Thanksgiving Pie!!

Happy Thanksgiving y'all!

I've never been a fan of cheesecake or creme brûlée. Frankly, something about the intense dairy tasted like snot to me. I think I was always a natural vegan who never knew it. However, several months ago I sampled some vegan cheesecake at Karyn's Cooked and really liked it's comforting consistency.  I remembered that my pretend friend Alicia Silverstone had a recipe for pumpkin cheesecake with cranberry topping on the Kind Life and suddenly I had to make it!

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Candied Cranberries from The Kind Life via The Vegetarian Times.

• 2 cup(s) of fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained

• 2 cup(s) of sugar substitute (either maple syrup or agave nectar, whichever you prefer)
• 1 Pre-made organic vegan graham-cracker crust (for ease)
• 1/4 tsp. of salt

• 12 ounce(s) of silken tofu

• 8 ounce(s) of vegan cream cheese

• 3/4 Whole Foods Organic Pumpkin Pie Filling

• 1/4 cup(s) of agave nectar
• 1/4 tsp. of ground nutmeg

• 1/4 tsp. of ground cinnamon



Steps

1. Prick each cranberry several times with straight pin.

2. Bring sugar substitute and water to boil over medium heat.

3. Cook until sugar reaches 230 F on candy thermometer.

4. Add cranberries, and cook ten minutes or until syrup gels a bit.

5. Remove berries with slotted spoon and lay out on plate.
6. Save in refrigerator for adding to top of cheesecake later.


7. Process crackers and salt into fine crumbs in food processor.
8. Puree all ingredients in food processor until very smooth, about 3-5 minutes.

9. Pour into crust and bake at 350 F for 50 minutes.

10. Chill completely in refrigerator at least 3 hours, up to overnight.

11. Garnish with candied cranberries, slice and serve.

  Nothing says gorgeous like fresh cranberries in my vintage marigold Tupperware!

The silken tofu made this so creamy and dreamy. It's such a wonderful ingredient for baking, sauces, and soup!!

The filling poured into the crust so beautifully!

It baked up so nicely. What perfect pumpkin-y golden color!

The finished product. It has a celestial glow about it, because this pie is HEAVENLY!

No doubt that I really loved this! The cranberry topping's tart and strong sweetness complimented the mild pumpkin filling so well. I will definitely make it again and would like to experiment with different fruit compotes on top. I think blackberry would be so incredible! I opted to put the topping on each piece as it was eaten rather than layer the whole pie with it. Mr. BB30 isn't a cranberry lover so he opted to eat his cranberry-free. For the record, he is also a traditional cheesecake lover and found this to be really delicious. Huzzah!