Chai Spiced Maple Pumpkin Cheesecake
Dec 04, 2020
Chai Spiced Maple Pumpkin Cheesecake
Sarah Burchard
8
4 hours
60 minutes
Dessert
Try this creamy treat using Hawaiʻi grown palaʻai (pumpkin) & ʻulu (breadfruit) flour. A great dessert to share with your family & friends!
Ingredients
Cheesecake Crust
- 1 ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
- 5 tbsp butter, melted
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Chai Spice
- ¼ cup green cardamom pods
- 2 tbsp cloves, whole
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 tbsp black peppercorns
Cheesecake Filling
- 1 cup palaʻai (peeled, cored, and defrosted), chopped
- 1 tbsp ʻulu flour
- 1 lb cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp chai spice, store bought or homemade (see recipe below)
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
Directions
Cheese Cake Crust
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, butter, and maple syrup.
- Press the mixture into a 9 inch pie pan firmly and bake for 10-12 minutes until the crust is slightly golden brown.
- Remove crust from the oven and let cool at room temperature.
Chai Spice
- Keep oven temperature at 350 degrees.
- Spread the spices onto a sheet pan and toast 5 minutes, until fragrant. Cool and grind in a spice grinder.
- Lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees.
Cheesecake FIlling
- In a blender, combine squash with 2-3 tbsp water, just enough to get it to blend. Puree until smooth and set aside.
- Beat the cream cheese with the second measurement of maple syrup until smooth and set aside.
- Add the ʻulu flour, salt, chai spice, vanilla and squash. Puree and beat until fully incorporated.
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing in between each addition.
- Place the pie pan with baked crust on a sheet pan and pour in the cream cheese mixture.
- Bake 45 minutes at 300 degrees (do not open the oven).
- Turn off the oven and leave the pie to sit for another 2 hours (do not open the oven)
- Remove the pie and let cool on a rack.
- Place a piece of plastic wrap over the pie, letting it touch the pie, and enjoy the following day.
