Ingredients

• Crust: (From the kitchen of Rebecca St. Clair)
• 1 cup of nuts of your choice (I used raw walnuts and almonds)
• 4-5 dates (depending on size)
• Dash of sea salt
• Grind all ingredients in a food processor until crumbly and somewhat sticky.
• Press into a parchment paper with butter lined springform pan and butter the sides. 9 in pan.
• Filling: (From the kitchen of Rhonda Cain)
• 2 (8 oz) packages of cream cheese (at room temperature)
• 1 cup of ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup sour cream
• 2 cups of pumpkin puree (roasted from 2 (1 lb) pie pumpkins.
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• ¾ cup of local honey
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp fresh ground nutmeg (grinding fresh adds so much more flavor)
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves
• 2 Tbsp oat flour (you can use 2 Tbsp arrowroot powder if you are grain & gluten free)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Roasting pie pumpkins: Cut each pumpkin in half, scoop out seeds, place on a parchment lined cooking sheet, Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
2. Allow to cool, scoop out pumpkin and put in a food processor until puree’ consistency.
3. Filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth.
4. Add pumpkin, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, honey and spices.
5. Add oat flour (or arrowroot powder) and vanilla.
6. Beat together until well combined.
7. Pour on top of crust in springform pan, spreading out evenly.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. May still be slightly jiggly.
9. Allow to cool, cover with plastic and chill for 4 hours.
10. Top with whipping cream: 1 pint of whole cream, whip in a chilled bowl, add in honey to taste, maybe a tsp.
11. Top cheesecake with whipped cream. Sprinkle with fresh ground nutmeg.
12. The key with using a springform pan is to well grease the pan and edge around the sides with a butter knife before “springing” it.
13. This makes a very tall cheesecake! About an inch from the top. So, a sliver will do ya!

Notes