Classic Pumpkin Pie
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
14 oz. low fat evaporated milk
2 egg whites
1 egg
15 oz. pumpkin
1 prepared graham cracker crust
Preheat oven to 425. Combine sugars, salt, spices, milk and eggs in a large bowl. Add pumpkin, and whisk until smooth. Pour filling into the crust and place pie on a baking sheet. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 350 without removing pie from oven. Bake an additional 50 minutes. Cool completely before serving.
Blue Cheese Pumpkin Soup
2 (15 ounce) cans pumpkin
1 quart chicken stock
1 cup half-and-half
1 shallot, minced
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 slices bacon
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
Stir together the pumpkin, chicken stock, half-and-half, shallot, molasses, butter, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and cayenne pepper in a large stockpot over low heat; simmer 10 minutes. Meanwhile, place bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook until crispy; remove to paper towels to drain, then cool and crumble. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with bacon and blue cheese.
Pumpkin Balls
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 container caramel icing
3 oz. white chocolate bark
Food coloring
Green icing
Bake cake according to package directions. When done, crumble and dump into a large bowl. Let cool overnight. In the morning, thoroughly mix icing into the crumbled cake. Roll into 3” balls and set on a baking sheet.
Melt chocolate bark in a glass bowl in the microwave, or in a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Use food coloring to turn the chocolate orange. Dip the balls in chocolate using a toothpick or fork to hold them. Place on waxed paper to set. Use green icing to decorate for the harvest season.
Creamy Pumpkin Cheesecake
9 whole graham crackers, broken into large pieces
3 T sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
6 T unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1 can pumpkin
1 1/2 lb cream cheese, cut into 1” chunks and softened to room temperature
1 T vanilla extract
1 T juice from 1 lemon
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream
Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Spray bottom and sides of 9-inch spring-form pan evenly with nonstick cooking spray. Pulse crackers, sugar, and spices in food processor until evenly and finely ground, about fifteen 2-second pulses. Transfer crumbs to medium bowl, drizzle melted butter over, and mix with rubber spatula until evenly moistened. Turn crumbs into prepared springform pan and, using hand, spread crumbs into even layer.
Using flat-bottomed ramekin or drinking glass, press crumbs evenly into pan bottom, then use soup spoon to press and smooth crumbs into edges of pan. Bake until fragrant and browned about the edges, about 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack while making filling.
Bring about 4 quarts water to simmer in stockpot. Whisk sugar, spices, and salt in small bowl; set aside. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, beat cream cheese at medium speed to break up and soften slightly, about 1 minute. Scrape beater and bottom and sides of bowl well with rubber spatula. Add about one third of sugar mixture and beat at medium-low speed until combined, about 1 minute; scrape bowl and add remaining sugar in two additions, scraping bowl after each addition.
Add pumpkin, vanilla, and lemon juice and beat at medium speed until combined, about 45 seconds; scrape bowl. Add 3 eggs and beat at medium-low until incorporated, about 1 minute; scrape bowl. Add remaining 2 eggs and beat at medium-low until incorporated, about 45 seconds; scrape bowl. Add heavy cream and beat at low speed until combined, about 45 seconds.
Using rubber spatula, scrape bottom and sides of bowl and give final stir by hand.
Set springform pan with cooled crust on 18-inch-square doubled layer heavy-duty foil and wrap bottom and sides with foil; set wrapped pan in roasting pan. Pour filling into springform pan and smooth surface; set roasting pan in oven and pour enough boiling water to come about halfway up side of springform pan.
Bake until center of cake is slightly wobbly when pan is shaken and center of cake registers 145 to 150 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 11/2 hours (see note). Run paring knife around cake to loosen; remove sides of pan. Set roasting pan on wire rack and cool until water is just warm, about 45 minutes.
Remove springform pan from water bath, discard foil, and set on wire rack; continue to cool until barely warm, about 3 hours. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or up to 3 days.
Slide thin metal spatula between crust and pan bottom to loosen, then slide cake onto serving platter. Let cheesecake stand at room temperature about 30 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake
2 cups white sugar
2 cans canned pumpkin
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup fat free vanilla pudding
4 large egg whites
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350. Combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, pudding and egg whites in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and baking soda. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, stirring just until moist. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into a bundt pan coated with cooking spray. Bake for 75 minutes. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack, and remove from pan. Cool completely before serving.
