Gingersnap Pumpkin Cheesecake (Happy Thanksgiving!)

Gingersnap Pumpkin Cheesecake


This is not healthy, it's cheesecake that you only have on special occasions.

Not paying attention to what I was doing led to a big oops.  This was going to be a plain ol Pumpkin Ginger Cheesecake, and it still has all those things, but it's just totally different...

I wasn't paying attention and failed to stir the pumpkin into the cream cheese mixture, so I had to come up with a pumpkin layer to add to the top.  It came out sort of ugly and and swirly, so it was a good thing I was planning a sour cream layer on top of that.  Turned out delicious, and it ended up looking pretty nice, too.


Crust

3 cups ginger snap crumbs -- like my 6.2 package of Nyaker's Gingersnaps from World Market or Anna's from Ikea, if possible.  Fancy, crispy, and with a bite.
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons sugar

Combine crumbs, sugar, and butter.  Press mixture into bottom of a spring pan


Filling

16 ounces Neufchatel cheese
3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 inch of vanilla bean

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream cheese until smooth.  Scrape the vanilla bean with a spoon, adding the seeds to the bowl.  Blend in eggs and sugar.  Mix well, until smooth.  Gently pour into crust.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and raise oven temperature to 425.  Let cake cool for 15 minutes.


Pumpkin Layer

1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs

Blend pumpkin, ginger, eggs and sugar.  Mix well, until smooth.  Gently spoon over the cheesecake, tilting and using the back of a spoon to spread evenly.

Return to the 425 degree oven and back until a knife comes out mostly clean (about 30 minutes).  It's okay if the top center of the pumpkin is a little soft.  Remove from oven and let cool for another 10 minutes.


Topping

1 cup light sour cream (at room temperature)
2 tablespoons sugar


Combine room temperature sour cream and sugar.  Mix well.  Spread gently over baked filling.  Return cake to 425 degree oven and bake for 10 minutes.  Cool for 30 minutes, and run a knife around the rim of the pan to free it.  Chill in the pan for several hours or overnight.

Eat.