Pumpkin Cheesecake with Maple syrup and Pecans

Delicious pumpkin cheesecake is smooth, creamy and full of wonderful flavours. This colorful and festive dessert is perfect for Thanksgiving dinner table or just to celebrate the beautiful fall season. The cake is moist, very delicate and melts in your mouth. The creamy Maple sauce with toasted pecans is heavenly and truly brings this cake to the next level of deliciousness.

Ingredients

Crust:

1 cup cookie crumbs (I use HoneyMaid crubs)
3 tbsp. white sugar
2 tbsp. butter, melted

Filling:

3 pkg. 8 oz cream cheese (I use PHILADELPHIA BRICK ORIGINAL CREAM CHEESE), softened
½ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
¼ cup Maple syrup
3 large eggs
15 oz pumpkin puree (not the pumpkin pie filling)
2 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 tsp. cinnamon

Topping:

¾ cup heavy whipping cream
½ cup Maple syrup
½ cup chopped pecans, toasted

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 F
Whap the double layer of foil around the 9” spring foil. Grease the form with butter.

Make the crust:

Mix crumbs with sugar, add melted butter and stir to combine.
Press the mixture onto the bottom of spring form.

Make the filling:

Beat the cream cheese, brown and white sugars and maple syrup until smooth.
Tip: The trick for the cream cheese to have a smoother consistency is to leave the cream cheese in room temperature for a couple of hours to soften. The softer the cheese the better it will be mixed with other ingredients. The first time I baked a cheese cake I made a mistake to use the cream cheese straight from the fridge. I had a very hard time to mix it with other ingredients, like chocolate, the white pieces of cheese were still there.
Add eggs and when they are blended in, add pumpkin puree, cornstarch, vanilla, and cinnamon.  
Beat on low or medium speed until smooth.
Pour the cheese mixture over the crust.
Take a baking form that is larger than your 9” spring form and fill with 1” of hot water.
Place the springform with the cake inside. (That’s why we needed to cover the bottom and sides with aluminum foil)
Bake the cake for about 1h 20 min until the center is set and top is pretty firm.
Remove the springform from the baking dish with water and leave on the stove to cool.
Cool for an hour, loosen the sides of the cake with knife and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Make the topping:

First toast pecans. It can be done in advance.Toasting pecans can be done in two ways – baking them on a baking sheet in oven in 350F for 5-10 min or in a skillet over a low heat until lightly browned.
To make a sauce, combine whipping cream with maple syrup in a small saucepan. Bring it to a boil over a medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook for about 20 min until sauce is slightly sickened. Add in toasted pecans and remove it from the heat to cool.
Pour the maple sauce over the cake and serve. Keep refrigerated.