My Aunt Carol thought of the most innovative dessert idea to salvage Thanksgiving and the whole holiday season: pumpkin cheesecake. Say goodbye to boring pumpkin pie!

Each slice of cheesecake has a creamy texture, a spiced pumpkin flavor, and a crunchy ginger crust that is sure to win your family over. You would think baking a cheesecake would be really difficult, but it’s actually much easier than you think!

I challenge you to try replacing your pumpkin pie with this pumpkin cheesecake recipe for your next holiday get-together, and see how much your family loves it! You won’t be disappointed!

Ingredients:

Crust

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup (40g) chopped crystallized ginger
1/3 cup (54g) pecans
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, cold & cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tbsp cold water

Filling

1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 lbs (567g) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
4 large eggs, at room temp.

Instructions:

To make the crust

Position oven rack in the center and preheat oven to 350F. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9×3 inch springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan with 2-3 layers of aluminum foil.

Place the flour, sugar, salt, ginger, and pecans in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the pecans are finely ground. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the mixture forms coarse crumbs. Add the cold water slowly until the dough just comes together. Press the dough into the bottom of your prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the crust just starts to brown. Cool crust completely on a wire rack.

To make the filling

Reduce oven temperature to 325F. In a bowl, whisk together pumpkin, heavy cream, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium-low speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugars and beat on low speed until smooth. Mix in the pumpkin mixture, then add the cornstarch and mix until just blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and do a final mix by hand to make sure all the ingredients are well incorporated.

Pour the filling in the cooled crust. Set the still wrapped springform pan in a large roasting pan. Carefully pour enough hot water into the large pan to come 1 inch up the sides of the springform pan. Bake for 70 to 80 minutes until the center is set but still a bit wobbly.

Remove cheesecake from water bath to a cooling rack. Carefully remove the foil and run a thin knife tip around the edge of the cake. This will loosen the cake and help prevent the top from cracking. Cool completely at room temperature. Refrigerate the cooled cheesecake for at least 4 hours before serving.

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Quick Tip: Use a toothpick to test the doneness in the center of the cheesecake. It should come out completely clean.

Recipe courtesy of:Alpine Berry

Image courtesy of: Macaroni and Cheesecake