My pumpkin cheesecake pie is a beautifully swirled combination of pumpkin pie and classic cheesecake. It’s the perfect Thanksgiving dessert! Recipe includes a how-to video!
A New Thanksgiving Tradition
Today’s recipe is a marriage of two flavors and two favorite desserts: creamy cheesecake (my favorite) and pumpkin pie (Zach’s favorite!). Served over a crisp, crumbly graham cracker crust, this is a fall-flavored masterpiece that deserves a spot on your Thanksgiving table!
What’s to love:
- So smooth and creamy. The secret is to not over-mix the batter, which can create an unpleasant texture. I talk more about this below!
- Easy! It’s less fussy and less stressful than a classic cheesecake or pumpkin pie, plus the flavors blend together fabulously.
- Freezes beautifully. Either by the slice or as a whole. Instructions for this are below!
- Fun Thanksgiving tradition. Why choose between two classics when you can have both? I love a unique Thanksgiving dessert!
What You Need
It’s important that all of your ingredients are at room temperature before starting this recipe (this prevents over-mixing!). Here are the key ingredients in this pumpkin cheesecake pie.
- Cream cheese. As always, make sure you are using full-fat, block-style cream cheese to make this pumpkin pie cheesecake. I say this with each and every one of my cheesecake recipes because it is SO important–spreadable or low-fat cream cheese simply won’t work!
- Pumpkin puree. Just like the rest of my pumpkin recipes, you want to make sure to use pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie filling here. They look similar and are sold right next to each other, but they are not the same thing! I talk more about this below.
- Brown sugar. Adding brown sugar to the crust and the filling makes this pumpkin cheesecake pie SO flavorful and cozy. It’s subtle, but it does make a difference.
- Pumpkin spice. Also known as pumpkin pie spice, this is a blend of warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice. If you don’t have this on hand (it’s sold in the spice aisle!), you can make your own homemade pumpkin spice.
- Sour cream. If you’ve made any of my cheesecake recipes, you know that sour cream is a must-have ingredient–i’s what makes cheesecake taste like cheesecake! If you don’t have sour cream, you could use plain, full-fat Greek yogurt instead.
SAM’S TIP: This recipe only uses a partial can of pumpkin puree, which means you’ll have some leftover. Use it to make pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin snickerdoodles, or pumpkin muffins!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
- Stir together the graham cracker crumbs and sugars, then add the melted butter and toss with a fork to combine.
- Firmly press the crumbs into a 9″ pie plate, making sure to work them into the bottom and up the sides. Set aside.
- Cream together the cream cheese and sugars with an electric mixer on low speed until smooth. There should be no lumps!
- Stir in the sour cream and vanilla, then add the eggs and mix on low speed until just incorporated.
- Portion 1 ½ cups of the batter into a separate bowl.
- Add the pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice to the batter you portioned out and stir until combined.
- Alternate adding dollops of each batter into your prepared crust (I use this technique in my pumpkin cheesecake bars, too, it has such a pretty end effect!).
- Use a knife to swirl everything together into a pretty design, then bake until the edges are set, the center may be slightly jiggly still but should be mostly set. Let cool at room temperature for an hour, then place in the fridge overnight.
SAM’S TIP: Be careful not to over-mix your cheesecake batter, as doing this can cause cracks. Keep your mixer on low speed and mix until everything is just combined, then stop!
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Just make sure it’s tightly wrapped so it doesn’t absorb any odors from your freezer. It will keep this way for several months. I provide more detailed instructions on freezing in the recipe notes below.
I do not recommend it. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sweeteners and spices, so if you use it, your final result will be sweeter and spicer than intended. Stick with plain pumpkin puree here!
Sure! An Oreo crust or even a gingersnap crust would be delicious here. Digestive biscuits will also work if graham crackers aren’t available to you.
Stay tuned for another brand new pie recipe coming later this week! 🍋
Enjoy!
Let’s cook together! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on YouTube where I have over 500 free video tutorials! 💜
Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar firmly packed
- 7 Tablespoons (100 g) butter melted (salted or unsalted)
Filling
- 16 oz (453 g) cream cheese softened to room temperature
- ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (66 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- ⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- ⅔ cup (173 g) canned pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
Recommended Equipment
- 9” pie plate
- Cookie scoops
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 325F (160C).
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and sugars and stir until well-combined.1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- Add melted butter and use a fork to toss together until all crumbs are moistened. Press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9” pie plate. Set aside and prepare the filling.7 Tablespoons (100 g) butter
Filling
- In a large mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and sugars and stir together with an electric mixer on low-speed until smooth, creamy, and no lumps remain.16 oz (453 g) cream cheese, ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar, ⅓ cup (66 g) light brown sugar
- Add sour cream and vanilla and stir until well-combined.⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add eggs, stirring on low-speed until just incorporated.2 large eggs
- Measure out 1 ½ cups (345g) of cheesecake into a separate, medium-sized bowl and to this second bowl add pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice and stir until smooth and combined.⅔ cup (173 g) canned pumpkin puree, 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
- Alternate dolloping plain cheesecake batter and pumpkin cheesecake batter into prepared crust. Use a butter knife to swirl for a cute design.
