Some rules are meant to be broken…  Whoever said pumpkins were meant for the fall was obviously someone who never had pumpkin cheesecake!  Yes, I agree, carving a pumpkin, cooking pumpkin seeds and maybe even baking a  pumpkin pie are meant for the fall but there are so many other things you can do with a pumpkin or the extra 29 oz can of pumpkin puree in the pantry (yes, from the holidays)!!

So here’s the recipe for some not-so-fally Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups!  I must say, these turned out very good amazing!   The cheesecake is light and airy and crust is moist and sweet. (makes 24 regular sized cupcakes)

Crust:

• 8 tbsp butter, melted
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

Mix all ingredients together. Scoop a heaping tablespoon into each cupcake tin and press down firmly to make the crust.

Filling:

• 3 – 8 oz packages of reduced fat cream cheese
• 15 oz can pureed pumpkin
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg yoke
• 1/4 cup non-fat plain greek yogurt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 2 tbsp flour
• 2 tsp vanilla

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin, eggs and egg yoke, greek yogurt, sugar and spices, scraping the sides of the bowl until fully combined.  Add flour and vanilla.  Pour mix into cupcake tins and fill almost to the top.  The batter may rise a little in the oven but will reduce back down while cooling.

 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.   I actually lost track of time on this but I think 30 minutes was about when I stopped baking.  Here are some tips to knowing when cheesecake is done:

• A cheesecake should have a slightly wobbly but still firm center. 
• The temperature of the cheesecake should read between 160-165 degrees.
• Soft, liquid centers are NOT done enough.
• A cracked center is a sign the cake is overcooked. 
• Perform the JIGGLE est to test how wobbly the center is. 🙂

If you decide to make this into a PIE and not cupcakes (who would do that!), the cooking time should be about 1 hour.

 

Remove from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes (if overcooked, remove immediately).  After 10 minutes, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at last 4 hours.

Before serving, top with whipped cream and cinnamon sugar!

Bon Appetit!