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Leave it to me to run straight to dessert in my quest for a great Thanksgiving meal. I wanted to try a different take on dessert but still wanted it to celebrate the Fall season. After eating my fair share of roasted butternut squash the last few weeks, a light bulb went off in my head.
“You know what? This would make a great dessert,” I said to myself one day while eating chunks of roasted squash. I may or may not have answered myself, but that’s neither here nor there.
I thought at first about making the squash into a sweet potato like pie. That was quickly squashed (pun intended) when I realized I didn’t want to play around with a crust while tackling my first turkey. Then inspiration hit when my Twitter foodie pals and I started talking about the outrageous prices some stores were charging for seasonal cheesecakes. I have a go-to cheesecake recipe that I have modified before to include fruit puree. Why not try it with butternut squash puree? The resulting cheesecake was a gem! Even the Boy loved it – and he hates cheesecake.
Roasted Butternut Squash Cheesecake
Ingredients
- For the filling:
- 3-8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup roasted butternut squash puree (see this post on how to roast the squash for this recipe)
- 1 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 5 large eggs
- For the crust:
- 5 ounces graham crackers
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 5 tbsp butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 and line the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper.
- Snap the side pan closed and cut off any excessive paper that hangs outside the pan. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. In a food processor, crush the graham crackers and walnuts until it becomes a fine powder. Pour in the butter and pulse on low.
- Pat the crumb mixture evenly around the bottom of the pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes or until it’s firm. Set it aside and start on the filling.
- In a mixing bowl, whip the cream cheese until it’s smooth and uniform. Add the sugar and continue beating until it’s incorporated into the cheese. Add the salt and spices and whip until the spices are distributed throughout the cream cheese mixture.
- Stop the mixer and add the first egg. Turn the mixer back on and allow the egg to be whipped into the cream cheese. Add the next egg and continue the process until all the eggs have been added.
- Finally, reduce the mixer speed slightly and pour in the heavy cream and squash puree. Continue mixing until all the ingredients are whipped together uniformly.
- Pour the filling on top of the crust. Cover the bottom and sides of the springform pan with foil and place it in a roasting pan. Fill the pan with hot water until it reaches halfway up the side of the springform pan.
- Bake the cheesecake for an hour or until the edges are set but the middle still jiggles a bit. Turn off the stove and let the cheesecake remain in the oven for another hour. DO NOT open the oven during this second hour.
- Remove the cheesecake from the oven and take it out of the roasting pan. Let the cheesecake cool completely before wrapping it up in plastic wrap and refrigerating it. Let the cheesecake cool in the fridge overnight.
Meal type: dessert
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I don’t really hate cheesecake. I had just never tasted any that I liked until I tasted cheesecake that you made. Your cheesecake is the awesome!
Oh my God – that looks beautiful! And delicious. I love the idea of using different winter squashes as an alternative to pumpkin. A triumph!
@ The Boy – Flattery will get you everywhere my dear.
@ Jenna – Thanks! Although I still give it up to you for making your own chocolate wafers for a pie crust.
nyyyommmmmmmmblers.
I love me some pumpkin cheesecake, so I don’t see how you could go wrong with butternut squash. But here’s the thing, why do I suck at cheesecake? Every time I make it, it cracks like the San Andreas fault! And as much as it’s cheaper to make your own, it’s still kind of an expensive recipe to blow. How do you avoid the dreaded crack?
-Sarah
@ Sarah – Every time I make a cheesecake, I use the water bath method. The added moisture apparently helps to prevent cracks. Since I learned that trick, I’ve never had a crack in my cheesecake. Some people also place a pan of water on the bottom rack while the cheesecake is baking instead of using a water bath. They swear that works too. I think it’s just the presence of the added moisture that helps prevent the cracking.
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This recipe was awesome ! I made a maple whip cream to go with it and my family loved it. THX!!!!!
I stumbled upon your blog in search of people with a taste for good food…I struck it rich with you! Well done, I am looking forward to cooking up more of your recipes this holiday season. Thanks.
I hope you and yours have a blessed Thanksgiving. xo
~Ella
I used a kabocha squash instead and added caramlized pecans to the bottem. This is an amazing cheesecake! Thanks for sharing!
@ Ella – Thanks so much for the kind words! And Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well!
@ Aleah – I love the idea of adding caramelized pecans to the bottom of the cheesecake! Thank you for sharing
This looks amazing, My mom cut out all dairy from the house but i found a way to make it vegan in a magazine with nuts, and will absolutely be making it with this, thanks for the idea.
I am always looking for new things to do with butternut squash. I think I will give this one a whirl tomorrow!