>>easier on my knee or not>>

By default, no. From the waist up, recumbents can be a godsend, but I haven't found them to be any easier on the knees. For the new rider, it can be very tempting to use the seat back as leverage to push too big a gear. This can lead to further trouble.

Spinning is the mantra here. You should be prepared to spin lower gears at higher RPM's. Also, it can take time to find the right combination of cranks/pedals/cleats and so forth.

Just don't assume that riding a recumbent will automatically solve your knee problem.