New York Style Pumpkin Cheesecake with Homemade Graham Cracker Crust
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Come enjoy the perfect combination of pumpkin and cheesecake with my New York Style Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe, featuring a homemade graham cracker crust. This creamy, spiced dessert captures the essence of fall in every decadent bite. Learn how to create this luscious cheesecake, perfect for autumn gatherings or whenever you crave a slice of seasonal heaven. Elevate your baking with this classic recipe that combines the best of New York and the flavors of fall.
the new york style cheesecake:
Did you know that cheesecake is technically classified as a custard? This old-fashioned dessert is a staple on many people’s lists of their all-time favorite desserts. But its history dates back thousands of years! The first cheesecake, as legend tells it, was created in 2000 B.C. on the island of Samos in Greece. The cheesecake is mentioned in Greek mythology and was served to Olympic athletes during the first games. There is also evidence that it was a popular dessert for weddings and celebrations.
However, it was not until Europeans arrived in the Americas that the signature ingredient we know and love today, cream cheese, was added. A dairy farmer in the United States discovered cream cheese in New York circa 1872 by trying to recreate the French cheese, Neufchatel. This resulting cheese has become, in my opinion, one of the most popular American cheese products for sale in grocery stores.
The New York style cheesecake is simply that: a cheesecake made with cream cheese without any additional ingredients inside to flavor it. It’s pretty basic, with additional egg yolks in the batter to give it some extra structure and flavor. Traditionally it is served with chocolate sauce, caramel syrup, or macerated fruit on the side.
the method:
STEP ONE: To make this autumnal delight of a dessert, you’ll first need to start by making the graham crackers. For this recipe, I made my own homemade graham crackers for the crust. One day, I will have the resources to make my own cream cheese! But for now, we are here. To make the graham crackers, you will need graham flour which is a more coarsely ground whole wheat flour. This gives the graham cracker its signature brown color and robust flavor. Combine the ingredients, cutting in butter, to create a pie-crust like textured dough. Then, the dough is chilled before rolling out the crackers, cutting them, and baking them for about 15 minutes.
STEP TWO: After the crackers have cooled, it is time to crumble them up! You may choose to do this by hand or in a food processor. The food processor gives you a more uniform texture and finer grind. You may also place the crackers into a plastic bag and pound them with a wooden mallet or wooden spoon. Crush the crackers until they become fine crumbs. Then combine them with some sugar, melted butter, and cinnamon and set this aside.
STEP THREE: After the crust is made, it is time to make the filling. This filling comes together rather quickly, creaming the cream cheese, sugar, and eggs together until it becomes a thick soup. A entire 2 cups of pumpkin puree is added to this recipe along with some delicious warm spices, sour cream, and heavy cream. Yum! Mix everything together and set this aside.
STEP FOUR: Line a 10-inch springform pan with 2 to 3 layers of aluminum foil. You will want to make sure that there are no cracks for water to enter and reach the pan. Heavy duty aluminum foil is best for making cheesecake, as the sheets are much wider and will cover the entire pan. Then, press the graham cracker crust into the bottom of the pan and fill the top with the cheesecake filling.
Place the pan into a large roasting pan and fill up the roasting pan with room temperature water, reaching about 3/4 of the way up the sides of the springform pan. You will be baking the custard in a water bath, which will prevent the cheesecake from baking too quickly and cracking. The cheesecake is then baked in a lower temperature oven until the edges have set and the center is jiggly, like Jell-O.
final thoughts:
This cheesecake is absolutely phenomenal. The flavors are just right, and it’s not overly sweet, which I loved. I loved the addition of homemade graham crackers for the crust. It really brought some uniqueness to the cheesecake, and I thought that the flavor was overall much better. It was so rich and creamy!
Let me know if you give this New York Style Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe a try! I hope that you have a fun time making it. It is a labor of love, and it will be much appreciated by whomever you choose to share it with. This is the perfect cake to bring to autumn gatherings, and it’s a lovely fall dessert delight!
xoxo Kayla
New York Style Pumpkin Cheesecake with Homemade Graham Cracker Crust
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (142 g) graham flour
- 1 cup (130 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (28 g) brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/3 + 1/4 cup (68 g) salted butter, cold and cubed
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) honey
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) milk
- 1 1/2 cups (120 g) fine graham cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 6 tbsp (90 ml) melted unsalted butter
- 24 oz (680 g) cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup (82 g) brown sugar, packed
- 2/3 cup (133 g) granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp (24 g) cornstarch
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 15 oz can (425 g) pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
- 1 vanilla bean
- 6 large eggs
- Whipped cream, for serving
- Freshly grated nutmeg, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F (177° C). Set aside 2 large ungreased baking sheets.
- In a large bowl, mix together the graham flour, all-purpose flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
- With a fork or pastry blender, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs about the size of a pea. Pour in the milk and honey and form the dough into a ball. Knead the dough until it is almost smooth.
- Divide the dough into two equal sized pieces. Roll each half into a 12 x 12-inch (30 x 30-cm) square or about 1/8-inch (2.5-mm) thickness. With a fork, poke holes all over the surface of the dough. Cut into 2-inch (5-cm) squares, arranging all of the crackers on the baking sheets.
- Bake the crackers for 15 minutes or until golden brown and no longer moist. Cool on a wire rack before using in the cheesecake recipes. Otherwise, they can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about 1 week.
- Crush the graham crackers into a fine crumb, using either a food processor, blender, or you can place them into a gallon ziplock bag and smash them with a mallet.
- In a medium bowl, combine the graham crackers crumbs with the sugar, salt, and melted butter until everything is well combined, about 2 minutes. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and set this aside until you are ready to assemble the cheesecake.
- Preheat the oven to 300° F (149° C). Line the outside a 10-inch (25-cm) springform pan with aluminum foil, making sure that all of the edges are fully covered and there are no gaps. If water seeps into the pan it can ruin the cheesecake. Prepare about 1 quart of water and leave it to rest at room temperature. Set all of this aside for now.
- Begin by creaming together the cream cheese, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until the sugar is nearly dissolved, about 4 to 5 minutes. Whip in the cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, pumpkin, sour cream, heavy cream, and vanilla bean seeds until well combined and the batter is smooth without any lumps, about 3 to 6 minutes.
- Add in the eggs, about one at a time, until they have all been incorporated into the batter, about 5 minutes total.
- Press the graham cracker crust into the bottom of the cake pan tightly with the bottom of a drinking glass. Then, pour the cheesecake filling over the top of the crust, spreading until it is smooth on top.
- Place the springform pan into a large roasting pan. Fill up the roasting pan with the room temperature water, filling it up at least 3/4 of the way up the outside of the cake pan.
- Very carefully place the roasting pan into the preheated oven. Bake the cheesecake for about 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, or until the edges are set and the center is wobbly/jiggly like Jell-O. It should not be soupy.
- Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake to rest in the oven while it cools for at least 1 hour. This helps to prevent the cheesecake from cracking by cooling too quickly.
- Remove the roasting pan from the oven and the cheesecake from the roasting pan. Carefully take off the aluminum foil and clean up any water from the water. Then let the cheesecake cool to room temperature. This can take another hour or so. Then, place the cheesecake into the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight to cure.
- Once cured, remove the cheesecake from the refrigerator. It should have released from the edges of the springform pan, but if it has not, gently dislodge it from the sides of the pans by running a knife along the outer edge. Then, open the springform pan and remove the sides.
- Serve the cheesecake chilled with some whipped cream and freshly grated nutmeg.
