My pumpkin cheesecake pie is a beautifully swirled combination of pumpkin pie and classic cheesecake. It’s the perfect Thanksgiving dessert! Recipe includes a how-to video!
A New Thanksgiving Tradition
Today’s recipe is a marriage of two flavors and two favorite desserts: creamy cheesecake (my favorite) and pumpkin pie (Zach’s favorite!). Served over a crisp, crumbly graham cracker crust, this is a fall-flavored masterpiece that deserves a spot on your Thanksgiving table!
What’s to love:
- So smooth and creamy. The secret is to not over-mix the batter, which can create an unpleasant texture. I talk more about this below!
- Easy! It’s less fussy and less stressful than a classic cheesecake or pumpkin pie, plus the flavors blend together fabulously.
- Freezes beautifully. Either by the slice or as a whole. Instructions for this are below!
- Fun Thanksgiving tradition. Why choose between two classics when you can have both? I love a unique Thanksgiving dessert!
What You Need
It’s important that all of your ingredients are at room temperature before starting this recipe (this prevents over-mixing!). Here are the key ingredients in this pumpkin cheesecake pie.
- Cream cheese. As always, make sure you are using full-fat, block-style cream cheese to make this pumpkin pie cheesecake. I say this with each and every one of my cheesecake recipes because it is SO important–spreadable or low-fat cream cheese simply won’t work!
- Pumpkin puree. Just like the rest of my pumpkin recipes, you want to make sure to use pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie filling here. They look similar and are sold right next to each other, but they are not the same thing! I talk more about this below.
- Brown sugar. Adding brown sugar to the crust and the filling makes this pumpkin cheesecake pie SO flavorful and cozy. It’s subtle, but it does make a difference.
- Pumpkin spice. Also known as pumpkin pie spice, this is a blend of warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice. If you don’t have this on hand (it’s sold in the spice aisle!), you can make your own homemade pumpkin spice.
- Sour cream. If you’ve made any of my cheesecake recipes, you know that sour cream is a must-have ingredient–i’s what makes cheesecake taste like cheesecake! If you don’t have sour cream, you could use plain, full-fat Greek yogurt instead.
SAM’S TIP: This recipe only uses a partial can of pumpkin puree, which means you’ll have some leftover. Use it to make pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin snickerdoodles, or pumpkin muffins!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
- Stir together the graham cracker crumbs and sugars, then add the melted butter and toss with a fork to combine.
- Firmly press the crumbs into a 9″ pie plate, making sure to work them into the bottom and up the sides. Set aside.
- Cream together the cream cheese and sugars with an electric mixer on low speed until smooth. There should be no lumps!
- Stir in the sour cream and vanilla, then add the eggs and mix on low speed until just incorporated.
- Portion 1 ½ cups of the batter into a separate bowl.
- Add the pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice to the batter you portioned out and stir until combined.
- Alternate adding dollops of each batter into your prepared crust (I use this technique in my pumpkin cheesecake bars, too, it has such a pretty end effect!).
- Use a knife to swirl everything together into a pretty design, then bake until the edges are set, the center may be slightly jiggly still but should be mostly set. Let cool at room temperature for an hour, then place in the fridge overnight.
SAM’S TIP: Be careful not to over-mix your cheesecake batter, as doing this can cause cracks. Keep your mixer on low speed and mix until everything is just combined, then stop!
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Just make sure it’s tightly wrapped so it doesn’t absorb any odors from your freezer. It will keep this way for several months. I provide more detailed instructions on freezing in the recipe notes below.
I do not recommend it. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sweeteners and spices, so if you use it, your final result will be sweeter and spicer than intended. Stick with plain pumpkin puree here!
Sure! An Oreo crust or even a gingersnap crust would be delicious here. Digestive biscuits will also work if graham crackers aren’t available to you.
Stay tuned for another brand new pie recipe coming later this week! 🍋
Enjoy!
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar firmly packed
- 7 Tablespoons (100 g) butter melted (salted or unsalted)
Filling
- 16 oz (453 g) cream cheese softened to room temperature
- ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (66 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- ⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- ⅔ cup (173 g) canned pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
Recommended Equipment
- 9” pie plate
- Cookie scoops
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 325F (160C).
