Spirited Pumpkin Cheesecake

CHEESECAKE
2 1/4 lb Cream cheese; room temp
1/4 c Brandy or cognac
3/4 c Cooked pumpkin; pureed
1 1/2 c Lt brown sugar; packed
1/3 c Sugar
1 1/2 ts Cinnamon
3/4 ts Ground ginger
1/4 ts Ground nutmeg
1/8 ts Ground cloves
1/8 ts Ground mace
3 Lg eggs; room temp
2 Lg egg yolks; room temp

Pecan Crust: Heat oven to 350, place rack in center. Coat bottom and
sides of 9″ spring form pan evenly with unmelted butter and set
aside. Mix dry ingredients in med. bowl. Drizzle melted butter over
dry mix and stir and toss to coat until slightly darkened and
uniform. Press crust evenly on sides and bottom of pan and
refrigerate 5 minutes. Bake until crust is slightly dry, 8 – 10
minutes, cool on wire rack to room temp.
Cheesecake: Cut cream cheese into 1″ chunks, place in large mixer
bowl and beat at med speed until completely smooth. Continue beating
while slowly adding brandy. Add pumpkin and mix well. Continue
beating while very slowly adding sugars, scraping sides of bowl as
needed. Beat until smooth, add spices blend well. Beat whole eggs
with the yolks in small bowl at med speed until blended. Add eggs,
about 1/4 c at a time to cheese mix, beating well and scraping sides
of bowl after each addition.
Pour batter into cooled Pecan Crust, spread top smooth. Gently
rotate pan several quarter-turns to settle batter. Bake until sides
of cake are well set and center is just set, about 1 hour and 25
minutes. Turn oven off. Let cake stand in oven with door propped open
8″ for 30 minutes. Place on wire rack away from drafts, let cool
undisturbed until sides and bottom are completely cooled. Remove
sides of pan and refrigerate uncovered overnight or at least 8 hours.
Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time.
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