth to make the ganache.

6-Pour half the caramel into any sunken spots on the cheesecake, chill it briefly to firm up, then add the ganache on top and chill for several hours or overnight.

7-Garnish with fun-sized caramel chocolate bars if you like, and serve slices with a drizzle of extra caramel sauce for that wow factor.