This soup is a bit different than my usual approach to pumpkin soup. Quite often my soups will involve generous quantities of curry powder and coconut milk and quite often a bit of tomato as well. This one leans into maple syrup with a little bit of cayenne as the main seasoning. (Although I used Kashmiri chilies in my rendition of it.) I think I still prefer my usual curried version overall, but this was an interesting twist on the pumpkin soup theme. Especially with the sour cream and seasoned pumpkin seeds.

Maple Pumpkin Soup

Slightly adapted from Vegetable of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. sweet paprika¹
• 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne (or Kashmiri chilies), divided
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 2 1/2 Tbsp. butter, divided
• 7 Tbsp. maple syrup, divided
• 1 tsp. water
• 1/2 c. pumpkin seeds, toasted
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 ribs celery, finely chopped
• 2-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 c. white wine
• 4-5 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 1250g pumpkin purée²
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 c. sour cream

Directions

1. Combine the sugar, paprika, 1/4 tsp. of the cayenne, and ground sea salt and set aside.
2. Combine 1/2 Tbsp. of the butter, 1 Tbsp. of the maple syrup, and the water and bring to a boil over medium heat.
3. Add the pumpkin seeds and cook until liquid has evaporated and seeds are well-coated.
4. Transfer to bowl with the paprika mixture and toss to coat.
5. Spread out on a sheet of parchment paper to cool.
6. Melt the remaining 2 Tbsp. of butter over medium heat.
7. Add the onion and celery and cook until softened (~10 minutes).
8. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so.
9. Add the wine, increase heat to medium-high, and cook until reduced by half.
10. Add the stock and the pumpkin, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for ~10 minutes.
11. If soup is chunkier than you'd like, use an immersion blender to smooth it out.
12. Stir in the remaining 6 Tbsp. of maple syrup, sea salt, remaining 1/4 tsp. of cayenne, and pepper and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
13. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.
14. Serve topped with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of the seasoned pumpkin seeds.

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¹ I just used plain sweet paprika this time, but I think that smoked sweet paprika would actually be really nice in this. ^Back
2 I used a mix of fresh and canned pumpkin for this. One 796mL can + 1 pie pumpkin yieled about the right amount. I cut the pumpkin in half, scooped out the seeds, rubbed it with a little olive oil, and baked it at 180°C (350°F) for 50 minutes, then scooped the flesh out of the skin. ^Back

Kaddu Dhansaak (Pumpkin Dhansaak)

Dhansaaks are often made with meat, but this one uses pumpkin (and a variety of root vegetables) for a satisfying legume-and-vegetable stew.

Red pumpkin is the recommended squash for this. But Iyer suggests that other pumpkins -- or even sweet potatoes -- can be used as well. I initially considered using the pie pumpkin I'd picked up here. But then I remembered that we had some sweet potatoes that had been languishing on the counter for weeks. And this seemed like as good a use of them as any. I also decided to toss in a parsnip, just for fun.

I can't say that this was my favourite curry. But it was pretty good. And I definitely liked it better than the chicken dhansaak that I tried a few years ago!

Kaddu Dhansaak

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. skinned split pigeon peas (toovar dal)
• 1/4 c. yellow split peas (chana dal)
• 1/4 c. skinned split mung beans (yellow lentils/moong dal)
• 3 c. water
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies (or 1/4 tsp. ground cayenne + 3/4 tsp. sweet paprika)
• 2 onions, one coarsely chopped, one halved and sliced
• 2 c. cubed pumpkin or sweet potato (2cm dice)
• 1 large potato, cut into 1cm dice
• 1-2 carrots, cut into 1cm thick coins
• 1 parsnip, cut into 1cm pieces (optional)
• 1/4 c. ghee, divided
• 4-6 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 small (~400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. Madras curry powder
• 1 tsp. sambhar masala
• 1 tsp. Maharashtrian garam masala
• 200g spinach or kale, chopped
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Combine the pigeon peas, split peas, and mung beans and rinse and drain thoroughly.
2. In a pressure cooker, add the water, turmeric, ground chilies, chopped onion, pumpkin/sweet potato, potato, carrots, and parsnip (if using).
3. Pressure cook on "high" for 15 minutes with a 15-minute natural release.
4. Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp. of the ghee over medium heat.
5. Add the sliced onion and garlic and cook until browned (10-15 minutes).
6. Add the tomatoes, salt, curry powder, sambhar masala, and garam masala and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
7. Once the legumes and vegetables are done, release the remaining pressure and add the tomato mixture to the pot. Stir to combine.
8. Stir in the spinach.
9. Cook until the spinach wilts and flavours meld (10-15 minutes).
10. Drizzle with remaining 2 Tbsp. of ghee.
11. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Pumpkin Quick Bread

I struggled a bit to get back into the swing of things after getting home from New Zealand. Getting on top of the meal planning and cooking was especially hard. And figuring out what to make for breakfast, doubly so.

This pumpkin bread was something of a desperation option. But it did at least give us something tasty to eat for a few days. Not exactly the most substantial option. But a nice treat and something to tide us over while I worked out what the heck I was doing!

Pumpkin Bread

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 390g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 Tbsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground cloves
• 1 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 430g pumpkin purée
• 200g sugar
• 200g brown sugar¹
• 1/2 c. canola oil²
• 1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and flour two 20x10cm (8x4") loaf tins.
2. Sift the baking soda and baking powder into the flour.
3. Mix in the salt, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin, sugars, oil, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla and mix well.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until just combined.
6. Divide the batter between the two prepared pans and top with pepitas.
7. Bake at 180°C (350°F) until done (50-60 minutes).
8. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out into wire racks to finish cooling.

