Rich and decadent vegan pumpkin cheesecake packed with flavor and topped with a caramel sauce and crushed pecans!
Vegan pumpkin cheesecake is here you guys!
I am officially crazy about this cheesecake.
Last time we made a vegan cheesecake we got some feedback on facebook that, even though it was decadent as heck, folks could do with a vegan cheesecake that was less on the healthy side.
They were wanting to see some vegan cookies and vegan butter for the crust, none of this nuts and dates stuff.
Well, we are so happy to oblige.
I like a good cookies and vegan butter crust just as much as the next person.
So this vegan pumpkin cheesecake has a ginger cookie crust that blends so well with the pumpkin flavors in the cheesecake.
And if you love all things cheesecake then also check out our delicious baked dairy-free cheesecake too.
How To Make Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- The Crust: Add ginger cookies to the food processor and process into crumbles. Melt vegan butter and pour this in and process until well mixed. Spray an 8-inch round springform pan with non-stick spray and line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper. Transfer the cookie crumbs and vegan butter to the springform pan and pat down firmly with the base of a spoon. Place into the freezer to set while you work on the filling.
- The filling: Add pumpkin purée, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice to a pot on the stove and gently warm it, stirring all the while until hot. This melts the sugar and blends the flavors. Then add the pumpkin mix to the blender jug along with raw cashews (soaked and drained), coconut milk, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla. Blend very well until smooth. Pour this out over the cookie crust and smooth down. Place into the freezer to set.
The Topping
And then for the topping…..a fabulous caramel sauce made with vegan butter, brown sugar, coconut milk, vanilla and sea salt. This sauce is heated on the stove to a simmer and then simmered for a few minutes (stirring constantly) until thickened.
Pour the caramel sauce over your pumpkin cheesecake and then top it with some crushed pecans and you have a dessert that will wow anybody!
Recipe Tips
Ginger cookies: We used vegan gingersnap cookies, but you can use any ginger cookie. Ideally a snappy, dry cookie that will crumble well. Golden oreos would also work great for this though you would miss that ginger flavor.
Soak the cashews. The cashews should be soaked for at least 15 minutes (and up to an hour) in hot water which will allow them to blend much easier. Just place the cashews into a bowl, pour over boiling hot water from the kettle and leave to soak for 15 minutes, then drain them and they’re ready to use.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you don’t have any pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can easily whip up a batch of your own from cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and ground cloves. Check out our recipe for homemade pumpkin pie spice.
The sauce: The sauce is completely optional of course. You can leave it off and just decorate the top of your pie with some crushed pecans. If you do make it though, then you might well have some sauce left over, even after adding more to every slice of cheesecake you serve. So use any leftovers as a topping for ice cream, on pancakes, or just eat it with a spoon!
Make It Gluten-Free
The only thing you would need to do to ensure this cheesecake is gluten-free would be to use a gluten-free cookie for the crust. Everything else is already gluten-free.
Make Ahead and Storing
This pie makes an excellent make-ahead option as you can just store it in the freezer and then bring it out 30 minutes to an hour before you need to serve it. Spoon on the sauce, decorate with crushed pecans and serve.
Keep any leftovers stored in the freezer and let thaw for 30 minutes to an hour before enjoying.
More Decadent Vegan Pie Recipes
- Vegan Pumpkin Pie
- Vegan Apple Pie
- Vegan Sweet Potato Pie
- Vegan Banana Cream Pie
- Vegan Coconut Cream Pie
- Vegan Banoffee Pie
Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
Ingredients
For the Ginger Cookie Crust:
- 9 ounces Vegan Gingersnap Cookies (250g)
- ½ cup Vegan Butter (Melted) (112g)
For the Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake:
- 2 cups Raw Cashews (300g) Soaked in boiling water for 15 mins
- 1 cup Pumpkin Purée (225g) Canned or fresh
- ¼ cup Light Brown Sugar (50g)
- 1 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
- ½ cup Canned Coconut Milk (120ml) Full Fat, Unsweetened
- ½ cup Maple Syrup (120ml)
- ½ cup Coconut Oil (120ml) Melted
- 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
For the Vegan Caramel Sauce:
- 1 cup Light Brown Sugar (200g)
- ¼ cup Vegan Butter (56g)
- ½ cup Canned Coconut Milk (120ml) Full Fat, Unsweetened
- 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Sea Salt
To Decorate:
- Crushed Pecans
Instructions
- Add the gingersnap cookies to a food processor and process until only crumbs remain. Add in the melted butter and process until mixed.
