My pumpkin cream cheese pie is the perfect dish for all you pumpkin lovers! A sweet graham cracker crust topped with luxurious pumpkin cream cheese filling creates a rich, creamy dessert perfect for the season.
It’s autumn, and I’m so excited to be adding new fall desserts to the blog. I absolutely love this time of year. The leaves are so pretty, the outfits are so cute, and pumpkin everything is everywhere!
I make pumpkin treats year-round, but fall is when they feel the most special to me. This time of year, I make everything from pumpkin spice pancakes for breakfast to pumpkin pecan bread pudding for dessert. That rich pumpkin flavor and those warm spices make the entire season better!
Today, I’m sharing my pumpkin cream cheese pie. It’s a rich, delicious dessert that combines the delicious flavor of pumpkin pie with the rich texture of a no-bake cheesecake filling. It’s super easy to make, but it’s hard to stop eating!
It’s the perfect treat for parties or dessert after a hearty, cool-weather meal like this brown sugar meatloaf or creamy chicken and dumplings.
Jump to:
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: This pie utilizes basic ingredients commonly found in your kitchen or at any local grocery store.
- A Simple Recipe: This is an almost no-bake recipe. Just bake the crust for a few minutes, and then all you have to do is mix and chill!
- The Best of Two Worlds: This is a tasty fall dessert that combines the flavor of pumpkin pie with the rich, creamy texture and tangy notes of pumpkin cheesecake.
- Versatile: This recipe is perfectly at home in both your dessert and seasonal holiday recipes rotation.
- Great for Prep: This freezer-friendly pie can be made in advance and stored for up to a month in the freezer.
Ingredients
You’ll find a complete list of the ingredients and their exact amounts in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Variations
- Graham Cracker Crust: Pumpkin pairs well with cinnamon and chocolate flavors, so use your favortie graham cracker variety to create different flavor profiles.
- Sweet and Salty: Use crushed pretzels in place of graham crackers for the crust to create a sweet and savory flavor profile similar to my pumpkin pretzel dessert.
- Fully No-Bake: Use a prepared graham cracker crust to eliminate every speck of cooking in this recipe.
- Pumpkin Filling: Use sweet potato puree for a different, but equally delicious, fall-themed pie.
How to Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie
Mix the crust ingredients well. Then, press them evenly into a prepared pie dish. Bake at 350°F until golden, then let cool completely.
Beat the evaporated milk and pudding mix until thick.
In another bowl, beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Then, mix in the remaining filling ingredients.
Beat the pudding mixture into the creamy cheese mixture until creamy and combined.
Spread the filling evenly into the pie crust, cover, and chill for at least 4 hours.
When ready to serve, beat the whipped cream ingredients until stiff peaks form. Then, add the brown sugar pecan topping and pipe the whipped cream around the edges, slice, and enjoy.
Tips
- A food processor is the quickest and easiest way to crush your graham crackers for the crust. Be sure not to pulverize them into a fine powder, however.
- Bring your cream cheese to room temperature to achieve the best filling texture and avoid little bits of raw cream cheese in the filling.
- Be sure you buy pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. They are often sold near one another.
- Make sure you use instant pudding mix, not cook-and-serve. Cook-and-serve pudding must be boiled, or it will never set.
- While four hours is the minimum chilling time for your pie, overnight is even better.
- Stop beating your whipped cream as soon as stiff peaks form. Beating it too much will cause it to collapse.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie FAQ
Pumpkin cream cheese pie is a variation of no-bake pumpkin cheesecake. Although the crust is baked, like other no-bake cheesecakes, the filling is made with a combination of cream cheese and other creamy ingredients to create a rich, decadent filling.
Cream cheese pie filling that doesn’t set is usually the result of accidentally using cook-and-serve pudding instead of instant pudding. While instant pudding only needs to be mixed and chilled, cook-and-serve pudding must be boiled; otherwise, it will not set.
Yes, cream cheese pie can be frozen. It will keep well for up to one month in the freezer.
If you don’t fully soften your cream cheese, it may not blend smoothly with the other ingredients, resulting in a grainy texture. If you freeze your pie for longer than a month, ice crystal formation will cause a grainy texture.
More Delicious Pumpkin Recipes
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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie
Ingredients
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- ⅜ cup brown sugar
- ⅜ cup chopped pecans
- ⅛ cup all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoon melted butter
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Filling
- 5 oz can Evaporated milk
- 3.4 oz box of pumpkin spice instant pudding mix small box
- (2) 8 ounce cream cheese
- ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Homemade Whipped Cream
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ⅛ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray a deep-dish pie dish with non-stick cooking spray and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Graham Cracker Crust
- In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar together until combined.
- Press mixture evenly into the prepared pie dish.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- In a small mixing bowl, add the brown sugar pecan toppings, mix together and spread out on another baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake the pecan topping for 6 minutes, and bake the crust for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Filling
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine evaporated milk and pudding mix.
- Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes (mixture will be thick).
- In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon and beat until combined.
- Next, beat the pudding mixture into the cream cheese mixture.
- Once the crust has cooled completely, spread pumpkin cream cheese mixture evenly over graham cracker crust.
- Place in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.
Homemade Whipped Cream
- In a mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat heavy whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form.
- Using a piping bag or gallon size ziplock baggie, pipe whipped cream on top of the pumpkin filling around the edges, and enjoy.
Notes
- Refrigerate for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
- Freeze for up to 1 month in an airtight, freezer-safe container.
- Defrost overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- A food processor is the quickest and easiest way to crush your graham crackers for the crust. Be sure not to pulverize them into a fine powder, however.
- Bring your cream cheese to room temperature to achieve the best filling texture and avoid little bits of raw cream cheese in the filling.
- Be sure you buy pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. They are often sold near one another.
- Make sure you use instant pudding mix, not cook-and-serve. Cook-and-serve pudding must be boiled, or it will never set.
- While four hours is the minimum chilling time for your pie, overnight is even better.
- Stop beating your whipped cream as soon as stiff peaks form. Beating it too much will cause it to collapse.
Nutrition
I baked this for dessert and it was a huge hit. Creamy, spiced, and perfectly balanced with the cream cheese layer!
This was creamy, spiced, and freezer-friendly—love the chqeesecake twist. Thanks for sharing this gem!
This is one delicious pie! I made it last night, and my husband and I adored it. It’s so creamy.
This looks amazing! I love all that classic pumpkin flavor with the cream cheese filling. YUM!