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¹ I reduced the overall sugar from 600g to 400g and replaced half of it with brown sugar. ^Back
2 I halved the amount of oil called for and replaced it with an equivalent amount of unsweetened applesauce. This gives it a nice bit of moisture, some extra fruit and fibre, and drastically reduces the amount of fat in each loaf. And they still tasted great! Absolutely no complaints. They definitely didn't need the extra oil (or sugar). ^Back

I've had a bit of trouble finding butternut squash over here, so I actually made this with buttercup squash (which is apparently considered a pumpkin in NZ). It made for a fine substitute. As did the kumara in place of the sweet potato.

I wasn't blown away by this dish overall. But it was tasty enough and made for a perfectly serviceable side dish next to our lamb chops.

Butternut Squash Tagine

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 8 saffron threads
• 1 Tbsp. warm water
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric¹
• 600g butternut squash, peeled and cubed
• 1 large carrot, cut into 1cm thick pieces
• 1 small (~400mL) tin diced tomatoes
• 3 Tbsp. dried currants
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 3/4 c. water
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 250g sweet potato, cubed

Directions

1. Add the saffron to the water and set asdie for at least 10 minutes.
2. Heat the oil over medium heat.
3. Add the onion and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
4. Add the ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric and cook for another 30-60 seconds.
5. Add the squash, carrot, tomatoes, currants, honey, water, and saffron along with its soaking liquid.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
8. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
9. Add the sweet potato and continue cooking, covered, until vegetables are tender (~25 minutes longer).
10. Serve with harissa sauce or condiment of your choice.

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¹ There wasn't any turmeric in the kitchen when I was making this -- socking, I know! -- but there was a surplus of commercial curry powder (which tends to be half turmeric anyway), so I just used that instead. I figured the extra bit of cumin, coriander, and miscellaneous other spices wouldn't hurt the flavour any. ^Back

I wanted a dish with some nutritional value to go with tonight's not-very-virtuous gnocchi. This recipe allowed me to use up some of the pumpkin we had on hand as well as a bunch of the thyme that we got from my mom. And, since it's mostly composed of vegetables and legumes, it's not even ruinously unhealthy!
That said, I'm not sure I'd be willing to make this recipe again. Not because it wasn't good. Unforunately it's just way too aggravating to make.

Normally, when I cook pumpkin, I cut it in half, roast it, and then scoop the cooked flesh out of the skin. This makes it very easy to handle and use. This recipe, however, takes a different approach. I requires peeling and chopping the pumpkin before cooking. Which is just downright annoying and tedious. But, at least it got us some veg and protein.

Pumpkin with Cannellini Beans, Caramelized Onions, and Roasted Garlic

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 2 heads (bulbs) garlic, halved crosswise
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 2 onions, halved and sliced
• 2 cans (~470g each) cannellini (white kidney) beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 Sugar Pie pumpkin (~500g), peeled and cubed
• 1 c. vegetable broth
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme
• 1/8 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 c. breadcrumbs (preferably fresh)
• 2-3 Tbsp. grated Parmesan

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. Wrap garlic in foil and roast at 190°C (375°F) until soft (50-60 minutes).
3. Squeeze garlic from skin and set aside (discarding skins).
4. Heat 1 1/2 Tbsp. of the oil over medium heat.
5. Add the onion and cook until softened.
6. Reduce heat to medium low and continue cooking until dark and very soft (20-30 minutes).
7. Add beans, pumpkin, broth, thyme, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.
8. Cover and bake at 190°C (375°F) for 1 hour.
9. Meanwhile, toss breadcrumbs with Parmesan and remaining 1/2 Tbsp. of oil.
10. Once pumpkin is tender, remove lid and sprinkle with breadcrumb mixture.
11. Return to oven and bake, uncovered, until lightly browned on top (10-15 minutes).

Makkai Parangikai Kari (Corn Curry)

This curry is meant to be made with corn and white pumpkin, but Iyer suggests the using the inner rind of a watermelon as an alternative to the pumpkin, so I decided to give that a go. We had lots of watermelon that needed to be used anyway, so I figured that saved me going out and trying to find another ingredient.

Makkai Parangikai Kari

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh ginger
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns
• 1/4 tsp. cardamom seeds (from green pods)
• 2 fresh green¹ Thai, finger, or serrano chilies, stems removed
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 tsp. mustard seeds
• 1 c. coconut milk
• 2 c. fresh or frozen corn kernels
• 450g white pumpkin (or inner watermelon rind), peeled and seeded and cut into 2cm cubes
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
• 12 fresh or frozen curry leaves
• 1 c. water

Directions

1. Combine ginger, peppercorns, cardamom seeds, chilies, and salt in a molcajete and grind/pound to form a pulpy paste.
2. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
3. Add the mustard seeds, cover, and cook until they have stopped popping (30-60 seconds).
4. Add the coconut milk.
5. Stir in the paste from the molcajete, then remove from heat and allow mixture to sit for a minute or so.
6. Add the corn, pumpkin (or watermelon rind), cilantro, curry leaves, and water.
7. Return to heat and bring to a boil.
8. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are fork tender (~15 minutes).
9. Serve topped with your favourite chutney. (I like sonth/tamarind-date chutney.)

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¹ I had a few leftover fresh red finger chilies on hand, so I just used those instead here. It changed the colour of the curry (making it more pinkish than green), but was very similar otherwise. ^Back

We made this for dinner recently and, while not a favourite, it was tasty. The Kidlet even ate the squash, which she has been averse to lately. It may have helped that we had a surplus of chicken and made it with 750g instead of the 500g called for, so the chicken-to-squash ratio was enhanced.

