This Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie is a combination of a classic pumpkin pie with silky creaminess of a cheesecake. This easy dessert is perfect to serve at holiday dinners or just because you feel like having a pumpkin treat. It’s a classic Pumpkin Pie taken to the next level!
If you need more pies, try my Caramel Apple Pie and a Sweet Potato Pie.
Table of Contents
It’s time for me to re-introduce you to our family favorite pie recipe. When I say “family favorite,” I truly mean it. We all love desserts, especially holiday pies, but this Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie is something special to us.
No matter how much turkey and mashed potatoes we stuff ourselves with on Thanksgiving dinner, we make sure to still have room for this pie. If we didn’t have much room left…well then we wait!
There have been a couple of years where I made a fancy pumpkin cheesecake or another dessert for our holiday dinner and the first thing that everyone mumbled was, “what? No Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie?”I’ve actually been told that I can make any other dessert my heart desires as long as I ALSO make this pie. It’s a good thing that this pie is so easy to whip up.
Easy few minutes of beating the ingredients in a bowl, followed by about 45 minutes of baking, and then cool and chill. Simple steps for a luscious pumpkin dessert.
You will love the soft and smooth texture and creamy pumpkin flavor of this pie. Serve it with some whipped cream and cinnamon on top or even with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.
Ingredient Notes
Pumpkin Puree – you can use your favorite store-bought or homemade pumpkin puree. When getting store-bought, make sure to get pumpkin puree NOT pumpkin pie mix!
Heavy whipping cream – Heavy whipping cream will give you a creamy rich consistency. I do NOT recommend substituting it with anything that has less fat.
Spices – here is where you add the fall flavor to the pie. Use the pumpkin pie spice mix and cinnamon. Pumpkin pie spice usually contains a combination of like ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground allspice, and ground nutmeg.
Cream cheese – for the best results, make sure to use full fat cream cheese.
Pie crust – This is another ingredient that you can choose homemade or store-bought. I do choose store-bought pie crust quite often to save time. If getting a frozen pie shell, make sure to get deep dish pie shell! You can also use refrigerated gluten free pie crust when needed. Pie crust filling is already gluten free!
PRO TIP: note that you can also use pre-made refrigerated pie crust and your own pie baking dish. Make sure to use a deep pie dish to make this pie.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
How To Make Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Pumpkin filling: Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth at medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, until it’s light and fluffy. Beat in one egg at a time, beating after each addition.
Add pumpkin puree and dry spices, beat until well blended. Pour in heavy whipping cream and vanilla extract. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl and beat well, until everything is smooth and blended.
PRO TIP: Place pie shell on the baking sheet. This will make it easier to place the pie in the oven and take it out.
Baking: Pour filling into the pie shell and make sure it’s spread evenly. (Don’t overfill the pie shell. There will be a little bit of pie filling left over.) Bake for 40-45 minutes (it will be a little jiggly in the middle but set at edges. You can see it in the demo video above.).
Cool and chill: Turn off the oven and open the oven door half way. Let pie sit in the oven for about 10 minutes before taking it out. Let the pie sit on the counter for about an hour to cool down. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
Recipe FAQs
Personally, I don’t worry about blind baking the crust in a pumpkin pie. The crust here cooks the same amount of time and the filling so they will be good. Note that the crust will be soft but it should not be under-baked.
Some people do not like the pie crust to be soft and if you do prefer a crispier, flaky crust, then you will want to blind bake it. (You can see my instructions to blind-bake the homemade or refrigerated crust in our Sweet Potato Pie recipe.)
Yes, this is the only way. Just KIDDING! Absolutely not. I use store-bought crust for the ease of it. If you want to make your own homemade pie crust, here is a wonderful recipe that I personally use.
For Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner, or any other special even, I like to make homemade crust. Anytime we just feel like having pumpkin cheesecake pie for dinner, I take out a quick, frozen pie shell or a refrigerated pie crust. Just make sure the store-bought one is a deep dish.
So the reason pumpkin pie, sweet potato pie, and similar pies crack is due to overbaking. Try to stick to the recommended bake time but also keep an eye on your pie. (Turn on the oven light rather than opening the oven door when possible.) The top of the pie should be slightly jiggly while the outside edges are set. Don’t worry about the slight giggle in the center, it will set.
Tips For Making This Pie
- Make sure not to overfill your pie shell. When using a store-bought deep-dish pie crust, you will have just a little bit of pie filling leftover. Don’t try to squeeze every last drop of pie mixture into the shell because it might overflow as it bakes. This pie filling raises as it bakes, so if it’s overfilled, it will overflow. There will not be much batter leftover, only about 1/2-1/4 cup. (The same applies for the homemade crust because some pie dishes can slightly vary in size.)
- Place filled pie shell on a baking sheet while baking. This will make it easier to place it in the oven and take it out. (This is not needed is you made your own pie crust in a ceramic/glass pie dish.)
