Gluten-Free Twins

It’s that time of year when delicious pumpkin flavors are in all the treats we can’t eat – scones from Starbucks, pumpkin pies and cakes… Well, I have a delicious pumpkin cheesecake recipe to share and, it’s gluten free. Unfortunately, it is not dairy-free, so be aware all of you who are lactose intolerant. If you’d like, I have a great GF and dairy free pumpkin pie recipe I can share.

I’ve made this cheesecake many times and it’s not only won baking competitions, but non-GF people don’t even suspect it’s missing gluten! Make this for Thanksgiving and it will become a tradition.

-Heather

Crust

-          1 cup of crumbled* Midel brand gluten free gingersnaps

-          ½  cup of finely chopped* pecans

-          5 tablespoon of unsalted butter, melted

-          1 tablespoon sugar

*You can put these in a food processor to create fine crumbs

Filling

-          3 (8oz) packages of cream cheese at room temperature

-          1 cup of sugar

-          1 cup canned pure pumpkin

-          3 large eggs

-          1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-          ¾ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon all spice)

-          Pecan halves and gingersnap crumbles for garnishing

Crust

-          Preheat oven to 350⁰

-          Crush or grind the gingersnaps and measure the 1 cup out

-        Crush or grind the pecans and measuer the 1/2 cup out

-          Combine the gingersnap crumbs with the pecans, butter and sugar in a bowl

-          Press the mix into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a 9 inch pie pan (you can also make cupcake size cheesecakes, but will need to reduce cooking time)

-          Set crust in the oven for 4 minutes

Filing

-          Blend the cream cheese and sugar in a food processor or heavy duty mixer until smooth

-          Add pumpkin, eggs, vanilla and spices

-          Mix until very smooth and pour mix into crust

Baking

-          Bake the cheesecake until the center is set, for about 1 hour and 5 minutes. It should not slosh in the middle. The edges may begin to crack. Chill the pie uncovered for at least 6 hours or overnight.

-          Sprinkle the pecan halves and gingersnap crumbles for garnishing.