Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

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Preparation time: 35 minutes 
Cook time: 45 minutes 
Chilling: 8 hours 
Total Time: 9 hours 20 minutes 
Yield: 20 bars

Ingredients:
Graham cracker crust:
  • 14 graham crackers
  • 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
  • ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted - plus more for pan
Cheesecake filling:
  • 24 oz. full-fat cream cheese, softened at room temperature (three 8-ounce packages)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ⅓ cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
  • 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
  • 3 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
  • ¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp. all spice
  • ¼ tsp. ground ginger
  • ⅛ tsp. ground nutmeg
  • ⅛ tsp. ground cloves

Directions:
Make the crust: 
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease the bottom of a 9×13 inch pan with butter and line it with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on the long sides of the pan. Set aside.
  2. In a food processor, pulse the graham crackers until you get fine crumbs. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and salt, and pulse a few more times. Drizzle in the melted butter and pulse until moist crumbs form.
  3. Transfer the graham crust mixture onto the prepared pan, and press it tightly until you form a compact bottom crust. Pre-bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven to let it cool slightly.
  4. Turn down the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
Make the filling: 
  1. Using a handheld electric mixer, beat the softened cream cheese with sugar over medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, 2 minutes. If needed, scrape down the sides of the bowl to incorporate. Don’t overmix.
  2. Reduce mixer to medium speed. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract, and mix until just combined. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. The batter should look creamy, smooth, and glossy. Again, don’t overmix.
  3. Scoop out a little bit less than half the batter onto another bowl. To it, add the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, all spice, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Mix until just combined. Set aside.
Assemble and bake: 
  1. Pour the regular cheesecake batter over the pre-baked crust, and smooth it over with an offset spatula. Then dollop the pumpkin cheesecake mixture over the cheesecake batter. Form swirls using a knife.
  2. Bake at 325 degrees F for 40 to 45 minutes, until the sides are set and the center is still a bit jiggly. Don't open the oven until the baking time is up, as this could cause it to collapse. Note on doneness: The center should be a little bit jiggly, but the sides should be set. It will continue to set as it cools down. Do not overbake. As long as it’s not liquidy, it’s fine.
  3. Remove from oven and run a knife along the sides of the pan – this will prevent cracking as it sets. After it has cooled down completely, cover and refrigerate for at least 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
  4. Remove the chilled cheesecake from the pan by pulling from the parchment paper overhang. Cut into squares and serve. Enjoy!
Notes:
  • Use room temperature ingredients to prevent lumps and over-mixing. You’re looking for a smooth and glossy batter.
  • Prevent cheesecake from cracking by using room temperature ingredients, not over-mixing, and not over-baking.
  • Cream cheese and sour cream: Use full fat cream cheese (NOT cream cheese spread) and full-fat sour cream. Make sure it’s softened to room temperature before mixing.
  • Pumpkin puree: Use canned pumpkin puree. Do NOT use pumpkin pie mix.
  • Make ahead: This cheesecake should be made 1 day in advance to let it chill in the fridge overnight, or at least 6 to 8 hours after it has cooled down completely.
  • Freezing: Let cool completely. Remove from pan and wrap with plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
  • Store leftover in the fridge, covered, for up to 5 days.
  • Why you don’t need a water bath: They take only 40-45 minutes to bake because it’s not as thick as a classic cheesecake, so there’s very little risk of it cracking. You may get a few small cracks, but nothing major.

Substitutions:
  • Graham crackers: You can also use the cinnamon-flavored graham crackers. Just omit the ground cinnamon.
  • You can use pre-made pumpkin spice instead of the combination of ground ginger, ground, ground cloves, ground nutmeg, all spice. Don’t substitute cinnamon with pumpkin spice.

Recipe from cookingformysoul.com
Picture from Christine Christensen

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