A great addition to any holiday dessert table, creamy Vanilla Swirl Pumpkin Cheesecake on top of a GF cookie & sunflower seed crust. Gluten & nut-free too
This one is for you Heather! Here’s the Vanilla Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake you asked for and some update pictures 😉
My friend Heather is NOT pumpkin lover by any means but she was willing and tried a piece of my Pumpkin Cheesecake (isn’t that a real friend?). Anyways, as it turned out, she ate the whole thing and in fact, made me swear I put this on my blog, pronto! Then, my husband, who does love pumpkin but is lovingly critical of all things vegan, let me know that this was one of the best desserts I’ve made.
So, if my pumpkin-hating friend and my non-vegan husband rave about this dessert, then I just HAVE to include it, right? Here’s to Vanilla Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake!
I debated on if I “missed” the opportunity to share this since Thanksgiving is not too far away, but I realized that you can make this for any holiday, even Christmas. That’s right….Christmas. It’s one of those holidays that seems to be one of the least traditional when it comes to meals and desserts.
My dear friends in TX always had tamales & homemade chili.
Some of my friends in Maryland had seafood (clam chowder, crabs & shrimp) while others did baked ham and “traditional” sides.
Other friends did Chinese food for dinner.
Then us, well, we typically do Thanksgiving at Christmas because it’s just too good to have only once a year. So you see, you can make this twice and have it for BOTH holidays like we do!
My Favorite Pumpkin Recipe
But let’s get back to Thanksgiving for now. As soon as the first cool day hits, I’m stocking up on pumpkin. I just love pumpkin! Pumpkin pie, pumpkin parfait, pumpkin latte, pumpkin snickerdoodlesΒ but most of all, I absolutely love this pumpkin cheesecake because it’s the best of both worlds….pie and cheesecake!
Allergy-friendly Pumpkin Cheesecake
As always, thisΒ vanilla pumpkin swirl cheesecake is dairy free, egg free, nut free but it is also gluten-free. It’s a party that everyone can join!
If dairy isn’t an issue for you, sub out the cream cheese for real cream cheese. Don’t care about gluten, then use regular graham crackers. Nuts not a problem, then pecans work great in the crust instead of sunflower seeds. I use to make it this way many years ago (pre-allergies).
Dishing Delish has aΒ Gluten-free Pumpkin Pie CheesecakeΒ you may want to check out as well.
Top this off with your favorite whipped topping and you’ll have the favorite dish on the dessert table. My favorite is homemade (although that post is still to come), however, I always have in my freezer a container or 2 of So Delicious coco whip topping. It’s so rich & creamy and allergy-friendly! It’s one of those products that I’m really thankful for as an allergy-mom/vegan. I use it as a special treat in my coffee, or on my desserts and sometimes, I just like to get a little spoonful and use that as my own cheat for the day. (I know, I’m pretty crazy like that, right? )
Are you ready to dig in?
Let’s make some pie!

Vanilla Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake
Creamy vanilla cheesecake filling with swirls of pumpkin all on top of a delicious vanilla & sunflower seed crust. Β Garnish with a dollop of coconut whip and you have yourself the most delicious holiday dessert.
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 1/2 Cups crushed cookie (Enjoy Life Vanilla Honey Graham)Β
- 1/3 Cup sunflower seeds
- 6 TB. Earth Balance butter substitute, melted
Vanilla Filling
- 3 (8oz) Cream cheese at room temp (Tofutti brand)
- 1 (8oz) Sour cream (Tofutti brand)
- 1/3 Cup Evaporated cane sugarΒ
- 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
- 2 Egg replacers (Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Egg Replacer)
Pumpkin Filling
- 1 1/4 Cup Vanilla filling
- 1 Cup Pumpkin puree, canned
- 1/4 Cup Evaporated cane sugar
- 2 tsp. Cinnamon, ground
- 1 tsp. Pumpkin Pie spice
Optional:Β
- Coconut Whip for topping
Instructions
Preheat oven to 300° when using a dark springform pan. (325° if using silver)
Make the Crust:
In a food processor, pulse cookies until finely crushed. Add sunflower seeds and process until combined. Pour in melted butter substitute and mix well. Press firmly onto the bottom of the pan and then up the sides, 1 1/2".
