Pure Pumpkin Cheesecake - Baked Cheesecake #3

This cake was a request from my brother in law. He wanted a pumpkin cheesecake and so, I took this opportunity to try out Rose's recipe.

Largely based on Rose Levy Berenbaum's recipe with quite a lot of adapations. And some regrets too.

My adaptations:
1. Didn't have gingersnaps and substituted with fresh ginger and digestive biscuits, skipped the sugar in the crust.
2. Rounded up the ingredients in the filling.
3. Used muscavado instead of turbinado sugar
4. Added flour to the filling because I know I prefer a slightly firmer cheesecake.
5. Used golden syrup to replace corn syrup

Regrets:
1. Made less crust, gosh, it was delicious!
2. Made in a 8 inch pan instead of 9, resulting in a thicker cake ---slightly underbaked
3. Didn't line the side with aluminium foil, thus messy when I removed the outer pan.

The rest? Wonderful! I'm glad I didn't skip the topping.

But I think I will categorize this as an adult cake. My cheesecake loving kids shared one piece and never asked for seconds.

Pure Pumpkin Cheesecake
Adapted by: WendyinKK
Original Source:Rose's Heavenly Cakes

Crust
100gm digestive biscuits
40gm toasted pecans
40gm butter
1 heaped tsp freshly grated ginger

Filling
500gm cream cheese
200gm muscavado sugar
2 eggs (Grade B)
2 egg yolks
50gm cake flour
400gm whipping cream
250gm pumpkin puree (I steamed 300gm and pureed it. Weighed amount needed)

Topping
50gm sugar
5gm golden syrup
20gm water
30gm whipping cream, warmed up
10gm butter

Prepare Crust
1. Pulse the pecans and then add in the biscuits. Grind them until fine.
2. Heat butter in pan and saute the ginger until almost golden. Pour in the cookie nut crumbs and toss to combine.
3. Press this into an 8 inch springform pan and smoothen the sides with the help of a flat based glass tumbler.
(or use a smaller pan). Put this into the freezer.
4. Preheat the oven at 170C ( no fan), top and bottom heat

Prepare filling and bake
5. Cream the cheese with sugar until lump free. Add in the eggs and egg yolk gradually and mix it until smooth.
6. Add in cake flour and mix until smooth. Put in whipping cream and mix well. Lastly put in the pumpkin puree and mix until smooth.
7. Pour this into the prepared pan.
8. Put the cake pan into a slightly larger pan and put this onto the lower racks of the oven.
9. Pour boiling water into the larger pan halfway up the cake pan.
10. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool in oven (door ajar for 1 hour). Cool down totally and chill for 5 hours. Top with caramel glaze to serve.

Prepare topping.
11. Heat water, sugar and golden syrup in a heavy based saucepan, stirring gently constantly until it turns a deep amber (180C).
12. Pour in the warmed cream (it will bubble up) and with a silicon spatula, stir the mixture gently. Return the pan to heat, the lowest heat on your stove and gently warm it for 1 minute, stirring it gently all the while until the caramel is all melted again. It's ok if it's a little streaky.
13. Put in butter and vanilla and stir until smooth. Try not to incorporate air by by stirring vigorously, be gentle all the time.
14.When topping is no longer warm to touch, pipe or pour the topping over the cooled cheesecake. Serve.