Pumpkin cheesecake
Creamy, perfectly sweet, and lightly spicy. All the good things that a pumpkin cheesecake should be.
It’s my favorite time of the year for desserts. (But the worst time of the year for pictures because we’re in a perpetual state of darkness thanks to day light’s savings time ending. So please forgive the pictures.) While I’m more of an apple over pumpkin kind of gal, I do appreciate a good pumpkin dessert especially at Thanksgiving. If you’re a cheesecake lover, this is for you! The pumpkin isn’t overpowering: it’s just the right amount.
I also wanted this to not be so rich that you couldn’t eat it after a hearty Thanksgiving meal. So instead of sugar, I used maple syrup for sweetener. The topping takes it just a bit higher, but it would be great and a bit lighter just plain too.
I did a simple cream maple syrup pecan topping, but I have a feeling that it would be even better (and richer) with a caramel pecan topping. Just mix caramel with the nuts then top it!
I used homemade cream cheese for this (recipe coming this winter!), but it would work with either homemade or store bought! My crust was made gluten free, but regular graham crackers would be fine as well!
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Ingredients:
Crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
6 tablespoons butter, melted
Cheesecake:
4 cups (4 8 ounce bricks) cream cheese, room tempature
2 cups maple syrup, room tempature
1 15 oz can of pumpkin puree
1/4 cup arrowroot startch
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
6 eggs, room tempature
Maple Cream:
1 cup pecans, toasted
1/2 cup cream
3/4 cup maple syrup
Instructions:
For the crust, combine the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter in a bowl. Press into the bottom of a 10 inch spring form pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Leave the oven on.
For the cheese cake, blend the cream cheese, maple syrup, pumpkin, arrowroot, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla together until well combined and no lumps remain. Add eggs one by one, beating after each addition.
Pour the cream cheese mixture on the prebaked crust. Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until it’s set with just a little jiggle to it when shaken.
Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool until it is room temperature. Place the cheesecake in the fridge for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
Before serving, whisk the cream and maple syrup together. Stir in the toasted pecans. Pour over the maple syrup cream mix over the cheesecake. Slice and serve. Store the leftovers in the fridge. Enjoy!
