Luscious pumpkin cheesecake topped with candied pumpkin seeds with a light chipotle kick.
I have been inspired this holiday season by all the amazing recipes other food bloggers are sharing. I was also inspired to try my first-ever cheesecake because I finally bought a springform pan at the Great News Cooking School’s huge summer clearance sale. (You can also make this dessert in a 9″ pie pan, follow the same steps below.)
I was bringing dessert to a Christmas Eve party and one of the hosts is allergic to nuts, so a nut crust was out. Graham crackers are out because of the gluten. Lo and behold, my trusty Joy of Cooking to the rescue with an option for a cereal crust. I had just enough of Barbara’s whole grain crispy rice cereal to work. I made the candied pumpkin seeds from a neighbor’s Halloween pumpkin. (I cut the pumpkin up and cook it for my dog Buddy Girl.)
This dessert competed with a traditional blueberry cheesecake and a gluten-free chocolate birthday cake at the party. Guess what? Even the life-long baker liked my dessert the best. Not bragging here… it was fun to see people so surprised at how much they liked a vegan dessert. The texture is light, a bit more mousse-y than a full cheesecake. It’s also not too sweet, and the pumpkin taste comes through beautifully. The crust was light and crispy, a good alternative to a rich nut crust.
You’ll find the original recipe, including the recipe for candied cranberries (which sound amazing), on Alicia Silverstone’s blog here. And some great tips from the Gluten-Free Goddess on baking and cooling another version of a pumpkin cheesecake here.
Suitable for:
vegan, gluten-free, reduced-sugar diets
Not for:
low-sodium or migraine diets
Pumpkin cheesecake with candied pepitas
Ingredients
Cheesecake
- 1-1/2 cups puffed cereal crushed, nut meal (120 g)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt divided
- 4-6 tbsp Earth Balance (60-90 g) butter
- 12 ounces tofu silken or soft
- 8 ounces cream cheese vegan
- 3/4 cup pumpkin purée
- 1/2 cup agave syrup
- 2 tbsp cornstarch organic
- 1 tbsp lemon juice (fresh)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ginger (dried)
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg (dried)
Candied pepitas
- 3/4 cup pumpkin seeds pepitas, raw
- 1/4 tsp chipotle powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp Earth Balance
Instructions
Cheesecake
- Preheat oven to 350F/160C/gas mark 4. Process cereal or nuts and half the salt into fine crumbs in food processor or blender. Add melted margarine, and pulse to combine. If using a blender, put the mixture in a bowl, then add margarine and stir until well-mixed. It should hold together and not be too dry.
- Press the mixture evenly into the bottom and halfway up the sides of 9" springform pan. Use a piece of waxed paper to help you press it evenly. Bake 10 minutes, then set on a cooling rack. Leave the oven on.
- Purée all the remaining ingredients in a food processor or with a mixer for 3 to 5 minutes until very smooth.
- Pour into crust, and bake 70-75 minutes, or until filling is set and the top cracks slightly. Cool on a wire rack, then chill completely in refrigerator, at least 3 hours or overnight. Run a knife around the inside of the cheesecake before releasing the pan. Slice and garnish each serving with candied pumpkin seeds (recipe follows) or candied cranberries.
Candied pumpkin seeds
- If using whole seeds from a pumpkin, rinse them well and remove all the strings, then cover with well-salted water and boil for 10 minutes. Rinse and drain.
- If using shelled seeds, skip the first step. Mix the other ingredients together and bring to a boil in a saucepan for one minute. Stir in the pumpkin seeds.
- Pour the mixture onto a rimmed baking sheet covered with foil or parchment paper. Bake 20-30 minutes at 325F/140C/gas mark 3, stirring every 10 minutes and keeping the seeds spread apart so the syrup can thicken. These can burn easily, so pay attention.
- Remove when golden brown and set the tray on a cooling rack. When they are cool, they will harden into a brittle. Break up into pieces and serve as a garnish with the cheesecake or eat as a snack.
Notes
- 281 calories
- 18 g fat
- 4 g saturated fat
- 1 g monounsaturated fat
- 1 g polyunsaturated fat
- 0 g trans fat
- 0 g cholesterol
- 329 mg sodium (142 mg sodium with salt omitted, use unsalted butter or margarine to further reduce sodium)
- 17 mg potassium
- 22 g carbohydrate
- 2 g fiber
- 16 g sugars
- 9 g protein
- 8 Weight Watchers Points Plus
What can I use instead of the tofu? Can I double the cream cheese, then? (I will be using Daiya gf,nut,soy free vegan cream cheese.
Michelle, you could try adding 12 oz. more of the Daiya cream cheese. I don’t know what’s in that product, so I can’t promise it will set up like silken tofu will. But it should. Try it and let us know, I’m sure there are other readers looking for a soy-free version too!
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Thank you, thank you ~!!
I have a delima each time my entire family gets together. One is on a celiac diet …by need.
and one of my grandsons, now 35 is a vegan. Now I can fix those cheesecakes he so loves.
Yay! It’s win-win-win… cheesecake for everyone!
Yes, Vik, you could absolutely bake this in a cake or pie pan. I'd go with a pie pan, as I will come out more easily. Just follow the same steps, pre-bake it, etc.
Ha good job Steph, on having the Most Popular Dessert. I love it when people think "oh–vegan food is great". Do you think this recipe would work using a regular pie pan or even a 9 inch cake pan? I know the finished product might not look as groovy or slice as neatly, but do you think it would cook ok?
Vik