French Pumpkin Cheesecake
Sometimes I come across a recipe on the web that is just so incredibly delicious that I just have to share it. This French pumpkin cheesecake is one of those recipes.
French Pumpkin Cheesecake
I’ve probably made this recipe at least 3 times within the last 2 weeks. Even though this isn’t my original recipe, I did dream it up before I knew it existed.
You see, classic New York cheesecakes are fairly dense. They’re usually made with eggs and baked in a bain-marie (water bath), then chilled until they’re completely cool and firm.
While the French do make cheesecake, it tends to be much lighter and mousse-like in consistency. In fact, that’s why I call this pumpkin cheesecake “French pumpkin cheesecake” (even though the French definitely do not bake with pumpkin like Americans do).
That mousse-like texture is trés French to me, and is named in the same spirit as French silk pie.
When I stumbled upon the original recipe for this cheesecake, I was looking for ideas on how to achieve the consistency of a mousse-like cheesecake.
Coming across this no-bake pumpkin cheesecake, I immediately had an “aha” moment. Why of course, a no-bake cheesecake would be much lighter indeed.
So I tried the recipe as directed with plans to taste-test and alter to achieve creamy perfection. But after one bite of what I now call this French pumpkin cheesecake, I just couldn’t fathom changing a thing!
The only aspect of this dessert that I contributed to was the graham cracker crust (the original recipe used a gingersnap crust). But the actual cake batter was everything I had hoped for.
Light and creamy, this French pumpkin cheesecake will melt on your warm tongue within a second. Since the pumpkin and cream cheese have been whipped into a fluffy and airy consistency, it’s no surprise that it’s so light. The sweetened whipped cream that’s folded into the batter also doesn’t hurt the cake’s cloud-like consistency.
With normal cheesecake, I find that I can only eat half a slice before my palate feels heavy and overwhelmed. That is not the case with this French pumpkin cheesecake. I ate up my slice in a jiffy and couldn’t wait to dive back in for another.
I think my sister summed it up best when she described French mousse, which I find comparable to this cake, “It’s basically all air, so no harm done, right?” Yeah, Sis, no harm done whatsoever!
French Pumpkin Cheesecake
A light-as-air, no-bake cheesecake flavored with pumpkin for a fall twist.
Ingredients
for the crust
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
for the cake
- 8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup pumpkin purée
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sweetened whipped cream, homemade or store-bought, plus more for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grab a tart pan, 9-inch pie dish, or a 6-inch cake pan. (If you use the cake pan, make sure to line it with a large sheet of parchment paper - large enough that it comes up the sides of the pan and over the rim - for easy removal of dessert).
- In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter together until everything is well-combined and all the crumbs are moist. Pour this mixture into your chosen pan. Use a rubber spatula or a flat-bottom glass to pack the crumbs into the bottom of the pan and smooth it out. If using a pie dish, you can pack some of the crumbs along the sides of the pan as well.
- Bake the crust for 10 to 12 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and let the crust completely cool.
- Create your cheesecake batter by beating the cream cheese with the pumpkin, sugar, spices, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until you’ve achieved a mousse-like consistency and the batter is a light orange color - about 1 minute.
- Fold in the 1/2 cup of sweetened whipped cream using a rubber spatula. Fold until there are no white streaks apparent.
- Pour the batter over the cooled crust, using your spatula to evenly distribute and smooth out the batter. Pipe remaining whipped cream out on top of cheesecake using a pastry bag, or simply smooth all over the top using a spoon or offset spatula.
- Refrigerate the cheesecake for 4 to 6 hours until chilled.
Notes
To create your own sweetened whipped cream, whisk 1 cup of heavy whipping cream with 1/4 cup powdered sugar. Whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form. Then fold in a 1/2 cup of the whipped cream into the batter, and use the remaining whipped cream to garnish the top of the cake.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 8 ServingsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 342
My, my, this cheesecake looks magical. It does indeed look as fluffy has a cloud and I love your cream swirls on top. What a perfect addition to any thanksgiving table! YUM!
