As demonstrated on WCNC-TV’s Charlotte Today
It’s National Pumpkin Day! And, what better way to celebrate with, yet, another ‘sweet’ treat this week, as we roll into Halloween only days away!
As a personal chef, tis’ the season for pumpkin, sweets, cheesecakes and candy. Well, you know… This is a recipe that you can transform into two recipes, if you like – love those kinda recipes! It’s a pumpkin cheesecake recipe that can be prepared with or without a topping. I like the sour cream topping idea if you would like to create a ‘spider web’ to decorate the top. The pumpkin cheesecake bar is amazing, as well with a ‘crumble’ topping. Great for a crowd if you are especially busy and easy to prepare.
For the VIDEO Click HERE
Enjoy and Happy Halloween!
Pumpkin Cheesecake Cupcakes
Crust:
1 cup of Moravian Cookie Crumbs (or Gingersnap Cookie Crumbs)
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
5 tablespoons sweet cream butter, melted
½ cup finely chopped pecans
Filling:
8 oz. Mascarpone Cheese
½ cup sugar
½ cup pumpkin
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping:
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Combine crumbs and brown sugar in medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter to make a crumb mixture. Stir in nuts. In a cupcake pan, line each cup with a cupcake liner and add 1 heaping teaspoon of the crumb mixture and firmly press into the bottom of each cup, forming the crust. Bake for approximately 5-7 minutes. Cool slightly.
Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake ‘low and slow’. Meanwhile, to prepare the filling, combine mascarpone, sugar, pumpkin, eggs, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla in a large mixer bowl and blend until smooth. Pour over baked crust. Bake for an additional 30-40 minutes at 300 degrees, depending on your oven, until set and done.
Remove from oven, combine topping ingredients, and spoon enough to cover the top of the cupcake (approximately 1 tablespoon). Bake an additional 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Refrigerate. Decorate, if you wish. Makes approximately one dozen.
Note: To make cheesecake bars, instead of cupcakes, combine cookie crumbs and brown sugar in a medium bowl, cut in butter to make a crumb mixture. Stir in nuts. Set aside ¾ cup mixture for topping. Press remaining mixture into bottom of an 8 x 8 x 1-1/2-inch baking pan. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 15 minutes. Cool. (omit topping) Cut into bars after cooled and refrigerated. @ 2016 Cynthia Ferich All Rights Reserved
