Thanksgiving week is here, my friends! I just love this holiday, in all its simplicity, beauty and goodness. From the traditions of food, family, and gathering together to the reminder to give thanks for everything we have.
Our family's Thanksgiving menu is always, always the same. It has been for years, and I imagine it will remain the same for years to come. The one thing that is always up in the air, however, is our dessert portion of the meal. Each year, we make a few desserts...it is Thanksgiving after all. We always make a lemon cream pie for my dad. Then we leave the other two slots open for whatever we fancy that year. Some years it's chocolate cream pie or brownies and then it is simply the law that we must have some autumnal dessert. Pumpkin, apple, maple. You get the idea.
With all of that said, some of us aren't too fond of pumpkin pie. We like a bit of pumpkin flavor, but not a whole slice of pumpkiny pumpkin. So, several years ago, I went on the search for a dessert that had pumpkin but wasn't overpowered by it. And with several recipes in hand and my own imagination, I came up with this recipe. It has since gone on to be a favorite on our home...and in the homes of our friends. Several people asked for the recipe when they tasted this pie...it's scrumpdiliumptious!
The star of this recipe most certainly has to be the gingersnap crust. It's a fun, festive spin on the traditional graham cracker crust, and makes this dessert special for the holidays. The pumpkin flavor is most subtle, with spices of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg gracing the forefront of your taste buds. And, of course, I dont't know of any pie that's complete without homemade whipped cream...pure perfection.
And an added bonus...this is a NO-BAKE cheesecake. I don't know about you, but our oven gets full on Thanksgiving and in the days leading up as we prepare, so to have one less thing to bake is extra appealing. This is definitely something you want to make the day before, though!
It's not too much food.
This is what we've been training for our whole lives.
This is our destiny, this is our finest hour.
-Lorelai, Gilmore Girls
No-Bake Autumn Spiced Cheesecake
35 gingersnap cookies, crushed finely into crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup sugar
8 oz. softened cream cheese
2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 cup powdered sugar
1 can pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
24 oz. heavy cream, whipped into stiff peaks, divided
Prepare a pie plate by spraying with nonstick coating. Preheat oven to 325*F.
In a small bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, melted butter and sugar. Press into the prepared plate, going up on the sides as well. Bake for 5 minutes.
Allow the crust to cool whilst you prepare the filling.
In a separate bowl, beat together the cream cheese and pumpkin. Add in the vanilla, spice, and powdered sugar. Continue to mix until thoroughly combined. Gently fold in about 3/4 of the whipped cream.
Pour over the crust. Smooth to even the top out, and chill overnight (or at least 4-6 hours).
Use the remaining bit of whipped cream and extra gingersnaps to decorate the top however you like. You may also want to gently sift a bit of pumpkin pie spice over the whipped cream.
Enjoy the Autumn goodness!!
May you and yours have a blessed Thanksgiving!
May your home be filled with blessings overflowing,
abundant laughter, and feasting and gathering round the table.
Bless you, dear readers!
♥