This Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake is deliciously creamy and decadent, with the additional caramel and spice flavor of a Biscoff crust. Perfect for Fall or Thanksgiving! Step by step recipe will guarantee foolproof results, without any cracks in your cheesecake!EASY / INTERMEDIATE – This recipe is very easy, but takes a little practice to consistently bake cheesecakes without any cracks.US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Common Measurement Conversions. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results.
Optional add-ins for pumpkin spice latte cheesecake
2tspinstant coffee granulesuse less if it’s instant coffee powder
3tbspwarm water
Whipped cream topping
1cupchilled whipping cream
2tbspconfectioner's sugar
1tspvanilla extract
Pinchof salt
1tspcoffee extractoptional
Crushed biscoff cookies
Instructions
Preparing the cheesecake pan
This step is optional and is mainly for cheesecake pans where the bottom is not flat. First, remove the bottom from a 9 inch cheesecake pan. Place the pan upside down on a large piece of foil, and then fold the foil over the bottom edge of the pan. Make sure the foil is tightly folded over and flattened.
Then flip it over and place it in the cheesecake pan. The bottom of the cake pan should now be covered with a flat piece of foil, creating a flat surface.
Butter the pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Cut strips of parchment paper and line the sides of the pan as well. Set aside.
Also prepare a piece of heavy-duty foil that is large enough to wrap the pan from the bottom to the sides.
Making the biscoff crust
Preheat your oven to 375°F / 190°C.
Place the biscoff cookies in a food processor and crush them into crumbs. You can also do this by placing the cookies in a gallon ziploc bag and then crush the cookies using a rolling pin.
250 g biscoff cookies
Place the crumbs in a medium bowl and mix in the salt and melted butter well. The mixture should be just moist enough to be held together when you squeeze a handful of it in your hands.
250 g biscoff cookies, 65 g melted unsalted butter, slightly cooled, Generous pinch of salt
Place the crumbs in the prepared cheesecake pan, and spread it as evenly as possible. Flatten the crumbs using a flat-bottomed glass (or something similar) and make sure it’s even.
Bake the crust in the preheated oven for about 7 – 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the cake pan to cool completely. You can place the pan in the fridge to accelerate this.
Spiced pumpkin cheesecake filling
Once the crust is cooled down, take the piece of heavy duty foil that is big enough to fully encase the cheesecake pan, and wrap it around the pan. Make sure there are no tears.
To do this, place the pan in the center of the foil, and fold it up along the sides of the pan. Mold the foil so that it's flush against the sides of the pan. The foil should come up to at least the top edge of the cake pan, to prevent water from flowing in. It's crucial that the cake pan is covered with a single piece of foil (instead of multiple, overlapping pieces of foil). Set aside until needed.
Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C. Make sure you've got a large roasting pan or something similar that is large enough for the water bath for your cheesecake pan. Heat some water in a kettle to use for the water bath. You can also use very hot water from the tap.
Make the batter – Place the softened cream cheese, cornstarch, spices, salt, and sugar in the mixing bowl. With a paddle attachment, mix the ingredients until the cream cheese is creamy and has no lumps. Remember to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that all the cream cheese is properly creamed and smooth.
907 g cream cheese, softened, 225 g brown sugar, 15 g cornstarch, 1 tbsp pumpkin spice mix
Once the cream cheese is creamy and free of lumps, add the vanilla, lemon, and pumpkin puree. Mix them in.
Pumpkin spice latte cheesecake - For this variation, dissolve the coffee in the water, and add it to the batter along with the vanilla.
2 tsp instant coffee granules, 3 tbsp warm water
Scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl, and mix the cream cheese mixture on medium speed until you have a smooth mixture. There should be no lumps, and everything should be well mixed. But be careful not to overmix either.
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs well together. Pass this egg mixture through a sieve to remove any egg residue.
6 large eggs
Add this egg mixture to the cream cheese batter and stir it in on low speed, until mixed through well. Scrape the sides and bottom to make sure the batter mixes evenly. You can do this step manually as well.
6 large eggs
To remove excess air, firmly knock the mixing bowl on a hard surface (i.e. your kitchen counter). Do this a few times to remove as much air as possible.
