Foodie Friday: Pumpkin Cheesecake

Happy Friday, friends! It's October.. can you believe it?? This weekend I'll be pulling out the Halloween decorations, and buying a mini pumpkin for my desk at work. Before you know it we'll be putting up Christmas decorations. I can't wait! I have much more to say about October, and some significant dates and milestones, but I'll leave that for another post.

Today I'm feeling obligated to share a recipe with pumpkin in it.. and really, this is the only recipe I have that has pumpkin in it! Lucky for you it's DELICIOUS. I've been making this every Thanksgiving, and I think I also made it for Christmas last year.. it's Dan's fave. It might seem like a lot of ingredients, but I promise it's super easy.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust Ingredients
3/4 Cup graham cracker crumbs (I put graham crackers in a freezer zip lock bag and then smash them up with a meat hammer)
3 tablespoons melted butter
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Filling Ingredients
1 Cup cream cheese (1/2 lb)
1/4 Cup sugar
1 large egg
2/3 Cup pumpkin
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
garnish - whip cream

Directions
In a small bowl combine graham cracker crumbs, (crust) spices, and melted butter
Mix together & press into an 8x8 pan, lined with foil
Place cream cheese in a large mixing bowl & beat with an electric mixer until fluffy
Beat in sugar, then egg
Blend dry (filling) ingredients (cinnamon & cloves) together, and beat into cream cheese mixture
Beat in pumpkin
Pour mixture into your prepared pan & bake @ 325 degrees, for about 40 minutes, or until filling is just set.
Cool on wire rack for one hour, then refrigerate until serving time.
Garnish with whipped cream just before serving.

Happy Friday.. I hope everyone enjoys the first weekend of October!