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and sugars and stir until well-combined.1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- Add melted butter and use a fork to toss together until all crumbs are moistened. Press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9” pie plate. Set aside and prepare the filling.7 Tablespoons (100 g) butter
Filling
- In a large mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and sugars and stir together with an electric mixer on low-speed until smooth, creamy, and no lumps remain.16 oz (453 g) cream cheese, ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar, ⅓ cup (66 g) light brown sugar
- Add sour cream and vanilla and stir until well-combined.⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add eggs, stirring on low-speed until just incorporated.2 large eggs
- Measure out 1 ½ cups (345g) of cheesecake into a separate, medium-sized bowl and to this second bowl add pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice and stir until smooth and combined.⅔ cup (173 g) canned pumpkin puree, 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
- Alternate dolloping plain cheesecake batter and pumpkin cheesecake batter into prepared crust. Use a butter knife to swirl for a cute design.
- Transfer to center rack of 325F (160C) oven and bake for 40-50 minutes. Edges of pie should be set and center may be slightly jiggly when finished baking but should be mostly set. Allow to cool at room temperature for about an hour before transferring to refrigerator to chill for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight, before slicing and serving.
Notes
Cream cheese
Make sure you opt for brick-style, full-fat cream cheese as the kind sold in tubs does not set up properly.Preparing the batter
One of the best ways to avoid cracks in your cheesecake and keep it from puffing in the oven is to not over-mix. The batter should be smooth and uniform, but keep your mixer on low-speed to avoid whipping too much air into the batter.Storing
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Pie may also be frozen after chilling. Freeze individually wrapped as slices or as a whole pie, just be sure to tightly wrap. Will keep frozen for at least several months. Can be enjoyed straight from the freezer or thaw overnight in the refrigerator.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Yiyi Yao
Sam, I absolutely love your recipes! I made this pumpkin cheese pie 3x over the holiday season for friends, coworkers, and myself 🙂 I’ve tried baking it for 55 minutes in a pre-made crust and the outer edges get pretty firm/dry while the center still seems a bit soft when I cut into it (like the slice doesn’t completely hold its shape). Is there anything i can do to make it more evenly baked?
Sam
Is it still jiggly and soft after cooling to room temperature and then sitting in the refrigerator all night?
CHRISTINA
First time making cheesecake and what a great recipe to start with. We love both pumpkin pie and cheesecake so the marrying of the two…wow…family of three devoured it all in 24 hrs. I do have a question though, it wasn’t firm as cheesecake from stores or at restaurants so should it have been? It held its form until you cut it then that slice will end lopsided. What could I have done differently?
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Christina! It should hold it’s shape pretty well. You can see a photo of a slice of it in my post. Did you make any substitutions? If not the pie may have just needed a few more minutes in the oven or a little more time in the refrigerator to fully set. 🙂
CHRISTINA J.
No substitutions. I did keep it a little longer than 50 min. Edges were good and middle was a tad jiggly. I kept it in fridge 6 ish hours and decided to put in the freezer. Maybe I shouldn’t have used mixer on the part you said stir. I also may have messed up spoon measurements since I used spoons as I didn’t have actual measuring spoons. Could have a few dashes short or extra and using mixer for every add-in cause this? Anyway, I have never followed a food site but I am definitely going to try a lot more of your desserts since this was so tasty. I really want to have a lemon poppy seed blackberry cheesecake but I might have to improvise since you have recipes for parts of that but not actual. Tips?
maria
i would like to make a 10 inch pie, what would the diffrence in ingredients be
Sam
Hi Maria! I haven’t personally tried it, but I would make 50% more batter. Your bake time will vary as well. 🙂
John
This turned out great. I personally used a premade crust (I wanted to keep it easy for myself as I’m not very experience in the kitchen) and it worked fine. Just keep it on the low end of the recommended baking time. I did get a big crack in my pie but it was fine since we just sliced in that spot anyway. Thanks
Sam
I’m glad you enjoyed it, John! 🙂
Natalie K.
This cheesecake is PERFECT! No sinking or cracks, so creamy, great flavor with the pumpkin spice and nice tang from the cream cheese/sour cream. Big hit at our Thanksgiving table!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Natalie! 🙂
Kris
Best tasting pumpkin cheesecake I’ve found.
I made this in a ceramic pie dish and I would say that next time I will add extra time to make sure the center is more firm.
My advice is, regardless of the dish you use, start checking it at 40 min, jiggle the dish around a little. If the center isn’t firm at all, keep baking it.
I think with the ceramic dish, 60 min to 65 min would have been perfect.
A thin pie tin or a glass dish? Maybe closer to 50 min.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Kris! 🙂