Safety first: Lower in added sugar, not sugar-free. Not medical or nutrition advice; check with your doctor about your own diet. Please read our editorial guidelines before you start.
Key takeaways
- Only 1/3 cup of sugar for the whole cake: 5.6 g of added sugar per slice, by hand from the ingredient lists.
- Add the eggs last, on low speed. Extra air in the batter is what puffs the cake and cracks the top.
- Bake until the center reads 160°F, cool in the oven 45 minutes, then chill at least 6 hours before slicing.
In this post4 sections
What we found, and what we are guessing
We read seven crustless or low-sugar pumpkin cheesecakes. They agree on a lot: about 24 oz of cream cheese, 3 eggs (one version uses 6 with the whites whipped), a 9 inch springform, 325 to 350°F, a pan of hot water on a lower rack, and a long cool-down. They disagree on pumpkin, from 1/2 cup to a full can, and on sugar, from none (sweetener) to 1 1/2 cups. The complaints we found were cracks from overbaking or fast cooling, a weak pumpkin flavor when there was only 1/2 cup of pumpkin, and one blog where 20 extra minutes in the oven cracked the whole top. So we use a full cup of pumpkin, a steam pan, a thermometer and a slow cool. We could not load the TikTok this idea came from, so nothing here copies it. Amounts and times are our estimates, and we expect 160°F in the center to be close to the cracking point.
Tested recipe
Flourless Pumpkin Cheesecake
A crustless, flourless pumpkin cheesecake: cream cheese, pumpkin, Greek yogurt and eggs with only 1/3 cup of sugar. Twelve slices; bake, cool slowly and chill overnight.
Ingredients
Cake
- 24 oz full-fat cream cheese, 3 blocks, softened 30 to 60 minutes on the counter, no longer
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree, about 245 g; plain pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar, about 67 g, the only added sugar
- 1/3 cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt, about 85 g
- 3 large eggs, cold from the fridge is fine
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt, Diamond Crystal; use half as much table salt
Pan
- 1 tsp butter, for greasing the springform
- 4 cups boiling water, for the pan of water on the rack below
Steps
Step pictures are AI illustrations, not our dish. Our photos are coming after we cook it.
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Heat the oven to 325°F with one rack in the middle and one rack below it. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 inch springform pan lightly with the butter, line the bottom with a round of parchment, and set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Put the kettle on.
AI illustration -
Beat the softened cream cheese and the sugar in a large bowl with a hand mixer on medium-low speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until smooth. Scrape the bowl.
AI illustration -
Add the pumpkin, Greek yogurt, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and salt. Beat on low speed until smooth and an even orange, about 1 minute.
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Add the eggs one at a time on low speed, mixing only until each one disappears. Stop as soon as the batter is smooth. More mixing adds air, and air puffs the cake and cracks the top.
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Pour the batter into the springform and tap it on the counter 3 or 4 times to bring big bubbles up. Set it on the middle rack. Put a 9x13 inch metal pan on the lower rack and pour in the 4 cups of boiling water.
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Bake 55 to 70 minutes. It is done when the edges are set, the center only barely jiggles when you nudge the pan, and an instant-read thermometer in the center reads 160°F. If the top starts to brown before then, cover loosely with foil.
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Turn off the oven and prop the door open a crack. Leave the cake in for 45 minutes. Then run a thin knife around the edge to loosen it and cool on the counter for another 45 minutes. Do not leave it out longer than 2 hours after baking.
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Cover loosely and refrigerate at least 6 hours, overnight is best. Release the springform, lift off the ring and slice with a sharp knife wiped clean and warm between cuts.
AI illustration
Notes
- Contains eggs and milk. The eggs are fully cooked: the center must read 160°F, the USDA safe temperature for egg dishes. Cheesecake that is soft and wobbly all over is not done.
- Check the can: it must say pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling, which is already sweetened and spiced.
- A few small cracks are normal and do not change the taste. A big crack across the top means it baked too long or cooled too fast; the cool-down steps are there to prevent that.
- A 9 inch springform can leak. The pan sits on a baking sheet and the water is in a separate pan, not around the cake, so there is no foil to wrap.
- Added sugar: 67 g in the whole cake, 5.6 g per slice, worked by hand from the ingredient lists. The First Year pumpkin spice cheesecake works out to about 12.9 g per slice and the Sweet & Sorrel pumpkin Basque cheesecake to 25 g per slice. No online calculator was used. The card total sugar is higher (9 g) because it includes the natural sugar in the pumpkin, yogurt and cream cheese.
- Every amount and time here is our estimate.
Swaps
- Use sour cream in place of the Greek yogurt; untested.
- Use 1/3 cup maple syrup in place of the sugar and bake 5 minutes longer; untested, and the cake will be softer.
Storage and reheating
Storage: Refrigerate within 2 hours of baking, covered. It keeps up to 4 days. To freeze, chill it fully, slice, wrap each slice tightly and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight. We have not tested freezing.
Reheating: Serve cold or after 20 minutes on the counter. Do not microwave a whole slice.
Nutrition (1 slice (1/12 of the 9 inch cake))
- Calories: 257 calories
- Carbs: 11 g
- Sugar: 9 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Fat: 21 g
- Sodium: 222 mg
Estimates only, summed from standard USDA SR Legacy values per ingredient. Not medical or nutrition advice.
Where this recipe comes from
- Inspired by Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake from The First Year, which we used for the cream cheese amount, the steam pan and the oven cool-down, and for the added-sugar comparison.
- We also read Keto Pumpkin Cheesecake from Wholesome Yum for the causes of cracks and the storage times.
How to serve it
Serve cold, one thin slice at a time, with whipped cream or a spoonful of plain yogurt. The cake is rich, so a small slice is plenty, which is why we cut 12.
Every recipe from Diane's reels in one printable book: the Healthy Recipes Cookbook.
Frequently asked questions
Why did my cheesecake crack?
Usually it baked too long, the batter had too much air, or it cooled too fast. Add the eggs last on low speed, bake until the center reads 160°F and then cool in the oven with the door cracked.
Can I make it ahead?
Yes. Bake it 1 to 2 days before you serve it and keep it covered in the fridge. It keeps up to 4 days.
Is it safe if the center still jiggles a little?
A slight wobble in the very center is fine once the thermometer reads 160°F. If it reads lower, bake it longer. The USDA safe temperature for egg dishes is 160°F.
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