dairy-free

Pumpkin cheesecake occupies a particular place in the autumn dessert canon — it is at once more interesting than a plain cheesecake and more elegant than a pumpkin pie, combining the silky, rich creaminess of the former with the warm spice and earthiness of the latter into a dessert that is quietly spectacular. The vegan version has, for a long time, been the most technically demanding entry point in the cheesecake category: a traditional cheesecake relies on the specific protein and fat structure of cream cheese and eggs to set, and replicating that set in a plant-based version while also managing the additional moisture that pumpkin purée introduces is exactly the kind of layered problem that produces disappointing results when approached without a clear method. This vegan pumpkin cheesecake solves both problems — the set and the moisture — through a technique that produces a filling that is genuinely silky and sliceable, with a texture that is firm enough to hold a clean cut but yielding enough to be deeply creamy on the palate. The base is a buttery, slightly salted digestive biscuit crust that provides the structural contrast the soft filling needs. The filling itself combines soaked and blended cashews (the primary fat and body component), vegan cream cheese (for tang and flavour depth), pumpkin purée (for colour, flavour, and seasonal character), coconut cream (for richness and setting), and the classic warming spice blend that gives pumpkin desserts their identity. This vegan pumpkin cheesecake is 100% plant-based, dairy-free, and egg-free. It serves 10–12 and is best made the day before serving. The technique is the reason the filling sets firmly and slices cleanly without cracking, weeping, or collapsing.

The technique is the drain-blend-and-water-bath bake method. Pumpkin purée is the source of the moisture management problem in a pumpkin cheesecake: tinned pumpkin purée typically contains 85–90% water by weight, and this water content, introduced into a cheesecake filling that is already working to achieve a delicate set, significantly dilutes the fat-and-protein matrix that the filling’s firmness depends on. The drain-blend-and-water-bath bake method addresses this across three coordinated stages. Stage one — drain: the pumpkin purée is spread onto a clean tea towel or layers of kitchen paper and allowed to drain under gentle hand-pressing for 10 minutes before being added to the filling. This simple step removes a meaningful proportion of the purée’s free water — typically reducing the weight of the drained purée by 15–20% — before it reaches the mixing bowl, producing a more concentrated pumpkin flavour and a filling with less water to drive off during baking. Stage two — blend: the filling ingredients are blended in a high-speed blender (not stirred, folded, or processed in a food processor) until completely smooth and entirely free of cashew graininess. The blending step is critical because the cashew’s emulsification function — the cashew fat surrounding and trapping the liquid components in a stable, creamy emulsion — only operates at its full capacity when the cashew is reduced to a completely smooth, homogeneous paste; any residual graininess indicates undispersed fat that will not set correctly. Stage three — water bath bake: the cheesecake is baked in a water bath (bain-marie) — the springform tin is wrapped tightly in two layers of foil to prevent water ingress, set in a larger roasting tray, and the tray is filled with boiling water to halfway up the side of the tin before the oven door closes. The water bath regulates the temperature around the cheesecake, preventing the direct oven heat from reaching the filling too rapidly. The moisture from the water bath also maintains a humid oven environment that prevents the surface of the cheesecake from drying and cracking. The result is a filling that cooks evenly from edge to centre at a controlled temperature — the edges are not overcooked while the centre is still raw — producing the silky, uncracked surface that is the hallmark of a properly baked cheesecake.

This recipe makes one 23cm (9-inch) cheesecake, serving 10–12.

Recipe Information

Ingredients

For the Crust

• 300g (10.5oz) digestive biscuits (graham crackers in the US) — check the label for vegan certification; most plain digestives are incidentally vegan but some contain milk solids
• 80g (⅓ cup) vegan block butter, melted — block butter (not spread) for the correct fat content and crust firmness; salted block butter is preferable for the slight contrast it provides against the sweet filling
• 1 tbsp caster sugar — adds a subtle sweetness to the crust and helps it set more firmly
• Pinch of fine salt — if using unsalted block butter, increase to ¼ tsp

For the Cashew Soak

• 200g (1½ cups) raw cashews — raw, not roasted or salted; soaked in cold water for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight (quick-soak method: cover with boiling water and soak 1 hour); drain and rinse before blending