Thai Pumpkin & Chicken Curry

Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan (p. 270)

Ingredients

• one 750g baking pumpkin or butternut squash, halved, seeded, peeled, and cut into 2cm cubes
• 2 shallots
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 400mL coconut milk
• 1 tbsp red Thai curry paste
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• juice of one lime
• 2 tsp firmly packed brown sugar
• 2+1 tbsp oil, divided
• 500g boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 2cm cubes
• 2 tbsp sliced fresh thai basil (or 1 tbsp lightly dried basil)

Directions

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the pumpkin and cook until just tender, 6-7 minutes. Drain.
2. Combine shallots, garlic, curry paste, and 2 tbsp of water in a blender, and process until smooth.
3. Whisk together coconut milk, fish sauce, lime, and brown sugar in a bowl.
4. In a large, steep-sided skillet, heat 2 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat.
5. Add chicken and sear until browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and buffer.
6. Reduce heat to medium and add remaining oil.
7. Add the curry paste mixture and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 10-20 seconds.
8. Stir in the coconut milk mixture and bring to a boil.
9. Add chicken and pumpkin, reduce heat, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the pumpkin is tender.
10. Top with basil and serve over rice.

I opened a can of pumpkin to make some waffles the other day. Which made for a tasty breakfast, but left me with a bunch of extra pumpkin purée in the fridge. Luckily this recipe used up almost all of it. Not to mention giving us tasty muffins!

Pumpkin Muffins with Streusel Topping

Slightly adapted from Muffins and Biscuits by Heidi Gibson

Ingredients

Streusel Topping¹

• 2 Tbsp. salted butter²
• 35g all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp. raw pumpkin seeds

Batter

• 6 Tbsp. salted butter, melted
• 2 large eggs (or 3 small eggs)
• 1/4 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 350g pumpkin pur&eacte;e
• 180g all-purpose flour
• 130g sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt³
• 2 tsp. mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 110g chopped pecans⁴

Directions

1. Cut the butter, flour, and sugar together for the streusel.
2. Mix in the pumpkin seeds and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease a standard (5cm) 12-well muffin tin.
4. Beat the eggs with the butter, milk, vanilla, and pumpkin.
5. In a separate bowl, ombine the flour and sugar.
6. Sift in the baking powder.
7. Mix in the salt, mixed spice, and ground ginger.
8. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix with a spatula until almost combined.
9. Add the pecans and stir to combine.
10. Divide the batter amongst the muffin wells. (You may have a bit extra.)
11. Top each muffin with ~1 Tbsp. of streusel topping.
12. Baked at 180°C (350°F) for 20-24 minutes.
13. Let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to finish cooling.
14. Serve as is or with maple cream cheese.

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¹ I've scaled the streusel quantities down slightly here since I had a lot left over after topping my muffins with what I felt was a fairly generous quantity. That said, if you would like to try it with the original quantities, you can just bump the butter up to 2 1/2 Tbsp., flour to 45g, sugar to 3 1/2 Tbsp., and pumpkin seeds to 1/4 c. ^Back
2 I missed that I was supposed to be using salted butter for this and ended up just using unsalted. This was fine, but next time I might add a pinch of salt (maybe 1/8 tsp.) to the streusel topping to make it pop a little more. ^Back
3 I included the full measure of salt here because I was using unsalted butter. If using salted butter, I would probably either omit or significantly reduce the salt. ^Back
4 The recipe calls for toasted pecans. I was feeling lazy, so I didn't toast them. I was also a bit short on pecans, so I made up the difference with walnuts. ^Back

Spiced Pumpkin Waffles

These waffles are supposed to feature a bit of chipotle chile powder to give them a mild heat and smokiness. I didn't have any dried chipotles on hand (just chipotles in adobo), so I ground up an ancho chile and used 1/2 tsp. of that instead. I hoped that also being a relatively mild, smoked pepper, it would do the same job as the chipotle. It may have been a bit too mild though, because I didn't really find any detectable heat coming through in the finished waffles. They were still tasty though! So maybe I just need to make sure to use actual chiptoles next time... Or bump up the quantity of ancho chile powder... Or give up on the spicy angle and just add a bit of extra mixed spice or ginger instead.

I also found the batter a bit thick for my liking. Perhaps this was because my eggs were a bit on the small side. But I think, even with an extra egg, it still would have been quite thick. That said, maybe I'll try adding an extra egg next time and see how it goes... And if the batter still seems unreasonably stiff, I'll probably just add a bit more milk to thin it out.

And, while I'm making adjustments anyway... I think these would be quite nice as whole wheat waffles. Although the inclusion of the wheat bran would probably make the batter even thicker, so I'd definitely plan on adding an extra few tablespoons of milk in that case.

Photo goes here.

Spiced Pumpking Waffles

Slightly adapted from Waffles: Sweet, Savory, Simple by Dawn Yanagihara

Ingredients

• 250g flour¹
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 2 tsp. mixed spice
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp. (or more) chipotle chile powder²
• 1 c. pumpkin purée
• 2 large eggs (or 3 small), separated
• 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 1/2 c. milk³
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat your waffle iron.
2. Sift the baking powder into the flour.
3. Add the salt, mixed spice, ginger, and chipotle powder and mix well.
4. In a large measuring cup, beat the egg yolks with the milk and pumpkin and mix in the sugar.
5. Slowly whisk the butter into the wet ingredients.
6. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until just combined.
7. In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
8. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter.
9. Pour a portion of batter into the preheated waffle iron and cook according to manufacturer directions. If you'd like your waffles a bit crisper, leave them in for an extra 20-30 seconds. Repeat until all batter has been used.
10. Serve with apple butter, maple syrup, maple cream cheese, and/or whipped cream.

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¹ I used all-purpose flour for this batch, but I'd like to try it with whole wheat flour next time. ^Back
2 I used ancho chile powder for this batch, but I think chipotle would have given them a bit more kick. ^Back
3 The original recipe only called for 1 1/4 c. milk, but the batter seemed a little too stiff to me, so I think I'd put a bit more milk next time. ^Back

This ended up being squash-tortilla soup rather than pumpkin-tortilla, but it still worked out very well and everyone enjoyed it a lot.

