Pumpkin Sugar Rush: Cheeks Bakery

Serious Eater Robyn stopped by my place Sunday afternoon, brown paper bag in hand. "I have a surprise for you!" she declared, before promptly handing over the bag with much care. Curious, I lifted the heavy, chilled bag and slid the contents out onto a glass plate. "Cheesecake?" "Pumpkin!" "Oh goodness, is that a nut crust?" We eagerly grabbed a pair of forks from the kitchen and then sunk them deep, all the way down the gently spiced airy light cheesecake—a creamy tower of sweet pumpkin. At the base rested a crust composed of little more than chopped pecans, bound in a toothsome moist mass, a fantastic departure from the usual crushed graham cracker number. Heavy in weight, though surprisingly light on the mouth and in the stomach, it's the ideal closer to a hearty October meal.

Cheeks Bakery

378 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211 (nr. Havemeyer Street; map) 718-599-3583 http://www.cheeksbakery.com/

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