German Pumpkin Cheesecake (Käsekuchen)

This German Pumpkin Cheesecake is to die for! Creamy pumpkin filling made with protein-rich quark, sits on top of an easy, spiced crust. This is a go-to pumpkin dessert that’s perfect for Thanksgiving and the holidays.

How To Make Pumpkin Cheesecake

This German pumpkin cheesecake is so easy to make! You'll love that it's higher in protein and lower in sugar and fat than American cheesecake, all while being so delicious, fluffy and creamy at the same time. Once you've gathered your ingredients (I bought most of mine at my favorite local farmers market in Overland Park, Kansas), simply crush the cookies and mix with butter to make the crust to press onto the bottom of your springform pan.

For the filling, you will first bring your ingredients to room temperature. Otherwise your cake will take longer to bake. Then you'll mix together all ingredients for the filling and add it over the crust.

The cake is baked for 50 minutes before adding the sour cream and honey mixture on top for the final 10 minutes of baking. The hardest part is waiting for the cheesecake to cool down before eating it. I leave it in the turned off oven for an hour after baking, then move it to the fridge overnight to finish setting up.

I love serving it with coffee in the afternoon, as dessert for fall dinners or for Thanksgiving or the holidays.

Ingredients

When making your own pumpkin Käsekuchen, there are a few essential ingredients that you will need.

Lotus Biscoff Cookies. I use these spiced, crunchy cookies instead of graham cracker cookies and the result is heavenly! They're the typical German cookie served at restaurants with a cup of coffee (and they're perfect dipped in it). I find Lotus Biscoff Cookies on Amazon, at Costco, World Market and sometimes random grocery stores. If you'd rather use Graham Crackers, simply combine the same amount of cookies with half a teaspoon of ginger and half a teaspoon of cinnamon. You could also make the whole cheesecake gluten-free if using a gluten-free graham cracker for the crust.

Butter. You will need melted butter for the crust to get it to packing consistency.

Quark. This is a German dairy that's high in protein and low in fat. It's the essential ingredient to making a German cheesecake. You can make your own or find it at grocery stores. I bought local quark from Hemme Brothers Creamery and was so happy they sell it in large containers up to 5 pounds! They also have 2 pound containers, which is how much you need for this Käsekuchen. You can order it online during the winter months or find it at Overland Park Farmers Market. I have substituted with lowfat, thick-strained Greek yogurt before (Fage brand), but the taste is not quite the same.

Pumpkin Puree. I have used canned puree before, but this time I had bought a GIANT musquee de provence pumpkin from Pearl Family Farms at the Overland Park Farmers Market to use. This pumpkin is loved by chefs for its amazing pumpkin flavor. It's also so pretty, so it was sad for me to cut it up right after buying it and not display it on our porch! This pumpkin gives this pumpkin cheesecake the perfect fall flavor.

Eggs. These are needed to bind the texture for your cheesecake and they add protein.

Cornstarch. This helps the mixture set up and is essential for making cheesecake.

Sugar. Germans don't use a lot of sugar in baked goods, but just the right amount to make this a treat.

Sour Cream. I use sour cream for the final finishing touch. It gets spread on top of the cheesecake during the last part of baking for a pretty top.

Honey. There is a little bit of honey that gets mixed in with the sour cream for the top.

Tools

There are a few essential tools that you will want to have when making your own pumpkin cheescake.

Springform Pan. This is the traditonal bakeware you use for making a German cheesecake. It consists of a bottom pan and a ring that clips around the bottom. It makes it so much easier to remove your cheesecake from the pan. Believe me when I say you need it. I use a 10 inch springform pan.

Food Processor. It's so easy to use it for crushing those crackers for the crust. If making your own pumpkin puree, it also comes in handy for pureeing it.

Mixer. I use it to combine my cheesecake filling. I love this cordless, handheld version for smaller projects that don't need endless mixing.

Rubber spatula. For scraping all the Käsekuchen batter out of the mixing bowl and into your spring pan.

Pumpkin Käsekuchen Recipe Tips

• Bring ingredients to room temperature. Otherwise your pumpkin cheesecake will take forever to bake and you're less in control of how long that should be.
• Cover the bottom of the pan in foil. Your springform pan is likely going to drip some excess grease from the butter in the crust. Covering the bottom of the pan in aluminum foil will avoid the grease to drip to the bottom of your oven to create smoke. Believe me, I've had this happen and besides our house being filled with smoke, the cake also tasted like smoke (and probably wasn't healthy to eat either).
• Give it a little shake. If the middle of the center is barely wiggling, it's done, as it will finish setting up during the resting period.
• Cool down your cake in the oven. When the cake is finished baking, turn off rhe oven, do NOT remove your pumpkin cheesecake, and barely crack open the oven door. Let is stand there for one more hour before putting it on your kitchen counter to cool to room temperature. Finally it goes in the fridge overnight (or for 4 to 8 hours) for the final setup.

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Quark

While American or "New York style" cheesecake is also becoming pretty popular in Germany, it's got nothing on a slice of baked German cheesecake in my opinion. Comparing both recipes side by side, the biggest difference is that the American version uses cream cheese and the German version uses quark, a dairy that's similar to strained Greek yogurt (although less tart) and high in protein. Quark makes it fluffier and a lot healthier, being low in fat and high in protein. While I have not found a good substitute, you can make your own. The easier option is to purchase quark locally or from Hemme Brothers located in Missouri. Hemme ships during the colder months and even offer plain quark tubs up to 5 pounds!

How To Video

German pumpkin cheesecake is SO EASY to make! Just watch this 31-second video to become familiarized with the simple steps of making it.

More Pumpkin Recipes

Hungry for more pumpkin recipes? Then try my Pumpkin Berliner (German donuts with pumpkin), Pumpkin Spätzle (German egg noodles with pumpkin) or Pumpkin Brezeln (German pretzels with pumpkin).