Why it works: Cinnamon and ginger match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,380 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the pan
Heat oven to 325°F.
Spray an 8"x 3" deep cake pan with vegetable cooking spray.
Line bottom of pan with a round of parchment or wax paper. Spray paper and set aside.
Make and bake the batter
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium until smooth.
Add pumpkin puree, sugar substitute, vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger. Beat mixture until smooth.
Beat in eggs one at a time, just until combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan.
Place cake pan in a deep roasting pan.
Carefully pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the cake pan.
Bake 42 to 45 minutes, until cake is just set in center.
Turn off oven. Open door and let stand in oven for 15 minutes.
Remove cake pan from water bath.
Cool, chill and serve
Transfer cake to a wire rack and cool completely.
Run a knife around edge of cake.
Cover and refrigerate until chilled (4 hours or overnight).
To remove cake from pan, dip bottom of pan into hot water for just a few seconds to loosen. Place serving platter over top and invert.
Remove pan and peel off paper.
Garnish with mint and pecans, if desired.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Cream Cheese | 1 oz (28g) | 99 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar Substitute | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp extract (4ml) | 12 |
| Cinnamon | 1 tsp ground (2.6g) | 6 |
| Ginger | 1 tsp grated fresh (2g) | 2 |
| Pumpkin | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Cinnamon + gingertop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,380 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Vanilla + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,287 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).
-
Pumpkin + cinnamontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,744 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
-
Pumpkin + vanillatop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together784 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
-
Pumpkin + gingertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,158 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cream cheese
- Provides the rich, dense body and creamy texture of the cheesecake.
- Eggs
- Set the batter into a firm custard structure as the cake bakes.
- Pumpkin puree
- Adds moisture, flavor and the characteristic color of the cake.
- Sugar substitute
- Provides the sweetness in place of granulated sugar.
The step that matters
Baking in a water bath. Baking in a water bath surrounds the pan with gentle, even heat, so the eggs set slowly without cracking or curdling. Bake only until the centre is just set, since it firms further as it cools.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar substitute, vanilla, cinnamon, egg):
- Nutmegfits better
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Clovefits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar substitute, vanilla, cinnamon, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Ginger Cookies213 recipes
Vanilla Ice Cream108 recipes
Cheese Balls97 recipes
Ginger Cake93 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.