Pumpkin Cheesecake With Maple/bourbon Sauce

Here’s a cheesecake recipe I intend to try for Thanksgiving dinner. I
found it in the 10/21/91 issue of New York Magazine and thought I’d
share it with all of you.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE WITH MAPLE/BOURBON SAUCE

MAPLE – BOURBON SAUCE (recipe below)

Crust: Lightly butter a 10×2 inch round cake pan. Combine gingersnap
crumbs, nut, and butter in a bowl, and mix well. Press mixture firmly
into prepared pan, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make Filling: In a bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugars
and spices, beat until light in texture, 3-4 min. Add pumpkin puree
and mix until just blended. Stir in eggs one at a time, scraping
sides of bowl after each addition. Stir in cream.

Pour batter into crust, and put cake pan in a roasting pan. Add hot
water to roasting pan halfway up sides of cake pan. Bake in center of
oven until cheesecake is firm to touch and slightly puffed, about 50
minutes.

Let cheesecake cool on a wire rack for about 45 minutes. Cover, and
refrigerate for at least 4 hours. When cheesecake is completely
chilled, lower pan into a hotwater bath for 2-3 min. to loosen the
crust. Invert a large, flat plate on top of cheesecake; invert pan,
and remove. Put a second plate on bottom of cheesecake, and turn it
right side up. Cut with a hot knife, and serve with maple/bourbon
sauce.

Cheesecake will keep for 4-5 days in refrigerator and
2 weeks in the freezer.

MAPLE-BOURBON SAUCE 1/4 C. Maple Syrup 3 Tb. Bourbon 1 C. Light Cream
1/4 Vanilla Bean, split lengthwise 3 Lg. Egg Yolks 1/4 C. Sugar 3/4
tsp. Cornstarch 1/3 C. Heavy Cream Whipped

Combine maple syrup and bourbon in a saucepan. Over medium heat,
bring to a boil, and cook until reduced by 1/3, about 10 minutes; set
aside to cool.

Put light cream and vanilla bean in a large saucepan, and bring to a
boil. Immediately remove from heat, and let bean infuse cream for
about 10 minutes. Remove bean, and scrape pulp into cream.

Whisk together egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch. Stir in 1/2 C. cream
and return mixture to saucepan with rest of cream. Stirring
continuously, cook over low heat until thickened enough to coat back
of a wooden spoon, 5-8 minutes.