The creamiest, silkiest, rich yet light & luscious pumpkin cheesecake loaded with cozy spices. With a crunchy browned butter Biscoff cookie & pecan crust, salted maple bourbon caramel sauce, and fresh vanilla whipped cream. It’s everything you crave in a holiday dessert but SO. MUCH. BETTER.
I adore all the flavors of fall–warm and cozy spices, pumpkin, apples, sweet potatoes, and maple syrup on everything, please. But, to be honest, when it comes to the traditional foods associated with each holiday, Thanksgiving does not exactly top my list of favorites. (Easter may be the winner because of all the brunch food, spring produce, and chocolate desserts.) The potential is all there on Thanksgiving… It’s just the act of mashing and casserole-ifying every component of the meal, the very strict demand for a whole intact turkey, and basic, bland pumpkin pie that bring it down a notch for me.
Enter PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE.
This is NOT your basic pumpkin pie. Nor your basic cheesecake. This is rich yet light, creamy, dreamy, cozy-spiced, flavorful heaven with delicious nutty crunch, sea-salted maple liquid gold, and clouds of cream. It is THE ultimate Thanksgiving or Christmas dessert that will convert even the pumpkin pie-haters and ensure no one gets bored.
what makes it that incredible?
- the filling: It’s your very best, melt-in-your-mouth, ultra-creamy cheesecake enhanced with pumpkin purée, which creates a wonderfully light and smooth texture. It has the perfect amount of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger for bold flavor balanced with sweetness from granulated and brown sugar. Finally, a touch of vanilla and bourbon enhance the beautiful flavors even further.
- the crust: Not your basic graham cracker. This crust uses Biscoff (speculoos) cookies, which have a warm, spiced, molassesy flavor that pairs magically with pumpkin. The crust also incudes pecan crumbs for extra crunch and satisfying nuttiness. Finally, browned butter binds the crust for even deeper, richer taste and aroma.
- the sauce: Salted. Maple. Bourbon. Caramel. Don’t need to say much more about that, except that it’s ridiculously easy to make and requires no special skills.
- the whipped cream: Light and fluffy, freshly whipped cream with vanilla is heavenly against the rich and robust flavors of the cheesecake.
This recipe makes a somewhat smaller, 7- to 7.5-inch cheesecake (compared to the standard 9-inch). I find it to still be a generous size for most families, and it’s perfect if you can’t help but serve multiple desserts at your holiday meal. See the notes to adapt it to a 9-inch if needed.
Pumpkin Cheesecake with Biscoff Pecan Crust and Maple Caramel Sauce
The creamiest, silkiest, rich yet light & luscious pumpkin cheesecake loaded with cozy spices. With a crunchy browned butter Biscoff cookie & pecan crust, salted maple bourbon caramel sauce, and fresh vanilla whipped cream. It's everything you crave in a holiday dessert but SO. MUCH. BETTER.
Notes
This recipe makes a smaller cheesecake in a 7- to 7.5-inch springform pan.
To adapt the recipe for a standard 9-inch springform pan, increase the ingredients by 1/2 and lean on the longer side of baking time (~75 minutes).
Use leftover maple caramel sauce to enhance chocolate brownie pies, coffee cake or apple cake, breakfast breads, deep-dish cookies, bread pudding, or ice cream.
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 75g Biscoff cookies (about 10 of the original size cookies, 6 of the extra large ones)
- 35g (~1/3 cup) pecan halves
- pinch sea salt
- 1.5 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
For the filling:
- 12 oz full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 6 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 6 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 2 Tbsp full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp bourbon (optional)
For the sauce: (makes enough for extra)
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 Tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 Tbsp vanilla
- 1/2 Tbsp bourbon
For the whipped cream:
- 1/2 cup cold heavy cream
- 1/2 Tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Prepare the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- See water bath instructions below. If placing the springform pan directly in the water bath, wrap the bottom and sides in several layers of foil before preparing crust.
- Add the butter to a small saucepan over low-medium heat. Bring to a light boil and cook 3-4 minutes, until browned bits form at the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat. Transfer browned butter to a heat-proof container to cool to room temperature (making sure to include the browned bits at the bottom!).
- Meanwhile, place the Biscoff cookies in a food processor and process into fine crumbs. Pour the cookie crumbs into a bowl. Then add the pecans (plus any remaining large cookie pieces) to the food processor and process to fine crumbs. (Alternatively, add the cookies and pecans to a baggy and beat with a rolling pin until you have only fine crumbs.)
- In a bowl, mix together the pecan crumbs, cookie crumbs, salt, and brown sugar. Add the cooled browned butter and stir until evenly combined. It should feel moist and crumbly.
- Press the crust into the bottom and up along the sides of a 7" to 7.5” springform pan.
- Bake the crust at 375ºF for 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from the oven to cool on a cooling rack while preparing the filling.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 325º F.
Make the filling:
- In the bowl of a food processor or electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed until completely smooth and free of clumps, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar, and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the pumpkin puree and sour cream, and beat until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, salt, flour, vanilla, and bourbon. Beat until just combined, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Pour the filling over the cooled crust and spread evenly. Tap the pan against the counter a few times to release any bubbles, then tap a spatula against the top of the batter to pop those bubbles.
- Make a water bath. Option 1: Place the springform pan in a slightly larger round cake pan, then place that pan in a larger roasting pan. Place the roasting pan onto the rack in the center of the oven, then carefully pour hot water into the roasting pan until the water rises about 1 inch. (This way, you don’t risk water seeping into the cheesecake.) Option 2: Before preparing the crust, wrap the springform pan in several layers of foil covering the bottom and sides. Place the wrapped springform pan in a larger roasting pan and proceed as above. (This may result in more even cooking because the water is better able to regulate the temperature of the cheesecake.)
- Bake for 65-75 minutes. It is finished when the edges are set and slightly puffed, and just the center is still jiggly. Turn off the oven, crack open the oven door, and allow to cool inside the oven for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the springform pan from the water bath and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature. Only when the cheesecake is fully cooled, wrap the entire springform pan in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight.
Make the sauce:
- Pour the maple syrup into a small sauce pot. Bring the syrup to a boil and cook about 5 minutes, or until reduced by half.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the butter until fully combined. Stir in the cream, salt, vanilla, and bourbon until fully combined. Cool 5-10 minutes in the pot.
- Pour into a heat proof container until fully cooled to room temperature.
- Chill in the fridge to finish thickening. The sauce keeps well in an airtight container stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.
Make the whipped cream:
- Add the cold cream to the bowl of an electric mixer and whip (gradually increasing the speed), until just thickened. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and continue to whip until medium peaks form. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge until ready to serve.
Serve:
- When ready to serve, release the cheesecake from the springform pan. Carefully transfer the cheesecake onto a serving plate, if desired.
- Drizzle the chilled maple caramel sauce over the top of the cheesecake right before serving, and dollop with whipped cream.
- Serve with additional sauce and whipped cream, as desired.