Pumpkin Cheesecake

This Thanksgiving I decided to make a delicious pumpkin cheesecake from scratch. It paired well with the turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, etc. This recipe seems complicated, but once you pop it in the oven most of the time is spent baking and chilling. I also doubled it since I had two Thanksgiving days this year, but I used muffin tins for the other half of the batch. If you plan on using muffin tins instead of a springform pan, then I would recommend reducing the cook time in half (about 30 minutes) or until the cheesecake starts browning on the edges.

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups crushed graham crackers (from 14 sheets)
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
6 Tbsp salted butter, melted

3 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened (I recommend using Philadelphia)
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3 large egg yolks

Toppings:
caramel sauce, store bought or  homemade

coarse sea salt (optional)
sweetened whipped cream, for serving (optional)


Directions:
To prepare crust-

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crush graham crackers by placing in a large zip lock bag and using a rolling pin to break up the pieces. In a large mixing bowl, mix together crushed graham crackers and light-brown sugar. Pour in melted butter and mix until mixture is evenly coated. Firmly press mixture into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch spring-form pan coming within about 1-inch of the top edge. Bake in preheated oven for 8-9 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool while preparing filling. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.

To prepare filling-
In a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer set on low speed, blend together cream cheese, light-brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth, about - 30 seconds. Mix in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Add in pumpkin and vanilla and mix on low speed just until combined. Add in whole eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition just until combine, then add in egg yolks and mix just until combine. Lift and tap mixing bowl against the counter several times to release air bubbles from mixture. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust and bake in preheated oven (325 degrees) for 1 hour, then turn oven off and allow cheesecake to rest in oven 25 - 30 minutes (without opening oven door). Remove from oven and allow to cool 15 minutes, then cover with plastic wrap and chill 5 hours. Slice and drizzle each serving with a generous amount of caramel sauce, sprinkle with a pinch of coarse sea salt then top with optional sweetened whipped cream. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container.

Adapted from: Cooking Classy