Pumpkin swirl cheesecake with candied walnuts for Christmas dessert

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Cheesecake lovers are going to adore this delectable recipe. 

"Can’t decide between classic cheesecake and a pumpkin pie this fall?" writes Lisa Steele, in her upcoming "The Fresh Eggs Daily Cookbook: Over 100 Fabulous Recipes to Use Eggs in Unexpected Ways," available for pre-order now ahead of its February 2022 release. 

"You don’t need to when you make this elegant cross between the two. And the beauty of this quintessential dessert is that it can be baked the night before to make your holiday a little more stress-free," continues the fifth-generation chicken keeper and founder of the popular blog Fresh Eggs Daily.

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Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake with Candied Walnuts by Lisa Steele in "The Fresh Eggs Daily Cookbook: Over 100 Fabulous Recipes to Use Eggs in Unexpected Ways"

Makes 12 servings

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 70 minutes

Chilling time: 5 hours

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake with Candied Walnuts (Tina Rupp)

Ingredients:

For the gingersnap crust

Butter for greasing the pan

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1 ½  cups crushed gingersnap cookies (about 24 two-inch round cookies)

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For the pumpkin swirl cheesecake filling

4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

3 eggs, room temperature

¾  cup canned pumpkin purée

5 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar, divided

1 tablespoon molasses

1 ½  teaspoons ground cinnamon

¾  teaspoon ground ginger

½  teaspoon ground cardamom

⅛  teaspoon ground nutmeg

⅛  teaspoon ground cloves

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup walnuts (whole or pieces)

Whipped cream, optional

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Directions for the crust:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 °F. Bring a kettle filled with water to a boil. Use butter to grease a 9-inch springform pan, and wrap two layers of aluminum foil around the outside of the pan.

2. Pour the melted butter into a medium-sized bowl. Add the crushed gingersnaps, stir to coat the crumbs evenly, then press the mixture into the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate the crust until the filling is ready.

Directions for the filling:

1. Use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment to beat the cream cheese, granulated sugar, and cornstarch on medium about two minutes, until smooth. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla bean paste, then add one egg at a time to the mixture and beat until incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour half of the batter into a medium-sized bowl and set aside.

2. Into the remaining batter mix the pumpkin purée, three tablespoons of the brown sugar, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg and cloves. Set aside one cup of the pumpkin batter.

3. Evenly spread half of the remaining pumpkin batter over the crust in the springform pan. Layer half of the plain batter on top of the pumpkin batter, then layer the remaining half of the pumpkin batter, followed by the remaining plain batter. Place dollops of the reserved cup of pumpkin batter on the top, then use a toothpick to swirl the batters to create a marbled design.

4. Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet and set in the oven, then carefully fill the sheet partway, about ½-inch deep, with boiling water, making sure not to fill above the aluminum foil. Bake the cheesecake about one hour and 10 minutes, until the edges are set and the center of the cheesecake is still jiggly, then remove it from the water bath.

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5. Cool the cheesecake in the pan on a wire rack for one hour, then cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight. To serve the cheesecake, run a knife around the outer edge to loosen it from the pan, then carefully unfasten the sides of the pan and transfer the cheesecake to a cake plate or stand.

6. To make the candied walnuts, melt two tablespoons of butter over medium heat in a skillet or frying pan. Add the walnuts and two remaining tablespoons of brown sugar and stir about five minutes. Continue to cook and stir the walnuts, until the sugar caramelizes and the walnuts start to smell nutty. Remove the nuts from the skillet and spread in a single layer on a piece of parchment paper to cool.

7. Garnish the cheesecake with the candied walnuts and dollops of whipped cream, if desired.

Note: You can also substitute one tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice for the cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg and cloves.

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Recipes excerpted with permission from "The Fresh Eggs Daily Cookbook" by Lisa Steele, published by Harper Horizon 2022, $27.99 Hardcover

Fox News Digital is showcasing 25 days of Christmas desserts as we count down to Dec. 25. See all of them here.