Savor a Silky Autumn Cheesecake with Crunchy Maple Pecans
Smooth, aromatic and perfectly sweetened, this delightful dessert captures harvest warmth. I skip canned puree – it’s watery and flat-tasting – so I recommend baking some butternut or Kent squash. Baking enhances its natural sweetness and reduces excess moisture, yielding a rich, tasty base that gives the cheesecake real depth. Golden nut brittle adds the perfect finish: golden, nutty and with just the right amount of crunch to offset the velvety texture.
Autumn Cheesecake with Maple Pecan Brittle
For about one cup of puree, dice a medium squash, peeled and seeded into cubes, then roast, with a cover, in a hot oven cooked through but not colored. Puree until smooth.
Prep 10 minutes
Cook about 1¾ hours
Cool 1 hr
Chill overnight
Serves 8-10
For the Base
- gingersnap cookies
- melted butter, liquefied, and some for coating
- sea salt
Cheesecake Mixture
- soft cheese
- fine sugar
- Finely grated zest of 1 orange
- squash mash (as described above)
- 2 tsp cornflour
- aromatic cinnamon
- warm ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- hint of cloves
- room-temperature eggs, not cold
- sour cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the Maple Pecan Brittle Topping
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- fine sugar
- nut pieces, roughly chopped
- 1 large pinch flaky sea salt
- whipping cream
Heat the oven to 185C (165C fan) coat the base and sides of a 20cm round springform tin. In a food processor the cookies until crumbly, transfer to a container. Add the salty butter, stir coating the crumbs. Place in the buttered container, even it out, bake for 10 minutes, then remove and leave to cool.
Turn down the setting to 355F. In the meantime, add the base ingredients into a mixer bowl, mix using the paddle slowly until smooth and creamy. Incorporate the puree, thickener, and seasonings, and beat gently well mixed. Introduce the eggs individually, incorporating fully after each one, next include the cream and extract, mix until smooth.
Scoop the spiced cream on to the cooled biscuit base even the surface with a tool. Lightly tap the pan on a worktop to dispel any air bubbles, then cook the dessert centered in the oven for 45 minutes until the edges are set and a soft center. Switch off the heat, crack the door open and leave the cheesecake to cool for an hour. When cooled, cool in the fridge (or for days), until fully chilled.
While waiting, create the topping (ahead of time). Set the oven to 210C (190C fan) cover a tray using liner. Combine the maple syrup and sugar in a small saucepan and heat slowly gently until dissolved. Add in the nuts and salt, take off the stove transfer to the sheet. Bake for about eight minutes, until golden and bubbly, set aside. After cooling completely, break into chunks place in an airtight container frozen.
Remove the cake from the pan place on a serving dish. Beat the cream to a light consistency, then add over the center with a clear edge. Add the crunchy bits across the surface, with additional brittle for serving.
