Thankful

Since it's Thanksgiving time, and Adam and I did host our own Thanksgiving for a few select friends, you'd think that I'd have tons of successful recipes to put on here. I do, but the problem is that I was in such a hustle and bustle preparing our feast for our guests that I forgot to take pictures of how they turned out. And in my opinion, the best recipes are those with pictures. There's something about having an idea of how your final outcome should be. To me, it gives me confidence in my cooking ability. To give you an idea of the recipes that I forgot to shoot, and that were missed by this blog, Adam and I have made a Thanksgiving Turkey, Cranberry-Apple-Sausage Stuffing, Cranberry-Sweet Potato Casserole, and a Pumpkin Log. Well, today, I was at the kitchen counter again, but this time at the Gross Residence in Oregon, Ohio in order to make my portion of Thanksgiving "Linner" for my immediate family. Ever since they found out I could make pumpkin pie, I've been in charge of it. Since Adam and I will have eaten potentially 4 Thanksgiving meals by the Sunday, I'm tired of the staples and wanted something a little different then your standard pumpkin pie. So I ventured to make a pumpkin cheesecake. Making two, we'll be able to sample one this evening, before my family gets an opportunity to critique. But, more importantly, I remembered pictures!

INGREDIENTS
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground cloves
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Remove 1 cup of batter and spread into bottom of crust; set aside.
Add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to the remaining batter and stir gently until well blended. Carefully spread over the batter in the crust.
Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until center is almost set. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Cover with whipped topping before serving.

I hope everyone of you had a Happy Thanksgiving!