For the Filling

• Soaked and drained cashews (from above)
• 200g (7oz) vegan cream cheese — block or tub style; the cream cheese provides the characteristic tang and flavour of a classic cheesecake that cashews alone cannot replicate; use a good-quality brand (Violife or similar)
• 250g (1 cup) tinned pumpkin purée — 100% pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling (which is pre-spiced and sweetened); drained as per the technique before adding
• 200ml (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) full-fat coconut cream — from the solid portion of a refrigerated tin; do not use coconut milk or light coconut cream; the fat content of full-fat coconut cream is essential to the set
• 150g (¾ cup) caster sugar
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice — the acidity mimics the tang of a traditional cream cheese cheesecake and brightens the pumpkin flavour
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground ginger — ground, not fresh; fresh ginger is too sharp for this application
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg — freshly grated if possible
• ¼ tsp ground allspice
• ¼ tsp fine salt
• 3 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch) — whisked into the blended filling last; the cornflour sets the filling during baking, providing the firm-but-yielding texture; do not omit

For the Topping (Optional but Recommended)

• 200ml (¾ cup) full-fat coconut cream, chilled overnight — whipped to soft peaks for a coconut whipped cream topping
• 1 tbsp icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• Ground cinnamon — for dusting

Instructions

1. Soak the cashews. Place the raw cashews in a bowl and cover with cold water. Soak for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse thoroughly before using. (Quick-soak: cover with just-boiled water and soak for 1 hour; drain and rinse.)
2. Prepare the tin. Lightly grease a 23cm (9-inch) springform tin. Line the base with a circle of parchment paper.
3. Make the crust. In a food processor, blitz the digestive biscuits to fine crumbs (alternatively, place in a ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin). Transfer to a bowl and add the melted vegan block butter, caster sugar, and salt. Mix until the crumbs are evenly coated and the mixture resembles wet sand — it should clump together when pressed between your fingers. Press firmly and evenly into the base of the prepared tin, using the base of a flat glass or measuring cup to compact it into a uniform layer. There is no need to bring the crust up the sides. Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
4. Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 160°C fan / 170°C conventional / 325°F. Boil a full kettle of water for the water bath.
5. Drain the pumpkin — drain stage. Spread the tinned pumpkin purée onto a clean tea towel or 4 layers of kitchen paper. Fold the towel/paper over the purée and press gently with your hands for 1–2 minutes. Leave to drain for a further 8–10 minutes. The goal is to remove as much free water as possible without drying the purée completely; it should still be moist but noticeably less wet than from the tin.
6. Blend the filling — blend stage. In a high-speed blender (not a food processor), combine the drained cashews, vegan cream cheese, drained pumpkin purée, coconut cream, caster sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and salt. Blend on high speed for 2–3 minutes until completely smooth and silky — stop and scrape down the sides twice during blending. The mixture must be entirely free of cashew graininess; blend longer if needed. Taste and adjust sweetness or spice if necessary. Add the cornflour and blend for a further 30 seconds until fully incorporated.
7. Assemble. Remove the crust from the refrigerator. Pour the filling over the crust and smooth the surface with a spatula. Tap the tin gently on the worktop 3–4 times to release any large air bubbles. Run a toothpick or skewer through the surface in a figure of eight to bring smaller bubbles to the surface; smooth again.
8. Prepare the water bath. Tear two large pieces of heavy-duty foil (or four pieces of regular foil). Wrap the outside of the springform tin tightly in the foil, bringing it up the sides and pressing it flat against the exterior of the tin. The goal is to create a waterproof barrier that prevents the water bath from seeping through the springform seal. Place the wrapped tin in a large, deep roasting tray.
9. Bake — water bath bake stage. Place the roasting tray (with the cheesecake) on the oven’s middle rack. Pour the boiling water from the kettle into the roasting tray (not onto the cheesecake) until it comes halfway up the outside of the springform tin. Bake for 50–55 minutes. The cheesecake is done when the edges are set and a slight wobble remains in the very centre — not a liquid wobble, but a gentle, jelly-like movement when the tray is nudged. The surface should be set and lightly golden at the edges; do not wait for it to be firm all the way to the centre in the oven (residual heat will set the centre during cooling).
10. Cool gradually. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside with the door slightly ajar (prop it open with a wooden spoon) for 1 hour. This gradual cooling prevents the surface from cracking due to the sudden temperature change that occurs when a hot cheesecake is moved to a cool room. After 1 hour, remove from the oven and water bath, carefully remove the foil, and cool at room temperature for a further 1 hour.
11. Chill. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill for a minimum of 6 hours, preferably overnight. The cheesecake must be fully cold and set before slicing.
12. Topping. Before serving, make the coconut whipped cream: open the chilled coconut cream tin and scoop the solid coconut cream into a bowl, discarding (or reserving for another use) any liquid. Add the icing sugar and vanilla and whip with an electric hand whisk to soft peaks. Spoon or pipe over the cheesecake. Dust with ground cinnamon.
13. Slice. Run a sharp knife under hot water and wipe dry before each cut for the cleanest slices.