Pumpkin-Tortilla Soup

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 3 large corn tortillas (or 6 small ones)
• 2 Tbsp. oil, divided
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 1/2 Tbsp. cumin seeds, crushed
• 1/2 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 400mL diced tomatoes¹
• ~2 c. cooked black beans
• 3 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 3 c. cubed, peeled pumpkin (or delicata squash)
• ~1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 avocado, diced (optional)
• 2-3 radishes, sliced (optional)
• 2-3 green onions, sliced (optional)
• 1/2 c. crumbled feta and/or shredded Monterey Jack (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat to 230°C (450°F).
2. Cut the tortillas in half and then crosswise into strips.
3. Toss the tortilla strips with 1 Tbsp. of the oil.
4. Spread the tortilla pieces on a baking sheet and bake at 230°C (450°F) -- preferably on convection/fan setting) -- for ~5 minutes.
5. Flip/turn the pieces and return to oven for 2-3 minutes longer. Set aside.
6. Heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. of oil over medium heat.
7. Add the onion and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
8. Add the garlic and jalapeño and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
9. Add the cumin, masala, and oregano and cook for another minute or so.
10. Add the tomatoes, black beans, stock, and pumpkin and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
11. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until pumpkin is tender (~15 minutes).
12. Top with tortilla pieces and fresh cilantro.
13. Optionally garnish wiht avocado, radish, green onion, and/or cheese and serve.

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¹ I was all out of diced tomatoes, so I ended up using crushed instead. ^Back

I wasn't entirely sold on the combination of beef and pumpkin for this stew, but I wanted to give it a shot and, actually, it really works! The mint doesn't really come through that much, but the cinnamon does and it adds a fantastic warmth to the meal. I'd be tempted to add a few parsnips or some other veggies next time, but I don't think it needs it. It's great as is.

The recipe is written for a slow cooker, so I made this stew in the InstantPot. And that worked quite well. It meant that I could do a little work in the morning and then just leave it to slow cook all day with very little "hands on" time. That said, I do think a stew like this would be excellent made in a big Dutch oven on the stovetop. It wouldn't be quite as set-it-and-forget-it as using a slow cooker/InstantPot, but it would still require very little active time and might produce even better results. Maybe something to try for next time...

Beef & Pumpkin Stew

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1.3-1.5kg stewing beef
• 1 3/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/3 c. dry red wine
• 8 tsp. red wine vinegar, divided
• 2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into 5-cm pieces
• 1 (400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 1/3 c. beef or chicken stock
• 450g baking pumpkin, peeled and cut into 5-cm pieces
• 2 green onions, sliced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh mint, chopped

Directions

1. Season the beef with 1/2 Tbsp. of the salt and all of the pepper.
2. Set InstantPot to "sauté medium" and heat up 1 Tbsp. of the oil.¹
3. Sear the beef in batches, flipping and turning to get good colour on all sides.
4. Remove beef from pot and set aside.
5. Add onion, thyme, and bay leaves and cook until onion softens (~6 minutes).
6. Add garlic and cinnamon stick and cook for another minute or two.
7. Pour in the wine and 2 Tbsp. of the vinegar and deglaze the pan.
8. Add the carrots, tomatoes, and beef stock.
9. Return the seared beef to the pot.
10. Cover and cook on low ("slow cook low") for 5 hours.²
11. Stir in pumpkin, increase heat to "high" and continue to slow cook until pumpkin is tender (1-2 hours).³
12. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining 2 tsp. of vinegar into the remaining 1 Tbsp. of olive oil.
13. Mix in the remaining 1/4 tsp. of salt.
14. Stir in the green onions and mint.
15. Once the pumpkin is tender, stir in the green onion mixture, season to taste with additional salt and pepper, and serve.

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¹ Or heat oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven. ^Back
2 Might only need 3 or 4 if doing stovetop method. Cook over low heat, stirring very occasionally, until beef is tender. Add a little more liquid if it starts to get too dry. ^{Back 3} For stovetop, increase heat to medium-low and continue cooking, covered, stirring occasionally, until pumpkin is tender. ^Back

I got a long pie pumpkin in my produce basket a few weeks ago. I'd never seen or heard of such a thing before! They're apparently a heritage variety that gets harvested while still green and then gradually turns orange afterward.

I didn't have any specific plans for it. I just really wanted to try one. So it's been sitting on the kitchen table for the last few weeks waiting for me to come up with a good use for it. I found a bunch of tempting-looking pumpkin recipes and debated between which one(s) to try. Eventually I settled on this pumpkin and apple brown betty. It looked easy and tasty and I liked that it was specifically writeen to use a fresh pumpkin (rather than canned pumpkin purée).

I really like how this recipe came out (and so did TF and the Kidlet). And I actually think making it with a long pie pumpkin worked out better than if I'd used one of the "standard" round pie pumpkins (sugar pie, autumn gold, etc.). Rather than cutting the top of a round pumpkin and hollowing it out, I was able to just cut the long pumpkin in half. The long, relatively shallow boat formed by the scooped out half pumpkin fit much better in the baking dish than a round pumpking would have. And this meant that I was able to cover the dish with its normal lid rather than having to use foil. My pumpkin also cooked in about half the time the recipe recommended for baking. I assume that this was down to the shape of the pumpkin and having more surface area for heat exchange. And, of course, this still left the other half of the pumpkin available for another use. So, pretty great all 'round¹!

