Indulge in this Silky Autumn Cheesecake with Crunchy Maple Pecans
Smooth, aromatic and perfectly sweetened, this delightful dessert is a celebration of harvest warmth. I avoid tinned pumpkin – it’s watery and flat-tasting – so I recommend of roasting your own pumpkin. Roasting coaxes out the inherent sugars removing unwanted water, yielding a rich, tasty base imparting genuine complexity. The maple pecan brittle adds the perfect finish: golden, nutty and with just the right amount of crunch to offset the smooth filling.
Autumn Cheesecake and Maple Pecan Brittle
To make about one cup of puree, dice 350-400g peeled, deseeded pumpkin into chunks, cook, loosely covered, at 390F until soft but not browned. Process until smooth.
Prep 10 min
Cook about 1¾ hours
Cool 1 hour
Chill 6 hr+
Serves about 10 people
Crumb Crust
- gingersnap cookies
- rich butter, liquefied, plus extra for greasing
- ⅛ tsp fine sea salt
Creamy Layer
- full-fat cream cheese
- 150g caster sugar
- orange zest
- homemade puree (prepared earlier)
- cornstarch
- ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- warm ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- hint of cloves
- 2 large eggs, not cold
- 100ml soured cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Pecan Garnish
- pure maple syrup
- sugar
- 90g pecans, coarsely cut
- 1 large pinch flaky sea salt
- heavy cream
Heat the oven at a moderate heat and lightly grease the entire interior with a springform pan. In a food processor the cookies to fine crumbs, then tip into a medium bowl. Mix in the melted butter and salt, stir coating the crumbs. Place in the greased tin, press down firmly, heat until set, take out and cool.
Turn down the oven temperature to 175C (155C fan). In the meantime, place the cream cheese, sugar and orange zest into a mixer bowl, whip on low speed on medium-low until well blended. Mix in the spiced pumpkin mix, then mix at low speed well mixed. Add the eggs separately, beating in well between each addition, then add the tangy cream and flavoring, whip until fully incorporated.
Pour the spiced cream over the prepared crust and smooth the top using a spatula. Give it a gentle shake on a surface to dispel any air bubbles, then bake the cheesecake in the middle of the oven until set until the sides are firm and the centre is slightly wobbly. Stop baking, keep the oven slightly open allowing it to cool for 60 minutes. After cooling, cool in the fridge (and up to three days), until completely set.
In the meantime, make the pecan brittle (in advance). Heat the oven to 210C (190C fan) and line a small oven tray with baking paper. Stir together the ingredients over heat and stir gently over a low heat for about a minute. Stir in the nuts and salt, stop heating and scrape into the lined tray. Cook for 8 minutes, until crisp, then remove and leave to cool. When fully hardened, break into chunks keeping in a sealed jar frozen.
Open the cake from its tin move to a plate. Whisk the cream to soft peaks, then place into the middle of the cheesecake leaving a 3-4cm border. Scatter most of the pecan brittle across the surface, with additional brittle for serving.
