No-Bake White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

Gingersnap crust and a no-bake filling of full-fat cream cheese, cooled melted white chocolate bar, pumpkin, spice, and stiff whipped cream. Same wrist-test white chocolate rule as the strawberry cloud cake; chill overnight.

By Brandon Carroll

Yield: 12 servings

Prep: 30 minutes

Cook: no bake

Total: about 6½ hours (includes chill)

Ingredients

Cheesecake

• 10 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 2 1/2 cups crumbs)
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (use 4 if the crumbs look wet)
• 8 ounces high-quality white chocolate bar (Ghirardelli or Lindt — not chips), chopped
• 24 ounces full-fat cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• Pinch fine sea salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or 1 teaspoon cinnamon + 1/4 teaspoon ginger + 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg + pinch clove)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 cup pure pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• 1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream

Optional

• whipped cream, cinnamon, or crushed gingersnaps for serving

Instructions

1. Pulse the gingersnaps to fine crumbs. Stir with melted butter until the mix holds when pinched. Press firmly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan (slightly up the sides if you want a wall). Freeze 20 minutes.
2. Melt the white chocolate gently in short microwave bursts or over a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Cool to tepid — warm on the wrist, not hot. Hot chocolate will seize or melt the cream cheese.
3. Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, brown sugar, salt, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and lemon juice until smooth and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the bowl. Beat in the tepid white chocolate until fully combined and glossy.
4. Beat in the pumpkin puree until uniform with no orange streaks.
5. In a chilled bowl, whip the cold heavy cream to stiff peaks. Fold one-third into the pumpkin mixture to loosen it, then fold in the rest until no white streaks remain. Do not knock the air out.
6. Spread the filling over the frozen crust and smooth the top. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours, preferably overnight, until the center is set and slices clean.
7. Run a thin knife around the ring, release, and serve cold. Top with whipped cream and a pinch of spice or crumbs if you want.