Pumpkin-Apple Brown Betty

Slightly adapted from Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 pie pumpkin (or 1/2 a long pie pumpkin)
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
• 1 1/2 c. cubed bread²
• 2 apples (preferably Gala), peeled and cubed
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/4 c. raisins (preferably golden)
• 1 Tbsp. rum
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. mixed spice
• 1/4 c. maple syrup, to serve (optional)
• 1/2 c. or more cream (runny or whipped) or ice cream, to serve (optional)
• 1/4 c. pumpkin granola, to serve (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. If using a round pie pumpkin: Cut the top off and scoop out the guts.
   If using a long pumpkin: Cut in half and scoop out the guts.
3. Melt 2 Tbsp. of the butter over medium heat.
4. Add the bread and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned (4-5 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
5. Add the remaining 1 Tbsp. of butter to the now empty pan.
6. Add the apples, brown sugar, and raisins and cook for 3-4 minutes.
7. Add the rum, vanilla, and mixed spice.
8. Return the bread to the pan and stir to combine. Set aside.
9. Place the pumpkin (or 1 pumpkin half) in a baking dish.
10. Fill the cavity with the bread mixture.
11. If using a round pumpkin, place the pumpkin "lid" back on top.
12. Pour boiling water into the baking dish around the pumpkin to a depth of ~2cm.
13. Cover loosely with foil (or the lid of the baking dish, if appropriate).
14. Bake at 190°C (375°F) for 1-2 hours. (Closer to 1 hour for a long pumpkin, 2 for a round one.)
15. Once pumpkin flesh is very tender, remove the foil and pumpkin lid (if present).
16. Return pumpkin to oven and bake until filling looks nicely browned (5-10 minutes).
17. When serving, scrape the pumpkin flesh from the skin and mix it with the filling.
18. Drizzle with maple syrup, granola, and/or (whipped) cream. Alternatively top with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream (and optional granola, if desired).

---

¹ Or oblong, as it were. ;P ^Back
2 The original recipe only called for 1 c. of bread. One slice of bread wasn't quite enough and two slices was too much. But I like bread, so I just decided to put it all in. I was happy with how the proportions came out with that amount of bread, so I think I'll just keep doing it that way in the future. ^Back

I've been continuing to work my way through various pumpkin recipes while they're in season here. So far I've made pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin muffins, a pumpkin-apple brown betty (which I haven't had a chance to do a write-up for yet), and two different kinds of pumpkin bread. I've also got a beef and pumpkin stew queued up. But for today, I decided to give this pumpkin granola recipe a try.

Now, first thing's first: I like this granola a lot. Especially the walnuts; they go very well with the spices and toast up really nicely as the granola cooks and come out with a beautiful warm, deep flavour. And, while the nut/seed butter in the wet ingredient mixture isn't front-and-centre in this recipe, it adds a lovely richness to the whole thing. So yes, I really enjoyed this granola.

That said... I probably would try changing a few things next time.

I only had peanut butter and tahini to choose from nut/seed butter-wise, so I went with tahini for this iteration. And it was great! But I'd love to try tripling down on the pumpkin next time and try using pumpkin seed butter instead.

And, while I'm at it, I'd also be inlined to up the pumpkin purée slightly. It was fine as is, but it seemed like it would probably take extra pumpkin well too. And, while the final granola was very tasty, it did not actually taste very pumpkin-y too me, so I'd like to try cramming even more pumpkin into it next time if possible.

Pumpkin Granola

Slightly adapted from Jessica in the Kitchen

Ingredients

• 3 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 c. chopped walnuts
• 1/4 c. pumpkin seeds
• 2 tsp. mixed spice or pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 c. pumpkin seed butter (or tahini or almond butter)
• 1/2 c. maple syrup
• 1/2 c. pumpkin purée
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 c. dried cranberries (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. Combine the oats, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and spice blend and mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the seed (or nut) butter, maple syrup, pumpkin, and sea salt and mix well.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix very thoroughly.
5. Spread the granola out on the prepared baking sheet and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 30-40 minutes, flipping halfway through.
6. Mix in the dried cranberries (if using).

'Tis the season for pumpkins, gourds, and winter squash of all kinds. The stores and produce baskets are full of a wonderful variety of hubbards, acorn squash, pie pumpkins, and all kinds of other wonderful stuff beyond the ever-present butternuts and spaghetti squash. I even got a long pie pumpkin!

Canned pumpkin has also suddenly gone on sale, so I've been stocking up on that as well.

I haven't had a chance to crack open the long pie pumpkin yet (although I do have plans for it). In the meantime, I've been enjoying checking off some of the canned pumpkin recipes that I'd been waiting for a chance to try. I still have a few more queued up, but I'm trying to spread them out a little.

After I made the pumpkin pancakes, I was hoping to find a pumpkin bread recipe in my Bernard Clayton book to use up the leftover pumpkin purée. And there was, indeed, a pumpkin bread recipe in the vegetable chapter. However, it was for a sweet quick bread, rather than a yeasted bread like I'd been hoping for. Don't get me wrong, I still made it and it was very good! I just really wanted to try making a yeast-leavened pumpkin bread.

Fortunately, the Internet and another tin of pumpkin pur&e;e sorted out that particular desire. I found this recipe for an adorable yeasted pumpkin loaf on the Food Network website. The dough is quite wet and soft, so it can be a bit difficult to handle, but the results are excellent. This recipe produces a rich, tender, slightly sweet, and lightly spiced loaf that comes out almost like a brioche (without all the butter)! I really like it. And, while tying the strings to produce the pumpkin shape was a bit fiddly, it wasn't so bad that I wouldn't do it again in the future. Especially when it produces such fun results!

