Friday, October 14, 2011

So many pumpkins, so little time





Pumpkins (and their little friends cinnamon and nutmeg) seem synonymous with fall to me. They're everywhere around here: in fields, tumbling out of displays in the markets and stacked outside of grocery stores. I love the look of pumpkins and the aroma of any resulting baking. They are just asking to be made into pies. Unfortunately, no one in my family has ever been fond of pumpkin pie. I know this puts us all at odds with the world, but what can you do?

Luckily, I came across an earlier version of this pumpkin cheesecake and tinkered until it suited all of us (except my son in law who does not believe that cheese should be in cakes, but enough about him).
Pumpkin swirl cheesecake is very easy, quick to make, looks pretty and smells wonderful when baking. It has become a staple in our family for Thanksgiving. In Canada we celebrate ‘officially’ on the second Monday in October. It’s a statutory holiday and there is no ‘traditional’ shopping event associated with it. Instead, it’s the last weekend for a woodsy ramble with the leaves in full color, or a bike ride, time for family gatherings and for anyone with a cottage, it’s the traditional closing weekend.
Most Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving, but with three days to choose from, there are a lot of different traditions on when and how to celebrate. I love that flexibility. If you play your cards right, you can manage a couple of dinners. Just sayin’.
But it doesn’t need to be Thanksgiving for this cake. It’s easy and doesn’t require a special occasion. I think any fall day ending in a Y would do. It keeps well and like many recipes is even better the second day – if there’s any left.
Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake
2 cups finely crushed ginger snaps(I used gluten free and the crust came out crunchy and carmelized)
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
6 tablespoons butter, melted
3 8 oz packages Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup sugar, divided
1 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs (room temperature)
1 cup canned pumpkin (or cooked mashed pumpkin)
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Dash ground cloves (optional)
Preheat oven to 325°F (or 300 if using a dark springform pan).
Mix cookie crumbs, nuts and butter; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.
Beat cream cheese, 3/4 cup sugar and vanilla with mixer until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each just until blended. Do not over mix or the top may crack (ahem). Remove 1 cup plain batter. Stir remaining sugar, pumpkin and spices into remaining batter.


Spoon pumpkin batter into crust; top with spoonfuls of the plain batter. Swirl with knife.




Bake about 50 – 55 min. or until centre is almost set.
Cool completely. Refrigerate at least 4 hours.



For a calorie-free taste of MJ's Camilla MacPhee, Fiona Silk and Charlotte Adams mysteries check out www.maryjanemaffini.com. Sign up for the free e-newsletter and have fun with news, contests and recipes.
And don't miss out on The Busy Woman's Guide to Murder, the latest adventure of sleuth and professional organizer Charlotte Adams.




10 comments:

  1. Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving, MJ! I think I'd enjoy having several days to choose from to celebrate. :) This pumpkin cheesecake sounds like the perfect fall treat!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yummy, as usual.

    Speaking of pumpkins and cheesecake, my daughter and I found ourselves in a barbecue dive a few towns over at lunch yesterday. One of the dessert specials for the day was deep-fried pumpkin cheesecake, served with pumpkin ice cream. Of course we tried it, and it was outstanding. The pumpkin flavors came through loud and clear, the coating was crunchy, the filling soft.

    So, in the unlikely event you have any cheesecake left over, and a handy deep fat fryer, you could try it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You've given us autumn in a blog post, MJ. Beautiful! Happy belated Thanksgiving to our girl up north, and thanks for this delicious keeper of a recipe!

    ~ Cleo

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oooh, MJ, I'm adding this to my Thanksgiving recipe list. It looks absolutely delish.

    And warm, belated Thanksgiving good wishes to you and all of our Canadian friends!

    Rochelle

    ReplyDelete
  5. This looks delicious.

    Saw Krista's post: http://www.lorisreadingcorner.com/2011/10/trick-treat-spooktacular-guest-post-giveaway-krista-davis.html
    and see Cleo is soon.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you ladies! Glad you like it, Elizabeth.

    Sheila, I can't get that deep fried everything image out of my mind!

    Thanks for the good wishes, Cleo. I've decided to celebrate both Thanksgivings (for all the good eats and wishes.

    Let me know, Rochelle! Hope it makes the keeper list.

    I'll check out that link, Liz! Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Mary Jane, love the cheesecake. How pretty. And Sheila, I had to laugh. Deep-fried? Oh, my. What will they think of next.

    ~Avery

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for the plug, Liz!

    Mary Jane, I love pumpkin cheesecake and this one sound just perfect! So smart to get the nut taste in the crust.

    So . . . how many Thanksgiving meals did you manage to eat this year? ; )

    ~ Krista

    ReplyDelete
  9. My family doesn't care for pumpkin pie either. We always had pumpkin ice cream pie! The cheesecake sounds delicious though!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thanks, Avery!
    Krista, I kept it to two dinners, but I'm already planning another one for November.

    Katreader - I'd love to try pumpkin ice cream. I've never seen it. I'll keep my eyes open.

    ReplyDelete