Maple Cheesecake

A SIMPLE CHEESECAKE IS, in my mind, the ultimate dessert: velvety and smooth, with a crisp, buttery crust and a richness that’s restrained by an underlying tang. But for Thanksgiving this year, I wanted to give the classic an autumnal twist, and sweetening the cheesecake with maple syrup instead of sugar was just the way to get there.

But first, the crust. I tried a basic graham cracker crust as well as a few unorthodox variations; we loved the way a handful of pecans added to our tried-and-true graham cracker crust provided a nutty accent to the maple-y filling. To make it, grind up graham crackers and pecans in a food processor until