Bring a medium pot of water to a boil.
In the bowl of your mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the softened cream cheese and sugar on med speed until light and fluffy and without lumps (5 min), scraping down the bowl once to make sure you don't have chunks of cream cheese.
24 oz Cream Cheese, 1-3/4 cups Raw sugar
Add the pumpkin, eggs, sour cream, flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, and vanilla extract to the cheesecake filling and continue mixing on low speed until well combined, scraping down the bowl as needed.
15 oz Pure pumpkin, 5 ea Large eggs, 1/4 cup Sour cream, 2 Tbsp Flour, 2 tsp Cinnamon, 3/4 tsp Powdered ginger, 1/4 tsp Cloves, 1/4 tsp Salt
Place the roasting pan on the middle rack. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan until it comes about halfway up the side of the springform pan. Pour the filling into the cooled crust. Tip: Do not pull out the rack.
Bake until the outside of the cheesecake sets but the center is still loose, about 1 hour 45 minutes.
Turn off the oven. Leave the oven door closed and let the cheesecake sit in the oven for another 45 min. Then remove from the oven and run a knife around the edges, cover, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
Before serving, carefully remove the cheesecake from the spring-form pan. Add desired toppings (whipped cream or salted caramel sauce) and serve.