White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
This white chocolate pumpkin cheesecake is perfectly smooth, super sweet, and packed with holiday flavor!
The base is made from crushed white chocolate cookies which gives each bite a delightful crunch. But it’s the filling that takes things to the next level. It’s SO creamy and smooth, and dry-baking the cheesecake lets you skip a time-consuming water bath.
Don’t even get me started on the white chocolate glaze. It’s made with cream, melted white chocolate, and butter. It’s ridiculously decadent, and you can easily use less cream to make it slightly thicker (hey, I wouldn’t blame you!). The end result is a rich and velvety slice that’ll have you coming back for slice after slice.
Just don’t jump the gun when it comes to setting this glorious cheesecake. You need to give it time to cool off and set, otherwise it’ll fall apart. So, patience is a virtue here!
Why You’ll Love This White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
- It’s rich, creamy, and packed with delicious flavor.
- This cheesecake is the perfect centerpiece for any dessert table as the white chocolate topping is super smooth (and aesthetically pleasing!).
- It’s made with just a handful of simple ingredients that are easy to pick up at the grocery store.
- The pumpkin spice and pumpkin puree make it a wonderful pick for the holidays.
- It makes a nice change from vanilla or lemon cheesecakes when you’re in the mood for something different.
Ingredients
The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.
For the White Chocolate Cookie Crust
- White chocolate cookies: You can use basically any white chocolate cookies you can find. I like using white chocolate-coated Oreos, but you can crush up any crunchy cookies for the base!
- Unsalted butter: To bind the cookies together and add a distinctive richness to the base.
For the Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Cream cheese: The creamy star of the show that makes this pumpkin cheesecake taste rich and decadent.
- Brown sugar: I usually use brown sugar for this recipe instead of regular sugar as it has a toffee-like flavor (from the added molasses). It balances the pumpkin puree and sour cream without being overwhelmingly sweet.
- Eggs: To bind the filling.
- Pumpkin puree: Any canned pumpkin puree works well here. You can technically make your own, but it may be slightly wetter than canned varieties.
- Sour cream: Sour cream mellows out the cream cheese and adds a tangy flavor to each bite (while making the filling super moist!).
- Pumpkin spice: For that classic fall flavor!
- Vanilla extract: To elevate the rest of the ingredients.
- Pinch of salt.
For the White Chocolate Glaze
- Heavy cream: Heavy cream works best for the glaze as you simply can’t beat the richness of it.
- White chocolate: Any high-quality white chocolate will work well for the glaze.
- Unsalted butter: To give the glaze an incredible richness that pairs well with the indulgent white chocolate and cream!
How to Make White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
White Chocolate Cookie Crust
- Step One: Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Step Two: Add cookie crumbs and butter to a bowl and mix together. Press into a 9-inch springform pan.
- Step Three: Bake for 7 minutes and cool completely.
Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Step One: Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Step Two: Beat cream cheese on medium for 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl and beat for another 30 seconds.
- Step Three: Add brown sugar and beat for 1 minute.
- Step Four: Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add pumpkin puree, sour cream, pumpkin spice, vanilla and salt. Beat for 30 seconds at medium speed.
- Step Five: Pour mixture into cooled crust and bake on a baking sheet for 20 minutes.
- Step Six: Reduce the temperature to 300°F and bake for another 30 minutes or until set.
- Step Seven: Remove from the oven and run a butter knife around the edges of the cheesecake.
- Step Eight: Cool to room temperature then refrigerate for 5 to 6 hours or overnight.
White Chocolate Glaze
- Step One: Heat the cream in a saucepan over medium heat until it starts to steam.
- Step Two: Turn off heat and add in white chocolate and butter. Ensure that the cream covers the white chocolate by gently shaking the pan.
- Step Three: Let the mixture sit for 3 minutes and stir until melted.
- Step Four: Let it cool at room temperature for 15 minutes.
