Pumpkin Cheesecake

A fragrant and delicate pumpkin cheesecake is the perfect autumn dessert!

When my wonderful friend posted a photo of this cheesecake on Instagram, the first thing I thought was I NEED IT! And so, hurray, the pumpkin cheesecake recipe is now available here. I am sure that this cheesecake will appeal even to those who are cool enough to pumpkin and can’t imagine it as a pastry at all. I wish you a delicious pumpkin tea party!

In this recipe, the crust (the base of the cheesecake) is very similar to pâte sucrée - here you will find more information not only about the preparation features, but also about storage.

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 1 cup flour,
• 1 egg,
• 100 g butter,
• a pinch of salt,
• cold water (if the dough is too dry).

Pumpkin layer:

• 300 g pumpkin (it’s better to use an elongated one like a nutmeg pumpkin),
• 70 g cane sugar,
• 2 eggs,
• 70 ml 33% cream,
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon,
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg,
• ½ vanilla bean,
• a pinch of salt.

Cheesecake:

• 300 g cream cheese (philadelphia cheese is the best),
• 200 ml 33% cream,
• 2 eggs,
• 100 g powdered sugar (with starch),
  if you use powdered sugar without starch, replace 1 tbsp. powder for 1 tbsp. starch;
• ½ vanilla bean.

Process:

Crust (dough):

• cut the butter into small cubes, it is more convenient to work with them,
• using your fingertips quickly and lightly rub the flour and butter together until it resembles fine breadcrumbs, you can also use a food processor for this,
• add salt, sugar and egg and knead the dough briefly, do not overwork the dough, bring the dough together,
  if the dough is very dry, add ice water; you should add one tablespoon at a time so that the dough does not become too liquid;

• shape the dough into a rectangle, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Pumpkin (part 1):

• peel and cut the pumpkin into small cubes,
• put the pumpkin in a pot with a little water,
• put the pot over a low heat and simmer until tender,
• put the pumpkin in a clean container and let it cool off.

Cheesecake:

• using a spatula gently mix the cream cheese with powdered sugar, the mixture should be homogeneous,
  you should do it as carefully as possible, so that air bubbles don’t get into the mixture, otherwise they will ruin the texture of the prepared cheesecake;
• add cream and ½ vanilla pot to the cream cheese mixture and gently mix everything,
• add the eggs one at a time, mixing each time until smooth.

Oven and baking dish:

• if you use a springform pan, wrap it in foil,
• preheat the oven to 180° C.

Pumpkin (part 2):

• using a blender puree the cooled pumpkin until smooth,
• add sugar, ½ vanilla pot, cinnamon, nutmeg and a pinch of salt, mix everything,
• add the eggs and cream, stir until smooth.

Baking and serving:

• remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out between the layers of parchment paper,

• place the rolled out dough in a baking dish and prick with a fork,
  if you use a springform pan, you should wrap it in foil, since the cheesecake is baked in a water bath, and water shouldn’t get into the cheesecake

• cover it with baking paper and fill with baking beans,
  you may also use other weights, such as rice, beans or peas;
• place in a preheated oven for 15 minutes (180° C),
• boil the kettle (the cheesecake is baked in a water bath),
• take the baked crust out of the oven and remove the baking beans along with the paper,
• lower the oven temperature to 160° C,
• pour the pumpkin mixture over the crust,
• carefully lay a layer of cheesecake on top of the pumpkin mixture,
  the pumpkin layer is quite liquid, so spread the cheesecake layer as carefully as possible so that they do not mix;
• place the baking dish with the cheesecake in a larger dish and pour boiling water into it,
• put this construction of two forms in the oven,
  if you don’t have a larger dish, you can pour boiling water into the tray, then the procedure is as follows: put the baking dish with the cheesecake in the oven on the tray and only then pour boiling water into it;
• bake the cheesecake for an hour at 160° C,
• once the cheesecake is ready, turn off the oven, slightly open the door and leave it there for at least half an hour, or even until the oven is completely cool,
  a sharp temperature drop can lead to the appearance of cracks on the surface;
• put the cheesecake in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, and preferably overnight,
• enjoy!

Thanks to the incredible Sonia @kim_kitchen_moscow for the recipe.