Pro Tips

• Refrigerate the coconut cream tin overnight before making the whipped topping — the cold causes the fat to solidify at the top of the tin and separate from the liquid; only the solid fat whips; cream that has not been chilled long enough will not whip to peaks. Put the tin in the refrigerator the evening before you plan to make the cheesecake.
• Blend the filling longer than you think necessary — underdeveloped cashew blending is the most common reason a vegan cheesecake has a slightly grainy texture on the palate; cashews need sustained high-speed blending to break down into a completely smooth emulsion. If your blender is not high-powered, blend for 4–5 minutes and scrape down multiple times. The filling should look like a smooth, thick cream — no visible specks or texture.
• Do not open the oven during baking — the water bath maintains a specific humidity and temperature inside the oven; opening the door during baking releases the steam and drops the temperature, both of which can cause the surface to crack. Set a timer and resist the temptation to check.
• The cheesecake improves significantly with overnight chilling — a 6-hour chill is sufficient for the set, but the flavour deepens considerably overnight as the spices integrate and the pumpkin character matures. If at all possible, make this cheesecake the day before it is needed.

Pumpkin and the Cucurbit: North America’s Most Celebrated Squash

The pumpkin — Cucurbita pepo, in its most common cultivated forms, though the broader category of “pumpkin” encompasses several Cucurbita species including maxima and moschata — is native to North America and Central America, and its cultivation by indigenous peoples of the region predates European contact by at least 7,000 years, making it one of the oldest domesticated food plants in the Americas. The word “pumpkin” derives from the Greek “pepon” (large melon), which became the French “pompon” and the English “pumpion” before arriving at the modern form — a linguistic journey that traces the fruit’s passage from Indigenous American cultivation to European curiosity to New World staple. Pumpkins were among the most important food plants for many Indigenous nations of the northeast and southwest, eaten fresh in summer, dried and stored for winter, ground into flour, and cooked in dozens of ways across the seasonal calendar. The Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy celebrated pumpkin as one of the Three Sisters — the intercropped triad of corn, beans, and squash whose combined cultivation was one of the most sophisticated agricultural systems in the pre-Columbian Americas, in which corn provided the vertical structure for beans to climb, beans fixed nitrogen to enrich the soil, and pumpkin’s broad leaves shaded the ground to suppress weeds and retain moisture. The association of pumpkin with autumn, with harvest, and with the Thanksgiving celebration of the northeastern United States — which gives rise, in turn, to the pumpkin’s now globally recognised role as the defining flavour of the autumn season in baked goods, spiced drinks, and desserts — derives directly from this Indigenous harvest tradition, mediated through the Puritan settler accounts of Thanksgiving and later through the commercial development of canned pumpkin by the Libby’s company in the early 20th century, which made pumpkin purée a pantry staple accessible year-round. The spice blend that defines “pumpkin spice” — cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and sometimes clove — is a separate tradition entirely, rooted in the spice trade and the European penchant for warming spices in autumn pastry, that was married to the pumpkin base in American baking to create one of the most recognisable flavour identities in the modern dessert canon.