- Prepare an 8 inch springform pan by spraying it with non-stick spray and lining the bottom with a circle of parchment paper.
- Transfer the ginger cookie crumbs and vegan butter mix to the springform pan and pat down firmly with the back of a spoon. Place into the freezer to set while you prepare the filling.
- Add the pumpkin purée, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice to a saucepan and heat, stirring constantly until hot. This allows the brown sugar to melt and the flavors to blend with the pumpkin purée perfectly.
- Remove from the heat when hot and add to a blender jug along with the cashews, coconut milk, maple syrup, melted coconut oil, lemon juice and vanilla extract.
- Blend very well until completely smooth.
- Pour the filling on top of the ginger cookie crust and return to the freezer to set completely. This will take several hours, at least 4-6 hours or you can just leave it overnight.
- When the cheesecake has set, remove it from the springform pan and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to thaw before serving.
- Prepare the caramel sauce by adding the brown sugar, vegan butter, coconut milk, vanilla and salt to a saucepan and bringing to a simmer, stirring constantly. Continue to simmer at low heat for a few minutes (stirring constantly) until the sauce has thickened slightly. The sauce will thicken more as it cools. Remove from the heat and let it cool. You can speed up the cooling process by placing the pot into the freezer.
- Once the caramel sauce has cooled, spoon it out over the top of the cheesecake and decorate with crushed pecans.
Notes
- Ginger cookies: We used vegan gingersnap cookies, but you can use any ginger cookie. Ideally a snappy, dry cookie that will crumble well. Golden oreos would also work great for this though you would miss that ginger flavor.
- Soak the cashews. The cashews should be soaked for at least 15 minutes (and up to an hour) in hot water which will allow them to blend much easier. Just place the cashews into a bowl, pour over boiling hot water from the kettle and leave to soak for 15 minutes, then drain them and they're ready to use.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you don't have any pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can easily whip up a batch of your own from cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and ground cloves. Check out our recipe for homemade pumpkin pie spice.
- The sauce: The sauce is completely optional of course. You can leave it off and just decorate the top of your pie with some crushed pecans. If you do make it though, then you might have some sauce left over, even after adding more to every slice of cheesecake you serve. So use any leftovers as a topping for ice cream, on pancakes, or just eat it with a spoon!
I loved cheesecake before I went vegan and I’m so happy you made this vegan recipe! The pumpkin is an added bonus!
Delicious & tastes light!! But have you tried using less coconut oil so it’s not as caloric? Guessing it’s in there for texture & setting up?
Also what brand of Vegan Gingersnaps do you like & where do you get them?
Hi Lorraine, the coconut oil does help in getting it to set, you could try reducing it and see how it goes though! I am currently based in South Africa so I don’t know if the gingersnaps I used would be relevant to you. You can use any brand or switch for golden oreos. 🙂
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was SO delicious! Since I didn’t have a springform pan I just put it in a casserole dish, and cut it into squares. I noticed that this is also fabulous super cold from the freezer (not waiting the 30 minutes to serve), which got me thinking that next time I’ll put the ginger snap crust on the bottom AND the top of the cheesecake layer, and make these into ice cream sandwich bars!
That sounds like an awesome idea! So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I made this for Thanksgiving, substituting butternut squash for the pumpkin. Very creamy and delicious. My daughter said it was wonderful.
Oh awesome! Thanks for sharing Donna!