Pour the batter into the prepared cheesecake pan. Then, using the back of a spoon, slap the surface of the batter. You will see air bubbles moving up to the surface. Do this a few times to remove more excess air.
Place the cheesecake pan (wrapped in foil) inside the pan that you will be using for the water bath. Then transfer this set up to the preheated oven, and pour hot water into the water bath pan. Take care not to splash any water into the cheesecake pan. The water should come halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 75 – 90 minutes. The cheesecake is baked when the edges are set, but the center is a little jiggly.
Remove the pan (with the water bath) from the oven, and let it sit for a few minutes to slowly cool down.
Then remove the pan from the water bath, and let it cool completely to room temperature.
Place the cooled cake pan in the fridge. Refrigerate until completely chilled. Preferably at least 6 hours.
Once chilled, run a palette spatula along the edge of the cake pan to release the parchment paper from the sides. Unlatch the cheesecake pan ring to loosen the cheesecake from the pan. This will be very easy, since there is parchment paper along the sides of the pan. The parchment paper should peel off the sides of the cheesecake with ease.
Keep the cheesecake in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
Spread the whipped cream layer on top just before serving.
To cut clean and straight slices of cheesecake, dip a sharp knife (no jagged edges) in hot water to warm the blade. Then wipe the blade, and cut the cheesecake with the warm blade. Warm and clean the blade between each slice to get clean, straight edges for all of your slices.
Whipped cream topping
Place the chilled whipping cream in a bowl, along with the sugar, vanilla, and salt. Whisk with a hand mixer or stand mixer until you have stiff peaks.
1 cup chilled whipping cream, 2 tbsp confectioner's sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract, Pinch of salt
Optional - Sprinkle the coffee extract on top and swirl it in to create coffee swirls in the cream.
1 tsp coffee extract
Dollop the whipped cream on the surface of the cheesecake, and spread it on top. You can also pipe the whipped cream on top if you prefer.
Top with crushed biscoff cookies.
Crushed biscoff cookies
Notes
Note on spices
You can use store-bought pumpkin pie spice mix. I use ½ tbsp ground cinnamon + ½ tbsp chai spice mix. This spice mix is my personal preference.
Note on substitutions
In place of biscoff cookies, you can use the same amount (by weight) of graham crackers or gingersnap cookies. To make a sweet potato cheesecake, substitute the pumpkin puree with the same amount (by weight) of mashed sweet potatoes.To make this cheesecake gluten free, use gluten free graham crackers for the crust.
Note on avoiding cracks in your cheesecake
The longer you mix your cheesecake batter, the more air introduced into it. So make sure to frequently scrape the sides and the bottom of the mixing bowl so that you mix all the ingredients in as little time as possible, without incorporating too much air. Also make sure to knock the mixing bowl on a hard surface to remove any excess air from the batter.
Baking the cheesecake without a water bath
You can also bake this cheesecake without a water bath. Preheat the oven to 300 F / 150 C. Bake the cheesecake for about 105 – 120 minutes. The cheesecake edges will rise and brown more, and the middle will be a little sunken in. This is how it should be. The middle should also still be a little jiggly. Remove from the oven and let it cool to room temperature, before refrigerating it until completely chilled. Instead of foil, you can also use a disposable aluminum / foil pie tin, which will fit the cheesecake pan and mold around the pan.
How to adjust ingredient amounts to make an 8 inch cheesecake
If you only have an 8 inch cheesecake pan, that is 3 inches in height, you will need to scale the ingredients to 75% of the amount provided here. However, I’ve made some changes, since it’s hard to measure 75% of the eggs accurately. So you will need;680 g cream cheese, softened (3 blocks / 24 oz)168 g white sugar10 g cornstarch (1 tbsp, packed)2 ¼ tsp pumpkin pie spice2 tsp lemon juice1 ½ tsp vanilla190 g pumpkin puree (¾ cup)2 large eggs2 egg yolksBake for about 85 minutes at 350 F / 180 F with a water bath. Bake for 115 minutes at 300 F / 150 C without a water bath.