Pumpkin Bread

Slightly adapted from Food Network

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. milk
• 3/4 c. pumpkin purée
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, divided
• 400g all-purpose flour, divided
• 3 1/2 tsp. instant yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast)
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. mixed spice or pumpkin pie spice
• 1 Tbsp. oil
• 1 (3"/7cm) cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp. water

Directions

1. If using traditional (active dry yeast): Warm the milk to ~45°C (~115°F), sprinkle in the yeast, and let stand for 5 minutes first. Then proceed as directed.
   If using instant yeast: Combine the milk, pumpkin purée, sugar, and one of the eggs and mix well.
2. In a large bowl, combine 360g of the flour, yeast (if using instant), salt, and spices and mix well.
3. Make a well in the centre and pour in the wet ingredients.
4. Gradually incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet, working from the centre outward.
5. Sprinkle the rest of the flour on the work surface and tip the dough out onto it.
6. Knead the dough for ~5 minutes, gradually working in the remaining flour.
7. Once all the flour has been incorporated, pour the oil onto the work surface and continue kneading the dough until the oil has been incorporated.
8. Continue kneading until the dough becomes supple and elastic and less prone to tearing. Add small sprinkles of additional flour if necessary, but use a light hand and be careful not to add too much. The dough should be very soft!
9. Shape the dough into a smooth ball and place in a covered bowl to rise for 60-90 minutes (depending on room temperature).
10. Knock the dough back, knead it for a few strokes, and shape into a smooth ball.
11. Grease a baking sheet and place three pieces of cooking twine on it. The pieces of twine should be 50-60cm long and arranged in a * pattern so that you have six rays radiating out from a central point.
12. Place the dough ball on top of the twine star so that it is centred over the centre of the star.
13. Tie the twine together above the top of the dough ball. Leave a gap of several cm so that the dough has room to expand.
14. Push the cinnamon stick down into the centre of the dough so that it protrudes near where the twine is tied. This will be the stem of the pumpkin.
15. Carefully cover and set aside to rise for 30-45 minutes.
16. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
17. Beat the remaining egg with the water and gently brush the egg wash onto the risen dough. Try to cover the whole surface of the dough while avoiding getting egg on either the baking sheet or the twine.¹
18. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for ~30 minutes.
19. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

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¹ Egg on the twine will make it more difficult to remove from the bread once it's baked and egg on the baking sheet makes the bread more difficult to get off the pan. ^Back

I've had this recipe bookmarked for ages. I was just waiting for pumpkin to go on sale so I could make it. Now I'm working my way through all the pumpkin-y recipes that I'd been eyeing up all year.

These muffins are pretty good, but I feel like there's room for improvement. I only made one small adjustment this time -- swapping out some of the white flour for whole wheat -- but I think I'd make even more changes next time. The recipe that follows reflects my suggested changes, not what I actually did. Approach with caution as it is, as yet, untested.

Pumpkin-Marmalade Muffins

Adapted from Weight Watchers

Ingredients

• 2/3 c. whole wheat flour
• 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c. quick oats
• 1/2 Tbsp. stevia
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 tsp. mixed spice
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 c. pumpkin purée
• 1/2 c. marmalade
• 6 Tbsp. (90mL) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbsp. canola oil
• 1 Tbsp. applesauce
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 c. chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease a muffin tin. This recipe should make 15-18 regular (2"/5cm diameter) muffins.
2. Combine the flours, oats, stevia, salt, mixed spice, and cinnamon.
3. Sift in the baking powder and baking soda and mix well.
4. In a large measuring cup, combine the pumpkin, marmalade, orange juice concentrate, egg, oil, applesauce, and vanilla and mix well.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir to combine.
6. Stir in the walnuts.
7. Spoon the batter into the wells of the muffin tin(s), filling each well 2/3-3/4 full.
8. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 25 minutes.
9. Remove from oven and let cool in tin for 5-10 minutes.
10. Turn muffins out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
11. If there's any batter left, regrease tin and repeat baking process.

This is a simple, sweet quickbread (more of a cake, really). It pumpkin purée into the batter as well lots of brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and a generous quantity of chopped walnuts.

I had intended to try to cut the calories in these loaves slightly by replaing some of the butter with unsweetened applesauce, but it turns out that the Kidlet polished off all the applesauce a few days ago, so I wasn't able to test that particular modification. I also think that this recipe would probably work well with whole wheat flour in place of the all-purpose, but I decided to not try that substitution just yet. I did did adjust the spices slightly. Instead of 1 tsp. of cinnamon + 1/2 tsp. of nutmeg, I opted for 1 tsp. of mixed spice + 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon. Really, either way would be fine though.

Pumpkin-Walnut Bread

Slightly adapted from Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 c. pumpkin (fresh or canned)
• 1 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, melted
• 3 large eggs
• 360g all-purpose flour (or try subbing whole wheat)
• 2 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 2 c. chopped walnuts (or pecans)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease two loaf pans (preferably 8x4"/20x10cm).
2. Combine the pumpkin, brown sugar, butter, and eggs and mix well.
3. Add the flour (without mixing it in) and sift in the baking powder. Add the mixed spice, cinnamon, and salt as well.
4. Mix in the dry ingredients until almost fulling incorporated. Add the walnuts and continue mixing.
5. Divide the batter between the prepared pans and smooth the top.
6. Bake at 180°C 350°F) for 45-55 minutes.
7. Let cool in tins for 5-10 minutes, then turn out of tins and transfer to wire rack to finish cooling.
8. If possible, wrap the loaves in tin foil once cooled and let stand at room temperature for 1-3 days before slicing.

I appreciate that these pumpkin pancakes actually had an appreciable amount of pumpkin in them. Everyone really enjoyed them. And they're not too ruinous nutrition-wise. (Relative to regular buttermilk pancakes at least.)

The original recipe was made with all-purpose flour, but I opted for a mix of white and whole wheat flour. I think next time I'd just make them 100% whole wheat. I think the bran is nice with the spices. And, I didn't do it this time, but I might try swapping out the butter for applesauce next time.

