Pumpkin Harvest Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

pumpkins = fall

As long as I can remember, Pumpkins are the most beautiful symbol of fall.  Their rich orange color and delicious flavor add something very special to the fall baking season.  Pumpkin pie was the only pumpkin exposure I remember when I was growing up.  You either liked pumpkin pie, or you didn’t.  These days, it seems like pumpkin is in everything!  At least for a few months of the fall season anyway.  At our house, cheesecake is a must-have at our holiday table.  I always had a cheesecake and pumpkin pie ready for our holiday dessert table.  So why not mix these two famous holiday desserts?

yum!

cheesecakes are the perfect dessert for the baker and the eater!

As I have told you before, I really like baking cheesecake!  They are so simple to prepare, and you can prepare them early and have them ready in the refrigerator.  One less thing to fuss about on your dinner party day!  My pumpkin harvest cheesecake has all the warm flavors of fall.  It begins with a gingersnap cinnamon crust, and it just gets better from there.  It is important to mix some sour cream together with your pumpkin puree.  The sour cream makes the cheesecake creamy and light, with the perfect smooth consistency.

it is always fun to mix it up for the holidays!

I usually bake my cheesecake in a spring form pan, but this year I decided to switch it up a bit.  I had just purchased some mini popover pans, and they were just begging to be a part of our Thanksgiving celebration!  Of course, you can bake the cheesecake in a standard spring form pan, but why not surprise your family and friends with a gorgeous new dessert?  Whipping cream is particularly delicious with pumpkin anything.  It can be a dollop on the top, or piped with a pastry bag to create the first perfect bite, and why not add a little drizzle of chocolate to surprise everybody? The chocolate is a gorgeous contrast to the caramel colored pumpkin and the creamy white whipping cream.  Have some fun and mix these two holiday classics together and let me know what you think!

Pumpkin Harvest Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

A scrumptious fall cheesecake packed with all of the flavors of the season.  Creamy pumpkin cheesecake with a gingersnap cinnamon crust

• Author: Sue Larson
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Total Time: 1 1/2 hours + cooling time
• Yield: 8-10 servings 1x
• Category: dessert
• Method: mix and bake

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

Crust:

35 gingersnap cookies

6 TB sugar

6 TB melted butter

2 tsp cinnamon

Filling:

Three 8 oz. packages of softened cream cheese

1 cup sugar

1 cup pumpkin puree

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

2 tsp vanilla

1 TB  Kahlua

Topping:

2 cups of fresh whipping cream

3 TB powdered sugar

Melted semi sweet chocolate for drizzle

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Add cookies to a food processor and process until fine crumbs.  Alternatively, you may place cookies in a large zip lock bag and crush them with a rolling pin

Pour crumbled cookies in a medium bowl

Add the remaining crust ingredients and stir until combined

Press in the bottom and up the sides of a 9″ spring form pan.  Alternatively, you may use a mini popover pan and press the  crust in the bottom and up the sides of the individual sections

Refrigerate the crust while you are preparing the filling

Beat the cream cheese in a bowl until light and fluffy

Pour in sugar and beat for 2 more minutes

Add pumpkin and sour cream and mix well

Crack eggs into bowl and beat until just incorporated

Add vanilla and Kahlua

Pour into prepared pan and bake in the oven for 45-55 minutes, or until top is solid, but still a little jiggly.  If baking in a mini popover pan, bake for 28-32 minutes

Remove from oven and cool

Cover and refrigerate until day of party

Topping:

Whip the whipping cream until stiff peaks form

Add  powdered sugar and mix until combined

Using a pastry bag, pipe the whipping cream on top of the cold cheesecake.  Alternatively, you may put whipping cream in a large zip lock bag and snip the corner and pipe the cream through the opening

Melt chocolate in a small glass bowl in the microwave.  Heat in 20 second increments until melted

Let chocolate cool slightly, and then swirl lightly on top of the whipping cream.  You also may pour the chocolate in a small zip lock sandwich bag with a slit cut in the corner to pipe the chocolate on the top of the whipping cream