Vanilla Filling:
Using a stand mixer, blend cream cheese and sour cream on medium high until smooth (20 seconds). Add sugar and mix on medium about 1 minute, until combined. Add vanilla extract then whip on high for 30 seconds. Scrap sides and add egg replacer and only beat until blended.
Reserve 1 1/4 Cup filling in a medium bowl and set aside.
Pumpkin Filling:
In that medium bowl with the reserved vanilla filling, add the pumpkin puree, cane sugar, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Mix together until blended.
Put it Together:
Pour half of the vanilla filling into the cookie crust. Top with half of the pumpkin filling then repeat using vanilla again, finish off with pumpkin. Run the knife through the fillings to create a swirl pattern. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Center should be almost custard like in the middle (a little jiggle, not watery). Do not overbake.
Remove from oven and run sharp knife between crust and pan to gently loosen from sides. Allow to cool and set before removing sides of pan but refrigerate up to 4 hours before serving. Can also sit overnight in fridge.
Top with coconut whip and an extra sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice.
Notes
See notes blog for any changes to ingredients.Β
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 711Total Fat: 36gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 684mgCarbohydrates: 75gFiber: 4gSugar: 47gProtein: 8g
Nutritional information is only an estimate based off of using an online calculator. Numbers will change depending on brands used.
Love Pumpkin? Me too! Check out these recipes
That swirl looks amazing! My hubby would love this.
Oh this sounds like a perfect dessert to me, and I simply love your photos!
Thanks so much and I hope you have a chance to make it. Even if its after the holidays. Pumpkin anytime of year, right?
Nicole, this looks amazing!!! I love the layers of creamy deliciousness and bet my son’s would devour it! Thanks for th recipe.
The different layers are my favorite part! Let me know when you get around to making for your boys & happy holidays!
This looks so good and I’m so happy you decided to share it, it’s not too late. Heck I may just have to give it a try after the holidays since I don’t think I’ll be able to fit in make it before hand.
Thanks Sarah! Yes, we are running out of time before Christmas holidays, but hopefully you can fit it in there. It really whipped up rather quickly. I have a few recipes on my list to make before next week. I guess I need to jump on that. :0
Wow, what a dessert Nicole. I can’t believe it’s free of nuts, too. Definitely one to impress company with.
Thanks Alisa. I used sunflower seeds instead of traditional nuts and the results are awesome. Hope you get to try it out soon.
My son can actually do this! I really want to make this. And, I love that it’s not totally cheesecake–I can’t do pure cheesecake, I need something rippled in it. Great!
Oh awesome! I’m so glad he can do this dessert and I’m totally the same way…I have to have something else mixed into my cheesecake.
Whoa! This looks so completely amazing!! Plus I love the coconut whip on top!
Thanks Emily! I’m a sucker for coconut whip.
My pumpkin cheesecake didn’t look as pretty as yours. I messed up the swirl and the layering part. I’ll do better next time. Although it tasted delicious, and is a family favorite now! Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I’m obsessed with your blog. You are just crazy talented! Hugs!
So glad it turned out for you and that your family loved it! After the first bite, no one cares if the swirls are perfect or not π
This is an absolutely beautiful dessert and one that nearly everyone can eat! Thanks so much for sharing – I’m looking forward to trying this!
Thank you Jules. Enjoy
This looks amazing. I AM ready to dig in!
Dig Away
Uhm, yes please!!! This looks totally delicious!! Amazing how there are no nuts in a dairy free cheesecake π
Delicious without nuts is a MUST for this house. Enjoy it….it’s one of those recipes I could eat every single day!
Yum! I thought my cheesecake eating days were over, but it’s dairy free!! I’ll definitely be trying this soon!
Oh yes! Indulge away
O.M.G. this is gorgeous Nicole! I can’t wait to make this for our next family get-together…or for breakfast tomorrow π π π
You’ll have to let me know when you get around to making this.
What size springform pan do you use for this recipe?
I use a 9″ pan.
Thank you! I canβt wait to try it!
Can this be made in a pre-made pie crust? I found a DF/GF pie crust. Would I need to only use one layer of each so it will fit? And I wonder if the cooking time would stay the same? This looks amazing but I have to find something to do with this crust I found and bought. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes!!!
You should be able to. As for baking time, itβs really for the set up of the cheesecake so I wouldnβt cut your time down unless you Cut the filling size in half. My filling will be about 2.5 inches tall using a 9βspringform pan.