Discover this Silky Pumpkin Cheesecake featuring Crunchy Maple Pecans
Smooth, flavorful and just sweet enough, this seasonal treat embodies autumnal comfort. I skip prepared pumpkin – it’s watery and flat-tasting – so I’ve taken the extra step baking your own pumpkin. The oven’s heat coaxes out the sweet flavor and reduces unwanted water, yielding a rich, tasty base that gives the cheesecake real depth. The maple pecan brittle completes the dessert: caramelized, rich and offering a satisfying crisp complementing the velvety texture.
Autumn Cheesecake and Crunchy Pecan Topping
For the pumpkin base, dice 350-400g peeled, deseeded pumpkin into cubes, then roast, with a cover, at 390F cooked through but not colored. Puree using a powerful blender.
Prep 10 min
Cook about 1¾ hours
Cool 1 hr
Chill overnight
Serves about 10 people
For the Base
- spiced biscuits
- rich butter, liquefied, with more for the tin
- ⅛ tsp fine sea salt
For the Filling
- 500g cream cheese
- white sugar
- orange zest
- squash mash (prepared earlier)
- 2 tsp cornflour
- ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- hint of cloves
- room-temperature eggs, at room temperature
- sour cream
- vanilla
Crunchy Finish
- maple sweetener
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- nut pieces, roughly chopped
- a pinch of salt
- whipping cream
Heat the oven at a moderate heat then butter the entire interior with a springform pan. Pulse the ginger nuts to fine crumbs, transfer to a container. Mix in the melted butter and salt, stir until moistened. Transfer to the buttered container, compact it well, bake for 10 minutes, take out and cool.
Turn down the setting to a lower temp. Meanwhile, add the base ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer, then beat with the paddle attachment at a gentle pace until well blended. Mix in the puree, thickener, and seasonings, blend at low speed until combined. Mix in eggs separately, mixing thoroughly one by one, follow with the tangy cream and flavoring, mix until fully incorporated.
Scoop the pumpkin filling onto the set base level it out using a spatula. Lightly tap the pan on a worktop to release trapped air, then bake the cake on the middle rack until set until the sides are firm and a soft center. Switch off the heat, leave the door ajar allowing it to cool for 60 minutes. Once it’s at room temperature, refrigerate for 6+ hours (or for days), until firm.
In the meantime, prepare the brittle (ahead of time). Preheat the oven to 410F and line a small oven tray with parchment. Combine the ingredients in a small saucepan mixing on low until dissolved. Mix the nuts and salt, take off the stove transfer to the sheet. Bake for about eight minutes, until golden and bubbly, set aside. When fully hardened, cut roughly place in an airtight container in the freezer.
Open the dessert from its tin and transfer to a platter. Beat the cream until fluffy, then add on top of the cake leaving space around. Add the crunchy bits over the top, with additional brittle for serving.
