Sweet Potato Cheesecake

This creamy sweet potato cheesecake is packed with warm flavors – a gingersnap crust, decadent cheesecake swirled with spiced sweet potatoes, and a candied praline topping. Need I say more?!

Hey cousins! Today, we’re making a reader-requested recipe. Y’all know I love to hear what my sweeties want to see on my blog. So, when I asked my followers on Facebook what they’d like to see me make around the holidays, I got a very specific request from a reader named Jackie–A sweet potato cheesecake with a gingersnap crust!

While I read her request, my husband was standing behind me, obviously reading as well because he immediately shouted out, “BABY, YOU HAVE TO MAKE THAT!!!! AND TELL WHOEVER REQUESTED IT THAT I APPRECIATE THEM!” LOL! Almost immediately, I wrote Jackie back and told her I would indeed answer that request! I mean, how could I not? It sounded too darn good not to make, and let’s not forget that my hubby was all in my ear about it!

The Perfect Sweet Potato Dessert

Now, y’all know the I Heart Recipes sweet potato pie is somewhat of a legend around these parts. My amazing readers have made it – along with my candied yams – a staple on their holiday table. Well, sweet potato lovers and cheesecake lovers can unite over this recipe!

When it comes to making sweet potato cheesecake, I keep it really simple. I wanted to ensure my readers could make it without a headache, so I used a pie dish instead of a springform pan like most from-scratch cheesecake recipes. It’s much easier to remove the cheesecake slices from a pie pan. Plus, I realize that not a lot of people have springform pans.

The result is a creamy cheesecake with a sweet potato puree swirled in. Seasoned with warm spices, it has the best texture and flavor! Finally, we make a sweet caramel pecan praline topping. When I tell y’all this is the BEST cheesecake for the holidays, I mean it!

So, if you’re sick of me yappin’ about how dang good this sweet potato praline cheesecake is, then the time has come for me to tell y’all how to make it!

Ingredients for Homemade Sweet Potato Cheesecake

You don’t need nearly as many ingredients as you think to make a tasty cheesecake at home. Pop on over to your grocery store and follow the shopping list below to get everything you need! Be sure to check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for complete ingredient measurements.

Gingersnap Crust Ingredients:

• Gingersnap Cookies: these sweet and spicy cookies are the perfect swap for a classic graham cracker crust.
• Melted Butter: helps to bring the crust together; we also use butter in the sweet potato mixture and praline topping.

Cheesecake Filling Ingredients:

• Cream Cheese: I use two bricks of cream cheese, and mixing them at room temperature is best (and easiest)!
• White Sugar: to sweeten the cheesecake mixture.
• Vanilla Extract: adds that warm vanilla flavor; we use vanilla in the praline topping, too!
• Eggs: give structure to the cheesecake. You’ll use them in the sweet potato mixture as well.

Sweet Potato Mixture Ingredients:

• Sweet Potatoes: you can use canned sweet potatoes like I did…ain’t no shame in my game, baby! Or you can boil or bake a fresh sweet potato.
• Spices: I use ground cinnamon and nutmeg, which are classic spices for sweet potato recipes!
• Brown Sugar & Vanilla: these warm flavors add depth to the sweet potato mixture, just like in a classic sweet potato pie.

Pecan Praline Topping Ingredients:

• Pecans: toasted and crushed pecans are perfect for a bit of crunch on top of the cheesecake.
• Heavy Cream: thickens the creamy praline mixture.
• Butter, Brown Sugar, & Vanilla: these three ingredients melt together to create a sweet caramel sauce.
• Salt: helps balance the sweetness while adding a hint of salty flavor.

Simple Ingredient Swaps and Substitutions

The great thing about this recipe is that you can swap out a few things if you don’t have the exact ingredients on hand. If you don’t have butter, use margarine. Cinnamon and nutmeg can be swapped out for pumpkin pie spice to add more flavor, or you can use my sugar-free yam seasoning. Canned sweet potatoes work just fine, but you can’t beat the flavor of a roasted sweet potato. Of course, if you’re not a fan of ginger snaps, use graham crackers to make a classic graham cracker crust.

How to Make a Sweet Potato Cheesecake with Praline Topping

Now, making any homemade cheesecake is a bit of a labor of love, but the end result is oh sooo worth it. Your taste buds will thank you, as will anyone you make this tasty sweet potato cheesecake recipe for! Let’s get to it, fam.

Follow along with the written directions in the recipe card below, or watch how I make the cheesecake in this helpful video tutorial!

Making the Gingersnap Crust

The crust is the easiest part. Simply use a food processor or blender to turn the gingersnap cookies into crumbles. Mix them with melted butter and spread them out on the bottom of your pie pan. Bake for 5 minutes, then cool the crust completely.

Making the Sweet Potato Cheesecake Filling

First, make the cheesecake batter. Mix the cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl. I find using a hand mixer for this step is most useful. You want a creamy cheesecake batter with no lumps!

To make the sweet potato filling, take the canned diced sweet potato and mash them up in a large bowl. Add melted butter, brown sugar, spices, and vanilla. Again, use your hand mixer (or another electric mixer like a stand mixer) to mix the sweet potato filling until smooth.

Once both fillings are done, you can either mix them together for a combined filling or swirl the sweet potato mixture into the cheesecake batter. I like my sweet potato cheesecake to have little pockets of sweet potato swirled in, so I plop scoops into the cheesecake and swirl them together.

How to Make a Pecan Praline Topping

Once the sweet potato cheesecake is in the oven, it’s time to make the sweet caramel pecan praline topping! Melt butter and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the salt, and then pour in the heavy cream once the mixture begins to bubble. Turn the heat to medium-high and let the caramel boil for about 4 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the crushed pecans, and there you have it – a sweet caramel pecan praline topping! Pour it over the top of the cheesecake and refrigerate your sweet treat for at least 4 hours.

Tips and Tricks for Making a Delicious Sweet Potato Cheesecake

When a recipe is a labor of love, you wanna make it right, so it’s worth all that effort. Now, this is an easy recipe… with a lot of steps, yes! But nothing too complicated. To make it even easier for you, here are some tips.

• Leave plenty of time to make this recipe! Since you need to let it chill in the fridge, making it a day ahead of time is best, but you’ll need at least 6 hours.
• Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. The eggs, cream, butter, and cream cheese will all mix into a smoother batter with no lumps when mixed at room temperature.
• I use an 8-inch pie pan, but a larger 9-inch round pie pan would also work.
• Can’t tell if the cheesecake is done? You’ll know it’s fully baked when the center of the cheesecake doesn’t jiggle and the edges are slightly golden brown.
• Let the cheesecake cool completely before adding the praline topping, and make sure the praline topping is cool before refrigerating (to avoid any moisture on top of the cheesecake).
• Serve the cheesecake with whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon for the perfect garnish!
• You don’t need to bake this cheesecake in a water bath. We’re covering the top of the cheesecake with the praline caramel sauce, so you won’t even see any cracks!
• You can store this cheesecake in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month! Freeze individual slices so you can have a sweet treat any time!

More Sweet Desserts from I Heart Recipes

Well, there you have it, cousins! A simple, decadent sweet potato cheesecake with a pecan praline topping! This dessert is perfect for holidays, birthdays, special occasions, you name it! Many thanks to my wonderful readers for always giving me great dessert ideas to share with y’all! Here are some more sweet recipes to try:

• Sweet Potato Pie Fudge
• Sweet Potato Casserole
• Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls
• Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
• Pecan Pie Brownies
• Pecan Praline Candy Clusters
• Salted Caramel Buttermilk Pie

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