Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

I went through a phase with cheesecake. I probably made cheesecake once a week during this time for an entire summer—Mixed Berry, White Chocolate Raspberry, New York Style, Triple Decker, Cappuccino, Caramel Fudge Brownie, Caramel Apple, S’mores, Ruggle’s Peanut Butter Cup… I wish I was kidding, but sadly I’m not.

That phase quickly turned sour when I consumed an entire individual cheesecake in one sitting one night. Don’t judge me, we’ve all been there…

I haven’t been able to look at cheesecake the same ever since. Serves me right.

In spite of my relationship with cheesecake, I know how many other people love it. Specifically, my teammates, who are exactly the people I had in mind when I made this for our mock Thanksgiving dinner this past Thursday!

For when plain old pumpkin pie just doesn’t get your blood flowing during the holidays…

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake recipe by FoodStuff:

Crust:

1 ½ cups crushed gingersnap cookies

½ cup finely chopped pecans

1/3 cup butter, melted

Filling:

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

¾ cup white sugar, divided

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, mix together the crushed gingersnap cookies, pecans, and butter. Press into the bottom, and about 1 inch up the sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake crust 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Set aside to cool.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, ½ cup sugar, and vanilla just until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture. Blend ¼ cup sugar, pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the remaining mixture. Spread the pumpkin flavored batter into the crust, and drop the plain batter by spoonfuls onto the top. Swirl with a knife to create a marbled effect. (I piped the white mixture with a ziplock bag into a swirl effect instead)
3. Bake 55 minutes in the preheated oven, or until filling is set. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Allow to cool before removing pan rim. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.