Sweet Potato Cheesecake w/ Marshmallow-Sour Cream Topping

Mooooooove over, candied yams! There's a new tuber in town (oh yeah, I know my botany). Why not dress your table with this big, honkin' masterpiece for Christmas?? It's a sweet potato cheesecake in a ginger snap crust with marshmallow-sour cream topping. I'm not sure if it's possible to fit more of my favorite words into a food description!

I don't make cheesecake very often. However, it must have been in the stars for me to make a cheesecake this week. Josh and I were in the car going somewhere, and somehow we got on the subject of cheesecake. He suggested I make one, and that's when I realized I've only ever made like two cheesecakes in my entire life! It also hit me that cream cheese had been on sale, and as a result, we had 3 lbs. in the fridge. Ummm I think that pretty much spells out c-h-e-e-s-e-c-a-k-e! I knew I wanted to use up my Murray ginger snaps before they went stale (as much as I love them, I just can't eat a whole bag!). I was going to go the pumpkin route, until I realized we didn't have any canned pumpkin. But we DID have canned sweet potatoes! You can't have sweet potatoes without marshmallows. I did a little googling and found this recipe on Epicurious.com. It's wonderful! I followed reviewers' suggestions and baked it in a larger pan. I still had a few tablespoons of filling that wouldn't fit. There's no way all of it would've fit in the suggested 9" pan. And somehow my cheesecake baked 20 minutes faster than the recipe suggested. Sounds like someone needs to go in and do some editing on that one! Other than that, the cheesecake is outstanding! The sweet potato flavor is subtle, of course, but you definitely recognize it. And the marshmallow topping is fabulous. You know I can't complain about a ginger snap crust. I give this cheesecake an A+!

(PS: It would make a great Christmas present... *hint hint*)
Sweet Potato Cheesecake with Marshmallow-Sour Cream Topping (adapted from epicurious.com)

For crust:
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs (about 9 ounces)
1 cup pecans (about 3 1/2 ounces)
1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons chopped crystallized ginger (I omitted this only because I didn't have it)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For filling:
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups sugar
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin (or 15 ounces, by weight, of pureed sweet potato)
5 large eggs
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I upped it to 1 1/2 teaspoons)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (I upped it to 3/4 teaspoon)
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vanilla extract (I reduced to 1 tablespoon)

For topping:
2 cups mini marshmallows or large marshmallows cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream (next time I would reduce to 3/4 cup to help marshmallow flavor come through more)

Crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides with nonstick spray (I definitely recommend using a 10-inch pan. Also, the cooking spray burned in the oven, so I would omit it next time). Grind cookie crumbs, pecans, brown sugar, and ginger in processor until nuts are finely ground. Add butter; using on/off turns, process to blend. Transfer mixture to prepared pan; press onto bottom and 2 inches up sides of pan. Bake crust until set and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Cool completely.

Filling:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in pumpkin. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating on low speed to incorporate each addition. Add flour, spices, and salt; beat just to blend. Beat in vanilla. Transfer filling to cooled crust. Bake until filling is just set in center and edges begin to crack (filling will move slightly when pan is gently shaken), about 1 hour 20 minutes (Mine was ready after only 1 hour). Cool 1 hour. Run knife around sides of pan to release crust. Chill cheesecake uncovered in pan overnight (I would never leave something like this uncovered! Wrap it in plastic unless you want it to taste like your fridge! Btw, I only chilled mine for 2 hours.).

Topping:
Stir marshmallows and milk in medium saucepan over low heat until marshmallows are melted. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and salt. Cool marshmallow mixture to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Add sour cream to marshmallow mixture; fold gently just to blend. Pour topping over cheesecake and spread evenly, leaving 1/2 inch uncovered around edges. Chill to set topping, at least 1 hour.