Ingredients
1# Sweet Potatoes
1/4 Cup Pecans, coarsley chopped
1 1/4 Cups Graham Craker Crumbs
2 Tbspns Sugar
5 Tbpsns Unsalted Butter, melted
2 Tspns Lemon Juice
3 8oz Packages Philly Cream Cheese, room temperature
3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar
4 Large Eggs
1/4 Cup Whipping Cream
1/4 Cup Sour Cream
1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
1 1/2 Tspns Ground Cinnamon
1 Tspnn Nutmeg, freshly grated
1/2 Tspn Ground Ginger

Preheat oven to 375° .

Cube the sweet potatoes and place in a steamer basket placed in a pan with enough water to come just below the basket. Place over high heat, covered and let steam for about 20 minutes, or until softened.

Prepare crust by placing 1/4 cup pecans in a food processor.Pulse until finely ground, but not clumping. Combine the pecans with the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter in a mixing bowl. Press the mixuture into the bottom of a cheescake pan in an even layer. Bake in the prheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Mash the steamed potatoes until smooth, reserving one cup.

Reduce oven temperature to 325°. In the bowl of your stand mixer, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually beat in granulated and brown sugars, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally, until mixture is well blended and smooth. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until blended. Add reserved sweet potato mixture, the whipping cream, sour cream, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Mix on low speed until well blended.

Wrap bottom of cheesecake pan with heavy-duty foil, pressing it up the sides. Pour batter over crust. Put cheesecake pan in a 12- by 15-inch roasting pan at least 2 inches deep. Set pans in oven and pour enough boiling water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of cheesecake pan.

Bake until cake barely jiggles in the center when gently shaken, about 55 minutes or more (it took my oven almost 2 hours!). Remove pans from oven. Lift cheesecake pan from roasting pan and let cool completely on a rack, about 1 hour, then chill until cold, at least 1 1/2 hours, or up to 3 days (cover once cold).

Up to 6 hours before serving, cut around inside of pan rim to release cake; remove rim.

Serve with maple cream.

Maple Cream: In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat 3/4 cup whipping cream until stiff peaks form. On low speed, beat in 1/4 cup maple syrup just until blended.