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Kitchen Note: Full-size chocolate chips can be substituted for the mini morsels.

Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake

Serves 12–16

The marbling is beautiful, the flavor is deep, the texture is creamy. Throw virtue to the wind. The perfect holiday dessert? It just might be.

CRUST

1½ cups gingersnap or graham cracker crumbs

6 tablespoons butter, melted

¼ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

CHEESECAKE

1 pound cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons Cointreau or Grand Marnier

1 cup granulated sugar

½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

4 eggs plus 2 egg yolks

1½ cups cooked and pureéd pumpkin or winter squash

¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1 Preheat the oven to 325°F.

2 To make the crust, combine the crumbs, butter, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Press the mixture into a 9-inch springform pan, making a 1-inch-high rim around the edge.

3 Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

4 To make the filling, combine the cream cheese, sour cream, Cointreau, granulated sugar, and nutmeg in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the whole eggs and pulse just until well blended. Do not overmix.

5 Remove 2 cups of the mixture and set aside. Add the two egg yolks, pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, and ginger to the food processor. Pulse until well blended.

6 Transfer the springform pan to a baking sheet. Pour half of the pumpkin filling onto the crust, then half of the plain filling. Repeat the procedure with the remaining fillings, drizzling the plain so that some of the pumpkin filling is still visible. Gently run a table knife through the batter, drawing first horizontal and then vertical lines 1 inch apart to marble the plain filling into the pumpkin.

7 Bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes, until the center appears set but not firm. Turn off the heat, open the oven door, and allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature.

8 Gently run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan to loosen. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Remove the sides of the pan and serve.

Appendixes

Metric Conversions

Unless you have finely calibrated measuring equipment, conversions between U.S. and metric measurements will be somewhat inexact. It’s important to convert the measurements for all of the ingredients in a recipe to maintain the same proportions as the original.

Roasting Vegetables

One of the best ways to prepare root vegetables and winter squashes is to roast them. Roasting brings out so much flavor that salt and pepper is the only seasoning needed. For a change of pace, you can drizzle roasted vegetables with a little high-quality vinegar or pomegranate molasses as well. Before roasting, lightly coat the vegetables with oil and arrange in a single layer on a sheet pan or in a shallow roasting pan. Do not crowd! Stirring or shaking the pan once or twice during roasting will ensure even cooking. The vegetables will diminish considerably in volume as they roast. If your oven allows it, use convection heat, which creates a drier environment for the roasting process.

Roasting Guidelines

Index

A

Acorn squash, 37. See also Winter squashes

Baked Winter Squash, 195

African Sweet-Potato Stew, 263

Aioli, Lemon, 181

Almonds

Almond-Squash Quick Bread, 359

Curried Rice Salad with Mango Chutney Dressing, 78–79

Roasted Sweet-Potato Salad with Sesame-Ginger Vinaigrette, 72

Soy-Sesame Cabbage Salad, 59

Stuffed Sweet Dumplings, 193

Apples & apple juice/cider. See also Applesauce

Apple-Braised Delicata Squash, 194

Apple, Leek, and Cheddar Quiche, 262

Applesauce, 354–55

Apple-Squash Bisque, 118

Celery Root, Apple, and Walnut Salad, 67

Choucroute Garni, 340–41

Cider-Braised Sweet Potatoes with Apples, 184

Curried Rice Salad with Mango Chutney Dressing, 78–79

Endive and Apple Salad with Candied Nuts and Blue Cheese, 68

Maple-Apple Tea Cake, 357

Stuffed Sweet Dumplings,