Flavor Variations

• Maple and Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake: Replace 50g of the caster sugar in the filling with 3 tablespoons of pure maple syrup. Make the crust with 200g of digestive biscuits and 100g of finely chopped toasted pecans combined with the butter; the pecan crust has a rich, nutty depth that is exceptional with the maple-pumpkin filling. Top with maple-glazed pecan halves (toss pecans in maple syrup, spread on a lined tray, bake at 180°C for 8 minutes) arranged over the whipped coconut cream.
• Chocolate Swirl Pumpkin Cheesecake: Reserve 3–4 tablespoons of the finished filling before pouring into the crust. Melt 60g of good-quality vegan dark chocolate and stir into the reserved filling until smooth. Pour the main filling into the crust, then drop spoonfuls of the chocolate filling over the surface. Use a toothpick to swirl in a marble pattern. Bake as directed. The chocolate swirl is visually spectacular and the dark chocolate provides a bitter counterpoint to the sweet, spiced filling.
• Gingerbread Crust Pumpkin Cheesecake: Replace the digestive biscuits in the crust with vegan gingerbread biscuits or speculoos biscuits (check the label for vegan certification). The gingerbread crust has a deeper, more complex spice character than the digestive base and amplifies the warming quality of the cheesecake considerably — this is the variation to make for Christmas.

Nutritional Highlights (Per Slice — Based on 12 Slices, Without Topping)

Storage

• Refrigerator: Store the cheesecake (whole or in slices) in a sealed container or covered tightly with cling film in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The flavour deepens and improves over the first 2 days.
• Freezer (whole): Freeze the baked, fully set, untopped cheesecake (still in the springform tin base) by wrapping tightly in two layers of cling film and one layer of foil. Freeze for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator; apply the whipped topping on the day of serving.
• Freezer (sliced): Individual slices can be frozen between layers of parchment in a sealed freezer bag for up to 2 months. Defrost in the refrigerator for 3–4 hours or at room temperature for 1–2 hours. Do not refreeze once thawed.
• Make-ahead: This cheesecake is an ideal make-ahead dessert. Bake and chill 1–3 days before serving; apply the topping on the day. The baked cheesecake keeps covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, so it can be made early in the week for a weekend occasion.
• The topping: Whipped coconut cream is best applied on the day of serving; it holds for up to 8 hours in the refrigerator after application but deflates slowly and loses its texture overnight.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make this without a water bath?

Yes — the water bath produces the most reliable result (no cracking, even set, silky texture), but the cheesecake can be baked without one. Without a water bath, bake at 150°C fan / 160°C conventional for 55–65 minutes. The surface is more likely to crack without the humidity of the water bath, but a cracked cheesecake covered in whipped coconut cream is no less delicious. If cracking is a concern, run a thin knife around the inside edge of the springform tin immediately after removing from the oven — this releases the slight tension between the set filling and the tin wall, which is one of the causes of cracking as the cheesecake cools.

The filling is still very wobbly after the stated bake time. Should I bake longer?

A jelly-like wobble in the centre is correct at the end of the bake — the centre should not be firm in the oven; it sets during the gradual cooling and the overnight chill. A liquid wobble (the filling moves like water when the tin is nudged) indicates underbaking; add 5–8 minutes and check again. If after 65 minutes the filling is still liquid in the centre, increase the oven temperature by 10°C and bake for a further 10 minutes. Note that oven temperatures vary considerably — calibrate your oven with a thermometer if results are consistently under- or overbaked.

Can I use fresh pumpkin instead of tinned?

Yes — roast a small sugar pumpkin or butternut squash (halved, seeds removed, cut-side down on a lined tray) at 200°C fan for 40–50 minutes until completely tender. Scoop out the flesh and blend until smooth. Drain the fresh purée as directed (it often contains more water than tinned and may need a longer drain). The flavour of fresh-roasted pumpkin is excellent — slightly more complex and less uniform than tinned — but tinned pumpkin’s consistency and convenience make it the recommended option for a cheesecake where moisture management is critical.

My crust is soggy. What went wrong?

A soggy crust is almost always caused by water seeping through the foil wrap into the springform tin during the water bath. Ensure the tin is wrapped in at least two layers of heavy-duty foil, brought well up the sides and pressed flat against the exterior. Alternatively, place the springform tin inside a slightly larger cake tin before placing in the water bath — the larger tin provides a waterproof outer wall that the foil wrap alone cannot always guarantee.

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