Common Cuisine |

Here is a delicious alternative to the traditional Pumpkin Pie, if you can give it up. Cheesecake is one of those desserts where you have to follow the directions to make sure you’re not compromising the quality of the final product. You also want to make sure you get a springform pan. You could probably bake it in a square baking dish, but it will be difficult to get out.

Filling:

• 3 pkg (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground nutmet
• dash ground cloves

Crust:

• 2 cups finely crushed ginger snaps
• ½ cup finely chopped pecans
• 6 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted

Crust: Mix ginger snap crumbs, pecans, and butter; press onto bottom and 2 inches up side of 9-in springform pan.

Filling: Beat cream cheese, ¾ cup of the sugar and vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Reserve 1 ½ cups of the plain batter. Stir remaining ¼ cup sugar, pumpkin, and spices into remaining batter. Spoon ½ of the pumpkin batter over crust; top with spoonfuls of ½ of the reserved plain batter. Repeat layers. Cut through batters with knife several times for marble effect.

Bake at 325 for 55 minutes or until center is almost set if using a silver springform pan. (Or, bake at 300 for 55 minutes if using a dark nonstick springform pan.) Loosen cake from side of pan; cool before removing side of pan. Refrigerate 3 hours or overnight. Makes 12 servings.