Pumpkin Cheesecake

Do you like pumpkin pie?

Do you like cheesecake?

Now I'm reminded of that ooold silly Reeses Peanut Butter Cup comercial

Man #1: "Hey! You got your peanut butter in my chocolate"

Man #2: "YOU got your chocolate in my peanut butter"

Well, just goes to show ya.....somethings are not only worth combining, but are a must. Especially when the result is creamy, rich and so mouth watering yummy.

Ok, I have to confess...I'm not a huge pumpkin pie fan. (have I told you that before?) Anyway.....not that it tastes yucky or anything but it just doesn't "wow" me. Cheesecake, I love! So this was a no-brainer for me. You get the total pumpkin flavor with the added richness and texture of cheesecake.

NOTE: Please make this 1 day in advance to allow the cake to set. Otherwise it'll just taste like plain ole pumpkin pie. (not that that's a bad thing.....but what's the point, right?)

I got the recipe 10 or 15 years ago from a family member who lives up in Sacramento. I think she got the recipe from the newspaper? (Sometimes newspapers have such good recipes)

Before I get started....I want to know....since when do they put tire treads on the back side of the graham crackers?

Never mind....what ever. When it comes to crumbs....they all end up looking the same. At least in my eyes. But since it's officially winter (after all, yesterday was the first day of winter)...do you think crumbs are anything like snowflakes? I mean.....if you put them under a microscope, will they all look different the way snowflakes do?

(Don't mind me....I'm in desperate need of coffee. My coffee maker broke on Sunday)

ok....lets work on the crust first. I'm using graham crackers. I've used gingersnaps before but I was seriously afraid for my food processor blades.....those gingersnaps are so hard and it's so loud! I just never could bring myself to go though that again. It tasted good.....but not as fantastic as I thought it would.

Preheat the oven to 350' F.

Sooo.....combine:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted

Once it's all evenly coated and moistened from the butter, press into a 9" spring form pan, along the bottom and up the sides a couple of inches.

I use a the bottom of a glass to help out in this area.....it's so much easier.

Now stick it in the oven for about 7 - 8 minutes. Set it aside

For the filling:

2 8oz packs of cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt
4 large eggs, room temp
1 1/4 cup pumpkin puree

Preheat oven 325' F

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Beat until creamy. While beating, add 1 egg at a time....

(don't over beat)

Last but not least, beat in the pumpkin and pour into your prepared crust

Now pay attention here....You are going to need a dish...maybe a casserole dish to place on a rack under the pie. In that dish, you will pour 2 cups of water. This will help prevent your cheesecake from cracking.

Soo....place your cheesecake in the over...place your casserole dish with 2 cups of water on a rack underneath.

Here it gets vague.....bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until done.

(this sounds like something my grandmother would tell me)

Mine took 1 hr 15 mins. I don't like the "clean knife" trick for cheesecakes. You end up with a miniature of the San Andreas Fault. So I kinda jiggled it a bit....and when it stops resembling jell-o, I figured it's pretty close to being done.

This time we only had 1 small minor crack along the edge....which quickly disappeared when everything cooled

I hope that if you get a chance to make this, that you like it as much as I do.

Btw...I would've decked it out with some pretty dollops of cool whip, except when ever I have that stuff around, my daughter eats it all. Every time the refrigerator door opens, I hear that tale-tale muffled hissing sound of the cool whip being sprayed into her mouth.

Gee...I wonder where she learned that from?