Pumpkin Cheesecake In Nut Crust

By Marian Burros

Pumpkin Cheesecake In Nut Crust
Craig Lee for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes, plus at least 8 hours' cooling, and refrigeration
Rating
4(645)
Comments
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Some cheesecakes are the culinary equivalent of a punch in the gut: too sweet, too heavy, too filling. This one, first published in The Times in 1984, is delightfully different. It's lightly-sweet, slightly tangy and gently laced with spiced pumpkin flavor. The texture is surprisingly airy. Serve slices with a dollop of whipped cream or créme fraîche.

Don't skip the part of the recipe that calls for allowing it to cool in the oven overnight; it promises a crack-free, glossy top.

Featured in: DE GUSTIBUS; AUTUMN TREATS FROM THE PUMPKIN, VERSATILE GOURD

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Ingredients

Yield:12 to 16 servings

    The Crust

    • 2cups ground pecans
    • 2tablespoons brown sugar
    • 1egg white, beaten until frothy
    • 1teaspoon powdered ginger
    • 1teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

    The Filling

    • 4eggs
    • 3egg yolks
    • 2½pounds cream cheese, softened
    • ¾cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
    • 2teaspoons ground cinnamon
    • 1teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • 1teaspoon ground ginger
    • ¼teaspoon ground allspice
    • 2½teaspoons freshly grated lemon rind
    • 1½tablespoons cornstarch (or use 3 tablespoons flour)
    • 1cup heavy cream
    • 1tablespoon vanilla extract
    • 1pound pumpkin puree, fresh or canned
    • Coarsely grated lemon rind for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (14 servings)

539 calories; 46 grams fat; 22 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 25 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 18 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 287 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    For the crust, mix nuts with sugar, egg white, ginger and rind just until mixture is bound together. Press into bottom and a little up the sides of 10-inch spring-form pan.

  2. Step 2

    For the filling, lightly beat eggs and yolks; add softened cream cheese and sugar and beat until thoroughly mixed.

  3. Step 3

    Beat in cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, lemon rind and cornstarch or flour. Beat in cream, vanilla and pumpkin.

  4. Step 4

    Pour into nut crust. Place pan of hot water in bottom of oven to keep cake from cracking. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 275 degrees and bake 50 to 60 minutes longer. When done, the cheesecake will look set, but the center might still be jiggly. It will set as it cools.

  5. Step 5

    Turn off heat and allow cake to cool in oven overnight, about eight hours. Then chill.

  6. Step 6

    Remove spring-form before serving and decorate cake with coarsely grated rind.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
645 user ratings
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Comments

Scott

The canned pumpkin puree has too much liquid, therefore requiring the cornstarch in this recipe. Instead, bake fresh pumpkin (I used Winter Luxury) or squash, then puree (I used an immersion blender), add a bit of sugar, and then cook in a sauce pan until the water has mostly evaporated and the pumpkin takes on a slight caramelized appearance. This dryer puree does not need a thickener such as cornstarch, and allows the final cheesecake product to take on a much robust true pumpkin flavor.

hey_lani

Really, the directions should state - beat the cream cheese & sugar until smooth, then slowly add eggs. This will alleviate the potential lump issue when you add a "solid" to a liquid.

Recipe doesn't call for flour, but directions say to add it.

Emily Weinstein, Cooking Editor, The New York Times

As a few commenters have noted, due to an editing error this recipe called for flour in the steps, but cornstarch in the ingredient list. We've fixed that and are now giving both options in the recipe; use cornstarch if you would like the cake to be gluten-free, or flour if gluten isn't an issue and that's what you have on hand.

Craig S.

Most of this ended up in my yard waste bin. Ratio of pumpkin puree to cream cheese is way wrong. Next Thanksgiving, it’s back to traditional pumpkin pie.

Tuula

4 stars after following other reviewers' advice to reduce the amount of cream cheese to 2 c. and increasing the sugar by 1/4 cup. I found the sweetness to be perfect, but the lemon flavor dominated over the pumpkin. Not sure why the lemon is needed at all? I can't think of what else I might change to improve this recipe but might cook it again if it's requested.

Ben

This recipe needs more sugar: 3/4 C brown sugar is NOT enough sugar for a recipe with 2.5 lbs of cream cheese, 1lb of pumpkin and 1c of cream. I think adding a full cup of white sugar to the 3/4 brown sugar, or equal parts of white and brown sugar would fix the issue. Cheese cake is meant to be “not too sweet”—I get that. But this recipe doesn’t accommodate for the sheer bulk of cream-cheese/pumpkin purée. Honestly even maple syrup would probably be yummy.

Ben

@Ben is also double the spices & add cloves

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