Laurie Wenell's Recipe

Claim Jumper Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie

Category: Copy Cat Restaurant Recipes

Comments:
This recipe is a modified version of other copycat Claim Jumper Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie recipes on the Internet. The original copycat recipe needed tweaking, as the result was soupy in the middle and never set. I increased the springform pan size and oven temperature, and lowered the amount of some ingredients to produce a pie that wasn't soupy, but just as delicious.

NOTE:
Set out eggs, butter and cream cheese so that they are room temperature before beginning to prepare the recipe.

Pie Crust:
1-1/4 lbs (20 ozs) Lorna Doone (OR shortbread) cookies
4-1/2 ozs melted butter
Butter-flavored cooking spray

1. Crush cookies in a food processor or blender until fine.
2. Set aside 2 ozs of Lorna Doone cookie crumbs for topping.
3. Mix the remaining cookie crumbs (1 lb, 2 ounces) and melted butter together. The cookie crumb mixture should hold together when pressed by hand.
4. Lightly coat a 9" springform pan with cooking spray, add cookie crumb mixture to the pan and firmly press bottom and sides evenly.
5. Place the springform pan in the refrigerator.

Pumpkin Spice Mixture:
8 ozs Libby's pumpkin pie mix
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice

1. Combine pumpkin mix and spices in a mixing bowl; whisk together by hand until smooth.
2. Set aside.

Cream Cheese Mixture:
24 ozs (3 packages) soft cream cheese
12 ozs granulated sugar, divided
3/4 oz (2 Tbsp) vanilla extract
4 whole eggs (add one at a time into mixture)
1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Mix cream cheese and 8 ozs of the sugar together until well blended and smooth.
3. Add the remaining 4 ozs sugar, vanilla extract, and each of the eggs, one at a time. The mixture should be thin and smooth, as honey.
4. Whisk in lemon juice and lemon zest.
5. Remove 9" springform pan from refrigerator.
6. Set aside 12 ozs (1-1/2 cups) of cream cheese mixture and pour the remaining cream cheese mixture in the crusted 9" springform pan.
7. Combine the 12 ozs of cream cheese mixture and the pumpkin spice mixture in a mixing bowl and whisk together until smooth.
8. Pour on top of the cream cheese mixture in the 9" springform pan.
9. Bake for 50-60 minutes.
10. Turn off oven and let sit in the oven for 30 minutes. (The cream cheese pie may crack, but it will be covered with the sour cream topping later.)
11. Remove from oven to cool for 15 more minutes, then place covered with foil in the freezer.

Sour Cream Topping:
18 ozs sour cream
1-1/2 ozs (3 Tbsp) granulated sugar
3/4 tsp fresh lemon juice

1. Combine the sour cream, sugar and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and whisk together until smooth.
2. Spread sour cream topping evenly over the frozen pumpkin cream cheese pie.
3. Sprinkle the remaining 2 ozs of cookie crumbs over the sour cream topping, and bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 8 minutes.
4. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 2-3 hours before serving.