Thank you so much, Jess! It’s so light, and the cream swirls just drive that point home. Perfect for a Thanksgiving table! Thanks love <3
My word, Beeta! I am drooling like a rabid dog over this french pumpkin cheesecake!! I love french cheesecakes too, because I’m not a fan of overly dense and heavy anything. But this one sounds even better than the classic french cheesecake because it is no bake! Swoon! This looks absolutely perfect, girlfriend – graham cracker crust and all! I can totally see why you made this multiple times in a couple weeks, I have a feeling this cake is VERY dangerous! 🙂 This would be perfect for Thanksgiving, since it’s no bake it won’t take up any room in the oven, which is ALWAYS a win on that day! Perfection, my dear! Pinned! Cheers, sweets! P.S. Your sister is clever – basically air means no calories, right?! 😉
Thank you Cheyanne!! I’m not a fan of the dense and heavy desserts either, so I’m totally with you. This cake is SO dangerous – you know it, girl! I usually make an apple pecan cheesecake for Thanksgiving, but this one is going to steal the show this year. And I didn’t even think about the fact that it won’t require oven space which like you said, is such a big plus. Thanks for reminding me!! Thank you deary <3 XO
Beeta! I love how gorgeous & rustic this pumpkin cheesecake looks all at once. Airy, but with flavor and just so beautiful. I haven’t made a cheesecake in a long time, but hopefully I’ll be making one again soon!
Thank you so much, Felicia! It’s truly airy and light – I think you would love it! Hope you get a chance to try <3
Oh my Beeta! This cheesecake looks and sounds so good. I, too, try to stay away from recipes that have already be shared by others, but sometimes it is important to share our favorites of other fellow bloggers with our readers as well.
I LOVE the thick graham cracker crust. Beautifully photographed as well. Cheers!
Thank you so much, Aysegul! I can never resist a thick graham cracker crust, glad you love it too <3 Hope you’ve transitioning into your new home easily <3
Oh my goodness, Beeta! This cheesecake is absolutely adorable. I love the piping of cream on top, its so perfect, and the sprinkles are such a pretty addition too! I love pumpkin flavours, and this cheese cake sounds wonderful, so perfect for Autumn. <3
Thank you so much, Harriet! Whipped cream is always a great addition, in my opinion! 😉 <3
Beeta this cheesecake looks wonderful! I am unfamiliar with the nuances of different cheesecakes, having never made one before (I know, I need to rectify that situation!) but the fluffiness of French cheesecakes sounds lovely. And LOVING the thick graham cracker crust on this one. There are always recipes like that that are so perfect the way they are that you don’t want to change a thing – and I am very glad that you posted it yourself, or otherwise I would never have heard about it!! I do the same with recipes occasionally that are just too good to alter – I figure with credit back to the source, and as long as it has already been shared on the internet, there is no harm in drawing more attention to how awesome it is! What do you think?
Claudia xx
I think you’re totally right, Claudia! Chances are that if a recipe was new to you, it’ll be new to someone else as well! I always enjoy all your posts 🙂 I hope you get a chance to try this cheesecake – I think you’d love it! Thank you! XO
Please don’t judge the fact that this has me drooling! I love the crust to cheesecake ratio and that you’ve made it seasonal with pumpkin. This dessert is a real stunner and WILL BE on our Thanksgiving table!!
Don’t worry, I was drooling too at just the thought of making it lol. You will be one happy camper on Thanksgiving, Marissa…I promise! Thanks love <3 XO
This looks lovely Beeta. Pumpkin as a sweet food is something that doesn’t really happen much in the UK, especially not in baking. However along with the pumpkin spice phenomenon, it’s really gaining pace over here.
I’d love a piece of that cheesecake!
Thanks Angela! I know, we Americans go crazy for the pumpkin! :p