Pumpkin Cheesecake
with a Chocolate Hazelnut Crust Recipe
Chocolate Hazelnut Crust:
- 1 3/4 cup ground chocolate wafers
- 1/4 cup toasted and ground hazelnuts
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
Method:
Place wafer crumbs, nuts and sugar in a kitchen-aid mixer with a paddle. Add butter and mix until incorporated. Place crust mixture into a 10 inch buttered and parchment lined cake pan. Compact the mixture well, to cover the bottom of the pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for about 10 minutes and let cool.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Batter:
- 1 pound cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 pinch nutmeg, ground
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger, ground
- 17 ounces marscapone cheese, room temperature
- 1 pound fresh pumpkin purée
- 4 eggs
- 4 egg whites
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup heavy or whipping cream
Method:
In kitchen-aid mixer with paddle, beat cream cheese, sugar, vanilla bean, corn starch, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger, until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, scrapping the bowl between additions. Add egg whites, cream, and lemon juice and mix well.
In a separate bowl by hand, mix marscapone cheese and pumpkin puree until smooth. Combine the two bowls, mixing until smooth. Place mixture into pre baked crust. Bake at 325 degrees F in lower third of oven in a water bath. Check in one hour. Bake until cheese cake firms up and does not souflé (approximately 1-2 hours). Cool over night in refrigerator. When ready to serve run a hot knife around the edge of the cake. Place the cake pan into a hot water bath for one minute. This will loosen up the crust. Invert onto a plastic wrapped plate and tap gently to loosen. Cake will release. Place another serving plate on top of cake and flip over.
Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes. Slice with a hot knife. Enjoy!
Serves 10-12.