The Martlet

Thanksgiving’s here and you’re stuck in Victoria, neck-deep in midterms. Just because it’s your first holiday without Mom’s home-cooking doesn’t mean you have to be stuck chowing down on bulk-boxes of pizza pops.

Take a break from those books to organize a potluck with friends. Have everyone bring a different dish — someone can bring potatoes, someone can cover the veggies and you can put a couple of people in charge of the main dish (whether that’s a turkey or not). Top things off with a sweet dessert like this pumpkin cheesecake recipe.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Crust

250 mL (1 cup) graham cracker crumbs

45 mL (3 tbsp) butter, melted

30 mL (2 tbsp) sugar

Filling

3 x 250 g (8 oz) packages of cream cheese

125 mL (1/2 cup) white sugar

125 mL (1/2 cup) brown sugar

375 mL (1 1/2 cups) canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

7.5 mL (1 1/2 tsp) cinnamon

2.5 mL (1/2 tsp) ground ginger

2.5 mL (1/2 tsp) ground nutmeg

45 mL (3 Tbsp) all-purpose flour

30 mL (2 Tbsp) lemon juice

2.5 mL (1/2 tsp) vanilla extract

3 large eggs

Preheat your oven to 170°C (325°F).

Make the crust first by combining the graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar, then pressing the mixture into a pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes before putting it to the side. Turn the oven up to 220°C (425°F).

For the filling, beat the cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer until there are no lumps left. Add the sugar, flour, lemon juice and vanilla, beating them in until the mixture is smooth. In a separate bowl, combine the canned pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and eggs. Mix the pumpkin mixture into the cream cheese mixture. Pour the batter over the crust.

Bake the cheesecake for 10 minutes before turning the oven down to 130°C (250°C) and continue baking for another 30-35 minutes. Don’t worry if your cheesecake is still jiggly in the middle when you take it out; it will firm up as it cools. Make sure you run a knife around the edge of the pan after removing the cheesecake from the oven so it doesn’t stick to the sides. Put the cake in the refrigerator and leave it to cool for at least an hour before enjoying.

Just a note: you should make the cheesecake in a spring-form pan. If you don’t have one handy, it is possible to make it in a regular cake pan, but make sure you leave it in the refrigerator overnight before your taste test.