- Step Five: Place in the fridge for an additional 30 minutes to 1 hour to allow it to thicken more.
- Step Six: Stir and pour on top of cheesecake and serve.
Equipment Needed
You might already have all the equipment you need to pull this white chocolate pumpkin cheesecake together. But if you need a helping hand, these handy tools will put you on the right path!
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What to Serve with White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
This white chocolate pumpkin cheesecake is tasty on its own, but you can also enjoy it with a hot chocolate or a milkshake!
- Caramel Coffee Milkshake
- Cinnamon Roll Coffee Milkshake
- Nutella Coffee Milkshake
- Cinnamon Hot Chocolate Milkshake
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- If you don’t want to crush the cookies with a rolling pin and Ziploc bags, you can put them in the food processor. This should create super-fine crumbs. You can even blitz the cookie crumbs with the butter to create the base, but I prefer doing this by hand.
- You can check your cheesecake is properly baked by poking a skewer into the filling section. If it comes out relatively clean, you can take the cheesecake out of the oven.
- Make sure you leave the cheesecake out of the fridge to bring it to room temperature before using it. This will create a lump-free cake!
- Don’t overmix the white chocolate topping. Once the chocolate is melted, you just want to stir the ingredients together until they’re incorporated.
Variations and Substitutions
- If you want, you can replace the white chocolate with any chocolate you like. However, white chocolate tends to pair best with the pumpkin flavor!
- You can replace the white chocolate cookie base with graham crackers or Golden Oreos for a different flavor!
Storage Instructions
This white chocolate and pumpkin cheesecake should be kept in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap.
It will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days, but will start to turn after this as it’s a relatively moist cake.
Can I Freeze?
You can either freeze the entire white chocolate and pumpkin cheesecake or split it into slices.
Just freeze it for an hour or so to harden the cheesecake and then cover it (or the slices) with plastic wrap.
It should stay delicious for up to 3 months.
Cheesecake Recipes
- Strawberry Cheesecake Bars
- White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake Bars
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake
- Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
- REESE Cheesecake
- Saint Lucian Chocolate Cheesecake.
- Twix Cheesecake
- Black Forest Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake
- Keto Pumpkin Cheesecake
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White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
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Ingredients
White Chocolate Cookie Crust
- 1 ½ cups white chocolate cookies of choice crushed
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter melted
Pumpkin Cheesecake
- 3 packages cream cheese 8oz/250g packages, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 ½ tsp pumpkin spice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch salt
White Chocolate Glaze
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups white chocolate finely chopped
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
White Chocolate Cookie Crust
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Add cookie crumbs and butter to a bowl and mix together. Press into a 9 inch springform pan. Bake 7 minutes. Cool completely.
Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Beat cream cheese on medium for 1 minute. Scrape down bowl and beat another 30 seconds. Add brown sugar and beat for 1 minute.
- Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add pumpkin puree, sour cream, pumpkin spice, vanilla and salt. Beat for 30 seconds on medium speed.
- Pour mixture into cooled crust and bake on a baking sheet for 20 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 300°F and bake for another 30 minutes or until set.
- Remove from oven and run a butter knife around the edges of the cheesecake. Cool to room temperature then refrigerate for 5 to 6 hours or overnight.
White Chocolate Glaze
- Heat the cream in a saucepan over medium heat until it starts to steam. Turn off heat and add in white chocolate and butter. Ensure that the cream covers the white chocolate by gently shaking the pan. Let sit for 3 minutes. Stir until melted.
- Let it cool at room temperature for 15 minutes. Place in the fridge for an additional 30 minutes to 1 hour to allow it thicken more.
- Stir and pour on top of cheesecake and serve.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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I have never baked a cheesecake at that high of a temperature. Do you like it can be baked at a lower temperature?
It’s reduced to 300F in step 3.
Did this cheesecake actually crack?
Yes, I didn’t use a water bath.
The white chocolate will really make this taste good!