- Transfer to center rack of 325F (160C) oven and bake for 40-50 minutes. Edges of pie should be set and center may be slightly jiggly when finished baking but should be mostly set. Allow to cool at room temperature for about an hour before transferring to refrigerator to chill for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight, before slicing and serving.
Notes
Cream cheese
Make sure you opt for brick-style, full-fat cream cheese as the kind sold in tubs does not set up properly.Preparing the batter
One of the best ways to avoid cracks in your cheesecake and keep it from puffing in the oven is to not over-mix. The batter should be smooth and uniform, but keep your mixer on low-speed to avoid whipping too much air into the batter.Storing
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Pie may also be frozen after chilling. Freeze individually wrapped as slices or as a whole pie, just be sure to tightly wrap. Will keep frozen for at least several months. Can be enjoyed straight from the freezer or thaw overnight in the refrigerator.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Karen E Byrd
Can’t wait to try it.
Sam
I hope you love it, Karen! 🙂
B.
Great recipe! Swapped out the sour cream for greek yogurt as I’m not a huge fan of it, and it turned out wonderfully. Thanks for sharing.
Colleen henderson
came out perfectly. I did a layered filling instead of whole swirl…BUT I used left over regular cheesecake filling for the swirl on top…im more privy to layered instead of scoops…DID not sink which relieved of any cracks…BEAUTIFULLY BAKED at 325…I also baked the crust of 5 minutes and left it to cool whole making the Filing
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Colleen! 🙂
Annie
Could I use the graham pie crust from the store instead of making it?
Sam
A premade crust should work here. It may change bake time a bit because it’s in foil instead of a glass pie plate so just keep an eye on it.
Cierra
If I wanted to try this in two 5 inch pie pans, what changes would you suggest?
Sam
Hi Cierra! It will change the bake time for sure. I’m not sure if/how you would need to adjust the amount of ingredients though. Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Emilye
I am about to make this right now so I’ll update after I do. I just really wanted to say THANK YOI SO MUCH for listing the ingredients after the steps they are used in! That locked me in to your website from now on! When I need a recipe for something this is where I will come to get it. It is so nice not having to scroll back up to the ingredients list to see how much of whatever I need for a particular step. And from what I’ve read, the recipes taste amazing! I can’t wait to finish my Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie!
Sam
I’m glad it was helpful, Emilye! I hope you love the cheesecake pie and I look forward to hearing about the things you try in the future. 🙂
Nadia
I’ve made several cheesecakes from your website and I’m excited to try this one for this thanksgiving. Only problem is, I only have steel nonstick pie pans, will they still work? Will it affect the baking time?
Sam
Hi Nadia! As long as your batter fits in the pan it should work just fine. It may bake a little faster. 🙂
Heidi
It’s delicious I made it for our Canadian thanksgiving and everyone in my family said it was the best pumpkin cheesecake I have ever made and I have made a few. Thank you
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Heidi! 🙂
Nb
Absolutely love this recipe – I’m not a baker at all but I’ve made this twice and it’s turned out amazing! My biggest silly question is, my pumpkin filling never really turns out very orange haha, so the contrast in minimal for the design. Any tips?
Sam
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it so much! The resulting color is from your pumpkin so if your pumpkin isn’t very orange your final product won’t be very orange. 🙂
Diane
Easy recipe, great texture and just enough pumpkin flavor.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Diane! 🙂
Rose Honeycutt
This recipe is absolutely a keeper!! It’s delicious and I plan on making it again for Christmas.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Rose! 🙂
Jen
made it for my daughter’s birthday. just to get out the oven and notice liquid coming out from the springform pan? didn’t have a pie pan use a springform instead is this normal?
Sam
Hi Jen! It may just be a leaky springform pan, I think it’ll be fine. Let me know how it tastes!
Sue
Hi Sam,
Made the pumpkin cheesecake pie for Thanksgiving and it was a big hit, everyone loved it. My son said it was the best pie he ever had.
Love all your recipes.
Thank you
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Sue! 🙂
Diane Seebafcher
Sam, can you use fresh pumpkin? I have 5 tubs of 2 cups each of frozen pumpkin in the freezer that I cook own from fresh pumpkin.
Sam
Hi Diane! As long as it’s processed appropriately, I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work. 🙂
Amelia
Best recipes on the internet (SERIOUSLY)! Thank you so much , the recipes are sooo delicious and reliable!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy everything so much, Amelia! 🙂
Lisa
Everytime I look at recipes that I have saved, more often than not, they are Sugar Spun Run. Thank you for posting so many consistently yummy and dependable recipes. Like one of the comments earlier… love that you put measurements in the directions!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy everything so much, Lisa! Thank you for supporting me and trusting my recipes. 🙂
Jillian
Thoughts on doing it in a spring form? I’m really wanting the look of a cheesecake and less than a pie. Curious if you think it would be doable in a springform and what alterations in baking time/temp you might suggest? Thank you!
Sam
Hi Jillian! It can be done in a springform pan, it would likely be a bit thin. Your temperature won’t change, but your bake time will certainly change. I don’t know for sure what it would be. I would make sure to keep an eye on it as it bakes. 🙂
Rosalie Kreh
Sam can we use a regular pie crust instead of Graham cracker. Thanks. Rosalie
Sam
Hi Rosalie! That should work just fine. I would follow my instructions on how to blind bake a pie crust so it doesn’t become soggy. 🙂