Pumpkin Cheeseecake

      The first thing I want to talk about for my Thanksgiving menu is the Pumpkin Cheesecake.  I actually think I promised this to you earlier this year when I did my last cheesecake post.  The difference with this recipe is that because of the pumpkin puree it needs a bit of stabilizer other than the egg so it gets just a little sprinkle of flour.  I usually bake my cheesecake in a straight sided cake pan so that I can cook it in a water bath.  Many people use a spring form pan, because they feel that they can more easily remove the cake from the pan, but I feel that the cheesecake cooks more evenly when you use the water bath and the spring form always scares me because I think it's going to leek and ruin the cake.  Not to worry though, the cake will slide right out if you rub the sides down with butter and then coat it in sugar.  This recipe works well in an 8 inch pan, makes for a nice tall cheesecake. 
      All of this being said I found a really sweet pan that lets me have a little bit of fun.  It is twelve 2 inch squares that I'm gonna bake individual cheesecakes into.  First cut out pieces of parchment paper to go into the bottom of the pan.  You will probably only need one, but I've got to cut 12 little ones . . . ugh.  So cut the pieces grease the pan with butter, or use a bit of pan spray, put the parchment paper down do another layer of butter on top of the parchment then coat with sugar.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
      For the crust I use gingersnaps instead of grahm crackers.  Process about 6 oz of cookies in order to get  
1 cup gingersnap crumbs.  Mix them with
1/2 cup brown sugar and  
1/2 stick butter. Press them into the bottom of the pan.  I like using a flat bottomed glass like a rocks glass to make it even.
      Now to mix your cheesecake batter.   
1 lb (2 blocks) cream cheese softened into a mixer with paddle attachment. Beat on medium until smooth, scrape the sides and add
1 cup pumpkin purée,  
1 tbs pumpkin pie spice 
1 tbs flour and 
3/4 cup sugar.  Beat until smooth, scraping sides twice. Add  
3 eggs one at a time scraping between each addition.
      To get a really smooth cheesecake without over mixing the batter pass it through a sieve.  Then pour it into the prepared pan.  Put in a casserole dish to bake.  After putting it in the oven on the bottom shelf, fill the casserole dish with water, this will make it cook evenly.  Bake for 45 min and check your cheesecake.  You should be able to bump it and it will have a slight giggle, but will spring right back. If it isn't ready yet, keep checking it in 5 minute intervals.  Let it cool for a least two hours and chill.  Carefully scrape the sides of the pan and gently slip it out onto a plate with a piece of parchment or wax paper then set another plate on the bottom and flip.  Voila! Perfect cheesecake!
      If you are going to cook in a spring form pan you can't cook in a water bath, so lower the temperature of the oven to 300 degrees, and extend your cook time to an hour.    Let it cool, and then with the spring form pan it will just pop right out when you open up the outside. 
      Now as for my little cheesecakes and your pictures, well they didn't work as well as I had hoped.  Yes mom, you were right.  They just didn't come out of the pans.  Luckily I have made this cheesecake at least a dozen times, so I can say with confidence that it will work for you.

PS - for those of you worried about buying a new pan just for this cheesecake I just want to say that I LOVE my 8 inch pans, most recipes are for a two layer cake, but with these slightly smaller pans you can do a beautiful 3 layer cake with a little thicker layers and a taller cake.