pumpkin swirl cheesecake

If you love regular cheesecake AND pumpkin cheesecake, you'll love this delicious swirled cheesecake! It's pretty simple to make and the results will impress!

The recipe, from Sally's Baking Addiction, uses purchased gingersnap cookies as the crust. She adds more spices to the crust, but we omit them here because we felt our cookies were plenty spicy! You can also make a graham cracker crust if you prefer. 

Our photos and video show us preparing a smaller, 7-inch, cheesecake. If you'd like to do the same, you'll need to use 60 percent of the ingredients below, designed for a traditional 9- or 10-inch cheesecake.

She also provides directions for a traditional water bath for your cheesecake. We prefer not to have our cheesecake in a bain marie. We use a water-filled pan below the cheesecake and add it to the oven as it warms up. It makes the oven nice and steamy. Perfect for minimizing cracks in your cake!

We didn't follow the instructions for tenting your cheesecake with foil to avoid browning. You'll see ours got a little too brown on top, but it still tasted delish :)
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ingredients & equipment

Crust

• 1 and 1/2 cups (150g) store-bought gingersnap cookie crumbs
• 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons; 60g) unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar

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Cheesecake

• four 8-ounce blocks (904g) full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 1 and 1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup (80g) full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice​​

​Equipment

• 9- or 10-inch springform pan
• high-rimmed roaster, filled with water to place below cheesecake

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directions

1. Adjust one oven rack to the lower position. Put roaster filled with about 2 inches of water in the pan. Put a second rack in the center rack of the oven. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
2. Make the crust: Using a food processor, pulse the gingersnap cookies into crumbs. Pour into a medium bowl and stir in sugar and melted butter until combined. (You can also pulse it all together in the food processor.) Mixture will be sandy. Press firmly into the bottom and slightly up the sides of 9- or 10-inch springform pan. No need to grease the pan first. You can use the bottom of a measuring cup or glass to pack the crust down tightly. Pre-bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven.  Allow crust to slightly cool as you prepare the filling.
3. Make the filling: Using a stand mixer fitted with SideSwipe or a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth and creamy, 1-2 minutes. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract, then beat until fully combined.
   
4. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until just blended. After the final egg is incorporated into the batter, stop mixing. To help prevent the cheesecake from deflating and cracking as it cools, avoid over-mixing the batter as best you can.
5. Scoop out 2 cups of batter and place in a medium mixing bowl. Stir in the pumpkin, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice until combined. Begin adding spoonfuls of each batter, the plain and the pumpkin, on top of the crust. Alternate until all the batter is used and pan is filled. Using a toothpick or knife, swirl the batters together by dragging the toothpick top to bottom, then left to right.
6. Bake cheesecake for 55-70 minutes or until the center is almost set. When it's done, the center of the cheesecake will slightly wobble if you gently shake the pan. (Note: if you notice the cheesecake browning too quickly on top, tent it with aluminum foil halfway through baking.) 
   
7. Turn the oven off and open the oven door slightly. Let the cheesecake sit in the oven for 1 -2 hours as it cools down. Remove cheesecake from the oven and allow to cool completely at room temperature, then refrigerate the cheesecake for at least 4 hours or overnight.
8. Use a knife to loosen the chilled cheesecake from the rim of the springform pan, then remove the rim. Add toppings, if desired. Using a clean sharp knife, cut into slices for serving. For neat slices, wipe the knife clean and dip into warm water between each slice.
9. Cover and store leftover cheesecake in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.