This Gluten-Free Cheesecake recipe makes a traditional baked cheesecake with a dense, smooth, and creamy consistency, featuring the fall flavours of pumpkin. A spiced almond crust finishes it off nicely.
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Is cheesecake gluten-free?
Typically, cheesecake crust contains gluten. Cheesecake filling is often gluten-free. Some might be thickened with wheat flour, so you need to watch out for that. Pure cream cheese is usually gluten-free, so it's not too difficult to make a cheesecake with gluten-free filling.
While you can make cheesecake with purchased gluten-free graham crumbs for the crust, I wanted to create a whole food option. The nuttiness of almond meal seems perfect for a crumb crust. I added spices to complement the flavour of pumpkin in this gluten-free cheesecake recipe.
If you're a fan of cheesecake and chocolate, you might like my new chocolate cheesecake!
How to Melt Coconut Oil
I lived in Canada, where my coconut oil was solid most of the year. The easiest way I've found to melt it for a recipe like this one is to put it in a pyrex measuring cup in my preheating oven. I take a conservative guess at the amount I'll need and scoop it into the cup. As soon as I've turned on my oven to start preheating, I set the container of coconut oil inside. It doesn't need to be left in there very long. Coconut oil has a fairly low melting point. I remove it before the oil has completely melted, so it can finish melting from the warmth of the pyrex cup. At this point, it has usually melted enough for me to check the measurement accurately and add more if necessary.
If you leave the coconut oil in the oven too long, it will become too hot to mix satisfactorily with the other ingredients.
How to Make Gluten-Free Cheesecake
Combine the dry ingredients for the crust in a food processor. With the machine running, slowly pour in the melted coconut oil, honey, and egg. Stop processing when it starts to clump up like this.
Press the crumb crust mixture into the bottom and sides of a springform pan.
Beat the softened cream cheese until light and fluffy.
Blend the remaining filling ingredients in a blender.
With splash guard in place and mixer running, slowly pour the liquid from the blender into the the beaten cream cheese. At least once, stop to scrape down the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl. Beat until the filling is smoothly combined. Carefully pour it into the prepared shell.
Bake until the centre is almost set. Leave in the oven with door open to cool. Then cover and refrigerate.
More Great Pumpkin Recipes
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie
- Dairy Free Pumpkin Ice Cream
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Spice Muffins
- Pumpkin Pancakes
Recipe
Gluten Free Pumpkin Cheesecake
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 ¼ cups ground almond meal
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder, gluten free, if necessary
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 large egg
Filling
- 24 ounces cream cheese, brick form NOT spreadable, at room temperature
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling
- ½ cup whipping cream
- 1 cup organic raw cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon tapioca flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Combine almond meal, cinnamon, baking powder, ginger, and salt for crust in food processor. Pulse to combine.
- With the machine running, pour in melted coconut oil, honey, and egg. Stop the food processor when the dough starts to clump together.
- Press crust into bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan.
- Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT cream cheese to blender and puree until smooth.
- Beat cream cheese until fluffy.
- While beating cream cheese, slowly pour in the ingredients from blender. Continue to beat until smoothly combined, stopping to scrape down sides and bottom at least once.
- Carefully pour filling into prepared crust.
- Set the springform pan onto a large baking sheet to catch any leaks. Bake for 10 minutes at 425°F. Turn down the heat to 225°F and continue baking for another hour without opening the oven door. Bake until the cheesecake is almost set in the centre. It will finish firming up when it cools.
- Open the oven door, but leave the cheesecake sitting inside for one hour.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight.
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