- After 40-45 minutes of baking, open the oven door halfway and turn off the oven. Leave the pie in the oven for about 10 minutes before taking it out. This will help with the pie possibly cracking. (Although, if it does crack, don’t stress! It can easily be covered with some whipped cream when served.)
- Cool pie to room temperature and chill in the refrigerator before servings.
- Serve cold with some whipped cream or a side of ice cream.
Storing Instructions
Best way to store this pumpkin cheesecake pie is in the refrigerator. Make sure to cool the pie completely and cover it air-tight with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Properly stored, it will last up to 4 days in the refrigerator.
Some More Recipes To Try
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Ingredients
- 1 Deep dish pie shell*
- 15 oz can of pumpkin puree
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tbsp pumpkin pie spice mix
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth at medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, until it’s light and fluffy.
- Add pumpkin puree and dry spices, beat until well blended.
- Beat in one egg at a time, beating after each addition.
- Pour in heavy cream and vanilla. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl and beat well.
- Place pie shell on the baking sheet. (This will make it easier to place the pie in the oven and take it out.)
- Pour filling into the pie shell and make sure it's spread evenly. (Don't overfill the pie shell. There will be a little bit of pie filling left over.)
- Bake for 40-45 minutes (it will be a little jiggly in the middle but set at edges).
- Turn off the oven and open the oven door half way. Let pie sit in the oven for about 10 minutes before taking it out.
- Cool pie to room temperature and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
- Serve it cold. You can serve it with some whipped cream and a side of vanilla ice cream.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles October 1, 2011!
Martha says
Can this be made ahead and frozen?
LyubaB says
Hi Martha,
Yes this can be made ahead and frozen. Here is a link to my Vanilla Bean Cheesecake I go over in detail on how to freeze and defrost cheesecake. https://www.willcookforsmiles.com/vanilla-bean-cheesecake/
Donna V. says
The filling was absolutely delicious. Very creamy but I also did not get a cooked crust…maybe I should have left it in a bit longer or moved the rack lower. I also put the pie pan on a sheetpan.. Wonder if that had anything to do with it? It’s a keeper though. Very easy also
Kel says
Very tasty but like another commenter mentioned, took much longer than 45 minutes. I left it in for about an extra 15, and it was still I think underdone in the center. My pie crust was near raw somehow though, so maybe I needed to move it lower or blind bake it. Can’t say I’m super upset about it though, as I ended up scraping out the filling and mixing it with vanilla ice cream instead and it was delicious. I’d try this again but I think I’d actually prefer graham cracker or Oreo crust instead.
Jaimie says
I don’t have time to refrigerate it maybe a he to will it still be OK?
Lynn says
I am making your pumpkin-cheesecake pie and using a frozen store-bought crust. Should the crust be pre-baked before adding the filling or should I simply put the filling in the frozen pie crust and bake it? Does the pie crust need to be thawed before filling? I don’t normally make pies, so I am confused but this looks so good I want to try it. Thanks!
LyubaB says
I hope I am not too late in answering your question. Yes, it does need to be thawed before using it.
Pauline Morris says
We made your pie & it was ( AWESOME ) Thank you sooo much JACK & POLLY
LyubaB says
Thank you for letting me know, Pauline! I am so glad you liked it!
LyubaB says
So happy you both liked it! 🙂
Anne says
This is absolutely delicious and easy. A keeper! I’m not a pumpkin pie person, but this has become my go-to, crowd-pleaser Thanksgiving dessert. I wouldn’t describe it as a cheesecake though. It is creamy and fluffy and delicious, but to me, not a true “cheesecake”, just a really really really good pumpkin pie. I use my own crust, baked longer than called for, and served at room temperature after refrigerating overnight. I highly recommend serving at room temperature. Pie crust does not taste good cold and the filling holds up just fine at room temperature. Thank you for this recipe. A chocolate pie with this consistency would be great!
LyubaB says
Thank you for the compliment, Anne! I am so pleased that you like it!
JACK&POLLY says
We made two pies and yes we did try one ………………………..(AWESOME) Thank YOU!!!
Ruthy says
Can I substitute heavy cream for can cocoa milk?
Kathy Perez says
After watching the pumpkin pie video it adds more spices then you have in the written recipe. Why is this, so which one do I flow ?
LyubaB says
Hi Kathy,
Thank you for reminding me that I need to remake the video for this recipe! The reason it appears there are more spices is because I didn’t have pumpkin pie spice and created my own blend. However, in the recipe card, I’ve simplified it by using pumpkin pie spice, which yields the exact same taste so you can just follow the written recipe.
brynn says
can the pie shell be frozen before baking or do in defrost it?
LyubaB says
Hi, you will want to defrost it first so it won’t be gooey and it will bake evenly.
Collette Duley says
This is a very tasty recipe. For whatever reason, it takes way longer than 40-45 min to bake… I wonder if it’s because of the high altitude I live in?
Tracy L Gahagan says
I made it for Thanksgiving and it was the best pumpkin pie I have ever had and that includes any cheesecake pumpkin pie I have made as well.
LyubaB says
Wow, Thank you, Tracy! I love hearing that!