This is one of my favorite dessert recipes. Ever.
Good ol’ pumpkin pie is always a classic around this time of year (and I love it!) but after many years of the same desserts at Thanksgiving, I was ready for something new. I had heard of pumpkin cheesecake and it seemed like the perfect time to try!
The results did not disappoint! Pumpkin pie cheesecake is now a regular on our holiday table.
Why Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake?
I have a feeling this point doesn’t take much convincing, but if you’ve never tried this combination of pumpkin pie and cheesecake, it’s just how you imagine it… creamy and full of flavor with that hint of warming spices.
It’s also a treat you don’t have to feel guilty about since this is a healthier and lower sugar version of cheesecake.
My kids are pretty good bakers now (thanks to this e-course they did a few years ago), so this is one recipe they tackle a day or two ahead of time while I work on batch cooking the rest of our Thanksgiving meal.
How to Make Grain and Gluten-Free Cheesecake
The first time I made it, I used a fresh Cinderella pumpkin or “old fashioned pumpkin” for this recipe. (It weighed about 25 pounds and barely fit in my oven… #kitchenadventures!)
I roasted the pumpkin in the oven at 325°F for a few hours until it was soft and then peeled the skin off. The flesh was enough to make more than 10 pies/cheesecakes (and some pumpkin lattes to go with it).
Do you need to be crazy like me and use fresh pumpkin to make this recipe? No, certainly not! I keep canned pumpkin on my Thrive Market app order list so the pantry is always stocked. The important thing is to make sure you aren’t using pumpkin with a lot of extra additives, if you can help it.
If you want to skip the can, you can also freeze fresh roasted pumpkin in batches for future baking. Here’s how I freeze food without plastic (as much as possible).
Healthier Grain-Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe
I originally saw this recipe on a website that is no longer around and adapted it to our tastes. Play around with the stevia and pumpkin spice until it suits your taste! (and check out his blog for some other great recipes!)
I’ve recently found this cheesecake company that offers several different flavors and the cheesecake bites are grain-free, gluten-free and have zero added sugar.
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe
Servings
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 cup almonds (or pecans, or hazelnuts)
- 2 TBSP coconut oil (or butter)
- 1 egg
- cinnamon
- honey (or stevia to taste)
Filling
- 1 ½ cups pumpkin puree
- 2 TBSP coconut oil
- 2 8 oz pkg cream cheese (room temperature)
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or 1 tsp cinnamon and a sprinkle each of nutmeg and cloves)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- stevia (or honey, to taste, I used 2 tsp of powdered stevia leaf from the garden)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- For crust, finely powder the nuts in a food processor or blender.
- Mix powdered nuts with coconut oil, egg, cinnamon, and honey or stevia, and use hands to press into bottom of pie pan.
- Put in oven for 10-15 minutes or until crust is slightly toasted.
- For filling, use a blender or immersion blender to mix together the pumpkin puree, coconut oil, cream cheese, eggs, spices, vanilla, and sweetener.
- Pour filling into toasted crust.
- Return to oven and cook for 35-45 minutes or until top doesn’t wiggle in center and starts to slightly crack on sides.
- Remove and let cool.
- Chill at least 2 hours or overnight before serving.
- Add a dollop of coconut whipped cream and enjoy!
Nutrition
Notes
Other Real Food Desserts:
- Grain-Free Pecan Pie Recipe
- Gingerbread Cookies Recipe with Dates & Molasses
- Grain-Free Pumpkin Bread and Muffins
- Healthy Key Lime Pie Recipe
- Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Recipe
- Crock-Pot Cheesecake Recipe
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What is your favorite dessert? Tell me about it below!
This is delicious. I had a few oops moments. I didn’t realize the crust shouldn’t go up the sides of the pie pan. It was difficult to get up the sides due to being runny. That portion burned so I cut it off. Will make in a springform pan next time. I used honey. I did end up with extra filling so put that in a ramekin and baked it crust less. Other than that the recipe is quick and easy. I’ll use almond meal in the future as well. Any ideas for a cheesecake without pumpkin? Would love some other flavor profiles to try.
The filling quantity was enough for two standard pie dishes. I used just under 1 cup of coconut sugar instead of stevia and the sweetness was perfect (I don’t like overly sweet, but still wanted it to taste like dessert). Wound up filling the dish with the crust way too full, and poured he remaining filling into another dish. Next time will do half the filling for one crust. Was very delicious! Used hazelnuts and pecans for the crust.
Hello Katie!
How much coconut sugar can I add to this cheesecake? Thanks!
I did a little less than 1/2 cup of coconut sugar, but the recipe makes about two regular pie dishes worth so I’m going to halve the filling next time!
We found that the filling was double what was needed or the crust was half of what was needed. So we made double the crust amount. One in pie pan and one in a bread pan so ended up with two cheesecakes…..wondered if anyone else found that to be the case.
I’d love to make this. Wondering how much honey to use?
Hello. Just the recipe I was looking for – and what is the pan size, please?
I was so looking forward to trying this but was very disappointed. I had to cook it over an hour and it still turned out mushy on the inside. I had to take it out of oven after an hour as the top was burning. I followed the recipe exactly. Also, it really didn’t have a cheese cake taste to it. A bit on the bland side. Very disappointed.
Katie, how much ney would you suggest using? I have YS bee farms organic raw honey. Thanks
The pumpkin cheesecake sounds delicious!! For some reason I am not seeing the ingredient list. I see everything else but just not the list….thanks!
Hi Kathi, so sorry about that glitch! It’s fixed now. Thank you for the heads up 🙂
Can I use sugar and how much?
I LOVE this recipe. Tastes decadent but stays healthy. I wish all cakes could be like that!
Can you use peanuts for the crust instead?
Hey love your recipes! Just made your pumpkin pie recipe and came out amazing! I have just enough pumpkin to make this but I like cooking with xylitol any ideas how much I would need for the filling? I am trying to convert to stevia but have had trouble adjusting to the flavour in my coffee but haven’t tried it in baking yet. I have the brand better stevia powder, should I use the same amount of that as your stevia leaf powder? Thanks so much! X