This is the BEST cheesecake! I altered recipe as follows, turned out PERFECT: Crust: -Omitted brown sugar -4 Tbs butter (instead of 6) -Pecans instead of hazelnuts Cake: -Use REAL CREAM CHEESE (w/o gums or stabilizers; comes in a tube instead of brick and is naturally soft) -Use 1/2 FRESH ROASTED PUMPKIN (instead of canned); cut a medium pumpkin in 1/2, scoop out seeds and brush w/ a little butter & salt, roast at 350 for one hour, scoop out of shell & into cream cheese mixture (no electric tools needed, a wooden spatula works great!) -REDUCE SUGAR - use 1/2 cup dark brown sugar & 1/2 cup grade B organic maple syrup -Use 1/3 cup sour cream instead of heavy cream -Use 1/2 tsp vanilla powder instead of extract (to eliminate alcohol taste) -REDUCE EGGS - use 2 eggs instead of 4. In general I've found that cakes can be made w/ 1/2 the amount of sugar/butter/eggs called for and taste much better! In this I love the flavor & texture of FRESH pumpkin! Showcase the star ingredient, don't drown it out w/ sugar & eggs. Seriously, this tastes so much better with REAL FRESH ingredients - real cream cheese (instead of hard, sticky, gummy bricks of cheese) and FRESH ROASTED pumpkin (instead of slimy runny canned pumpkin). Give it a try! Also, I turned the oven off after about an hour and 20 minutes and just let it continue cooking/cooling for another 45 minutes or so in the oven - no cracking or sinking. A work of art!

Reviewed On: Nov. 15, 2009