THIS was incredible! My omnivorous husband asked for pumpkin cheesecake. Never made one or care much for this type of pie. IT WAS SOOO GOOD! After tasting the pie filling in the blender, I added about 1-2 extra tsp of pumpkin pie spice and a dash of salt (1/8 tsp, maybe????????♀️). Just my taste preferences. I thought it wasn’t sweet enough but man oh man did it come together perfectly with your caramel sauce!!
Next time, I’ll cut the caramel recipe in half and drizzle across (fancy zigzag style!) instead of pouring it over, like I did. I made brown sugar pecans from the Minimalist Baker’s site, and they turned out great also. But next time I’ll just roast plain pecans to use as a balance to this rich, decadent pumpkin cheese you’ve come up with. This was truly amazing! I can’t wait to bring this to a party or pull it out of my freezer for an easy, amazing dessert to serve future dinner guests!
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit. The texture and flavor are perfect. Will definitely be making it every year! Thank you for another great recipe ????
Thanks so much Heather!
I loved this recipe so much!
People were freaking out about how amazing it was. I changed it a little bit by using half cacao butter and half coconut oil for the fat, and I used coconut cream instead of milk. And I added some salt to the filling. I like the cacao butter because it makes it really hold up at room temperature or in the fridge. And I put tons of roasted pecans on – it almost tasted like the best of both worlds getting to have pumpkin pie and pecan pie and a bit of gingerbread. Such an excellent recipe! Thank you so much!
Awesome Chloe! Thanks so much for sharing!
Absolutely amazing and delicious
First time making vegan cheesecake and WOW!
I’m so grateful for this recipe , thank you for creating such AMAZING vegan dessert !
Happy VEGAN thanksgiving from Colorado
❤️???? much love ❤️
Thank you so much Susy! Same to you! xoxo
I’m planning on making this for Thanksgiving this year. Can’t wait to try it! I own a 10″ springform pan. Would you recommend doubling the recipe to achieve a thicker cheesecake?
Hi Lauren, I’m not sure how well that would work. The reason being that there is a lot that needs to be blended up in the blender already and if you added more to that it would likely be way too much for any blender to handle. You could do it in stages I guess, but I’m just not sure.
How will the recipe turn out with another nut substituted for cashews? Can you do 1 cup cashews and 1 cup almonds or pecans?
Hi Jackie, cashews are definitely the best for texture, but slivered or blanched almonds could also work. I wouldn’t use pecans.
Thanks for your reply and suggestion! What is your opinion about raw sunflower seeds?
That could also work! But it’s not something I’ve ever tried.
Hi! This looks delicious and I plan on making it for Thanksgiving, but want to avoid failure.
Since this just sets when it’s frozen, does it get runny as it sits on the table?
Also, I don’t have the best luck using coconut milk – do you think I can get away using a vegan heavy cream for the filling instead of coconut milk?
Thank you! 🙂
Hi Madison, I think a vegan cream would work well! It won’t get runny at all when it’s on the table. It will eventually get quite soft if it sits at room temp all day but it will take a while and it won’t get runny, just soft.
Hi! This recipe looks great and I can’t wait to try it! With the maple syrup, does it need to be a certain kind? Can I use another sweetener (like honey although it’s not vegan)?
Hi Hayley, we used pure maple syrup but you can certainly use a different syrup or honey if that’s what you prefer. 🙂
Hello! I can’t wait to try this for thanksgiving this year, but my sister has a coconut allergy. Do you think it would be okay to substitute full fat oat milk for the canned coconut milk in the caramel sauce? Thank you!
Hi Emma, yes this should be fine! 🙂
Is it OK to put it back in the freezer, as it has been frozen and thawed when I took it out to serve?
This is what I usually do. But if you are worried you can also keep it stored in the fridge. 🙂
I have made this for this year’s Halloween and it was divine, both myself and my husband devoured it in a couple of days! Really impressed with the cheesecake texture and taste and the caramel sauce was outstanding! I followed your recipe to the letter except for the ginger biscuits (I hate ginger and used normal digestives). I thought I’d take the time and write the feedback because I am really impressed with the result and it’s people like you that help the world become a better place and become vegan, thank you!
Thanks so much for the amazing review Sorina! So glad it was a success! xoxo