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

Slightly adapted from Weight Watchers

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 c. hard whole wheat flour
• 1/2 Tbsp. baking soda
• 1/2 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice¹
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 1/4 c. buttermilk
• 1 c. pumpkin purée
• 2 large eggs
• 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted²
• maple syrup and/or whipped cream, to serve

Directions

1. Combine the flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt and mix well.
2. In a large measuring cup, beat the buttermilk with the pumpkin, eggs, sugar, and butter (or applesauce).
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined. If the batter seems too thick, stir in 1-2 Tbsp. of water to thin it to the desired consistency.
4. Cook the pancakes over medium-low heat, using ~1/4 c. of batter per pancake. Flip when bubbles form and the top starts to look dry and cook until nicely browned on both sides and heated through.
5. Serve topped with maple syrup, whipped cream, or both!

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¹ I didn't have any pumpkin pie spice ready to hand, so I just used an equal amount of mixed spice instead. The flavour is slightly different, but similar enough that I felt comfortable using them interchangeably in this recipe. ^Back
2 As mentioned above, I might consider experimenting with substituting unsweetened applesauce for the butter here. ^Back

This was, in theory, meant to be a butternut squash soup. But I could only get pumpkin in my produce basket this week, so I made it with that instead. And then I was a bit shy on pumpkin, so I tossed in a lonely sweet potato that I had left over from another recipe to make up the difference. So, all-in-all, maybe not quite the same soup that the recipe authors had in mind, but it was tasty nonetheless.

And using the pumpkin worked out nicely because then I had freshly roasted pumpkin seeds to use as garnish. The original recipe called for roasted, salted pepitas (which are just shelled pumpkin seeds anyway). I had some shelled pumpkin seeds in the freezer. But I figured, rather than trying to roast and salt them, it'd probably be easier and more efficient to just use the freshly harvested in-shell seeds. They're a bit different texturally, but they still provide some nice salt and crunch, so I think it worked out well.

The original recipe was mean to be a small batch, "cooking for two" recipe. But since I wanted to use up the whole pumpkin in one go (and have enough soup to serve all three of us + have some leftovers), I just doubled all the quantities.

Pumpkin-Sweet Potato Soup

Adapted from Cook's Country December/January 2021

Ingredients

• 1 pie pumpkin (~900g)
• 2 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. olive oil, divided
• 3/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, divided
• 3/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground, divided
• 1 sweet potato (~200g), peeled and cubed
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tsp. dried sage
• 4 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/4 c. heavy (35%) cream
• 1/2 c. crumbled blue cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 220°C (425°F).
2. Halve the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds and "guts". Reserve the seeds.
3. Brush the pumpkin halves with 1 Tbsp. of the olive oil and place cut-side-down on a baking sheet.
4. Roast at 220°C (425°F) for 30-45 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
6. Meanwhile, reduce oven temperature to 150°C (300°F) and toss pumpkin seeds with 1 tsp. of olive oil, 1/2 tsp. of the salt, and 1/2 tsp. of the pepper.
7. Roast the pumpkin seeds at 150°C (300°F) for half an hour, stirring and turning every 10 minutes.
8. Once the pumpkin has cooled enough to handle, remove the flesh from the skin. Discard the skin and reserve the flesh.
9. While the pumpkin seeds are roasting, heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. of olive oil over medium-low heat.
10. Add the onion and sweet potato and cook, stirring occasionally for 10-15 minutes.
11. Add the garlic and sage and cook for another minute or two.
12. Add the stock, pumpkin, and remaining 1/4 tsp. of salt and 1/4 tsp. of pepper and bring to a boil over medium heat.
13. Reduce heat medium-low and simer, covered, for ~15 minutes.
14. Remove from heat and blend until smooth with an immersion blender.
15. Stir in cream.
16. Serve garnished with blue cheese and pumpkin seeds.

So, this is one of several slightly insane recipes that I originally saw on the Something Awful cake thread. I originally assumed that "pumpkin pie cupcakes" meant "pumpkin pie-flavoured" and was expecting pumpkin cupcakes with pumpkin pie spices in the batter. Or maybe even just the pumpkin pie spices without the pumpkin itself. That's not the way this recipe rolls though! They start out by having you make a bunch of tiny pumpkin pies. (I guess maybe that makes them pumpkin tarts? I'm not sure.) And then you make your cupcakes, carefully nestling a mini pie in the centre of each one. And top it all off with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

Like I said: insane. And fairly time-consuming and labour-intensive if you're making everything from scratch.
Tasty though.

The original recipe actually called for using store-bought pastry and canned pumpkin pie filling. But that's not the way I roll, so I started with a pie pumpkin and went from there. That said, if you'd like to save a little time, feel free to shave off a few steps with ready-made alternatives!

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

Slightly adapted from Bake It in a Cake via the Something Awful forums

Ingredients

Pumpkin Pies

• 250g flour
• 95g unsalted butter
• 75-90mL cold water
• 1 recipe pie filling from pumpkin pie

Cupcakes

• 3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 250g cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. sugar¹
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, divided
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 1/3 c. milk², divided

Decoration

• 1 recipe icing from cayenne-pumpkin cupcakes³
• cinnamon-sugar roasted pumpkin seeds (optional)

Directions

Pumpkin Pies

1. If you're starting with a whole pumpkin, scoop the seeds and get it roasting first.
2. Cut the butter into the flour.
3. Mix the water in with a fork, adding 1 Tbsp. at a time.
4. Shape the pastry into a ball or disc, cover (or wrap in plastic wrap), and chill for at least an hour.
5. While the pastry is chilling, make your pumpkin pie filling: combine pumpkin, egg, egg yolks, sugar, coconut milk, and spices. Use an immersion blender to purée if using home-cooked/roasted pumpkin.
6. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
7. Divide the pastry into two roughly equal portions.
8. Working with one portion at a time, roll out fairly thin (maybe 2-3mm) and cut out 7.5cm (3") circles. Repeat with second portion of pastry. Then roll out scraps and continue until all pastry has been used (or nearly so).
9. Use the pastry circles to line the wells of a mini muffin pan (3-4cm diameter wells).
10. Place mini cupcake liners/papers inside each tart shell and place a few pie weights/beans inside each liner.
11. Bake at 190°C (375°F) for ~5 minutes.
12. Remove liners and pie weights and fill each tart shell with pumpkin pie filling.
13. Return to oven and bake for another 6-7 minutes.
14. Let pies cool in tin for 5-10 minutes, then use a spatula to carefully remove each one from the tin.⁴

Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease the wells of a muffin tin (5cm/2" diameter wells). Alternatively, you may line the wells with cupcake liners.
2. Cream butter and cream cheese with the sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in eggs one at a time.
4. Beat in the vanilla.
5. Add 1 c. of flour, but don't mix it in yet!
6. Sift the baking powder and baking soda in on top of the flour.
7. Add the salt on top of the flour as well.
8. Now mix in the flour.
9. Add about half of the milk and mix it in.
10. Add another c. of flour and mix it in.
11. Mix in the remaining milk.
12. Add the last 1/2 c. of flour and mix it in.
13. Mix for an additional 30 seconds.
14. Add a generous Tbsp. of batter to each well in the muffin tin.
15. Place a mini pie into each well and press it down a bit so that the batter comes up the sides.
16. Place another Tbsp. or so of batter on top of each pie and spread it out to completely encase the pie.
17. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 25 minutes.
18. Let cool in pan for ~5 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack to finish cooling.

Decoration

1. Make icing as directed: beat butter and cream cheese together, beat in icing sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.
2. Chill icing until ready to use.
3. Once cupcakes are completely cooled, decorate with icing as desired.
4. If desired garnish with cinnamon-sugar roasted pumpkin seeds. (I'm kicking myself for not thinking of this until after I took the photo. The seeds were right there!)

---

¹ The original recipe called for 1 1/2 c. of sugar, but that seemed like a lot, so I scaled it back a bit. I think the final cupcakes taste plenty sweet enough with only 1 c. of sugar. Especially since they end up getting iced as well. ^Back
2 Whoops! Just realized that the recipe says 1 1/3 c. milk, not 1 1/2. Oh well, it still seemed to turn out fine with 1 1/2 c. ^Back
3 The original recipe came with its own icing recipe but, as far as I can tell, it was pretty similar. The base was the same combination of cream cheese, butter, and icing sugar. The main difference seems to be that it also called for melting "cinnamon chips" and mixing them into the icing. I have never heard of cinnamon chips before. I assume they're some sort of cinnamon-flavoured white chocolate baking chip? Anyway, I had some icing left over from making the cayenne-pumpkin cupcakes the previous week, so I just used it here and was quite happy with the results. I figured it's still a cinnamon-y, cream cheese-y icing, so it amounts to just about the same thing. ^{Back 4} Full disclosure, I don't have a mini muffin pan, but I do have a Babycakes Cupcake Maker so I just used that to make my pies. This worked alright, but the crusts did end up a bit underbaked since you can't really blind bake them that way and the filling cooked faster than the pastry. I've written out the instructions to do them in the oven here both because I don't expect everyone to have a cupcake maker and because I think that blind baking the crusts will likely provide better results. (And I have used the pie weights inside a cupcake liner approach for making tart shells before. It works quite well. Although I usually use liners one size smaller than the wells on the muffin tin, so I'm not sure how that works when you're already using a mini muffin tin. If you can find "extra mini" liners, that would be idea. Otherwise I think slightly crumpling the liners so that they're a little more flexible and willing to conform to the smaller shape would probably work reasonably well. It may take some experimentation, but I'm sure it can be done! ^Back

I love pie pumpkins. They're just so cute and bright and they always feel special because they're so seasonal. You can get butternut squash all year round, but pie pumpkins are only available for a fairly narrow window in the fall.

The fact that they'll only be around for a limited time makes me really want to make the most of pumpkin season and get a bunch and cook lots of delicious pumpkin things. But I haven't been very good at it the last couple of years. And the only thing worse than missing your chance to get a pie pumpkin during pumpkin season is getting one and letting it go to waste because you couldn't get your act together enough to do anything with it.

I was reluctantly intending to abstain for getting any pumpkins this year because I didn't trust myself to use them up before they went bad. I've been having a lot of trouble staying on top of food and meal planning this year. But then I dropped the ball on one of the produce baskets and we ended up with a pie pumpkin anyway. I've spent the last few weeks alternately forgetting it existed and trying to figure out what to do with it. Pie is, of course, always an option, but I kind of wanted to try something different. And, after flipping through a few different recipes, I settled on this cayenne-pumpkin cupcake recipe.

I wasn't sure what the Kidlet would think of the cayenne in these cupcakes, so I dialed it way back. Having tasted the cupcakes, TF thinks I probably should've put the full amount in after all. With 1/2 tsp. of cayenne, I find it makes a gentle but noticeable impression. TF and the Kidlet both say they can barely taste it. I've called for 3/4 tsp. of cayenne in the recipe below, but feel free to use a bit more or a bit less according to your tastes. (The original recipe called for 1 1/4 tsp.)

Cayenne-Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

Slightly adapted from C&C Cakery

Ingredients

Cupcakes

• 2 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 3/4 tsp. ground cayenne
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp. allspice berries, ground
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 c. yogurt
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/3 c. mashed roasted pumpkin

Icing

• 250g cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 c. icing (powdered/confectioners') sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

Directions

Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and flour a muffin tin (or line with papers).
2. Sift baking powder and baking soda into flour.
3. Add salt, cinnamon, ginger, cayenne, nutmeg, allspice, and pepper and stir to combine.
4. In a separate bowl, cream butter with the sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
5. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
6. Add half the flour mixture and stir until mostly combined.
7. Stir in the yogurt and the vanilla.
8. Add the remaining flour mixture and stir until almost combined.
9. Add the pumpkin and mix until just combined.
10. Spoon into prepared muffin wells. (I had more batter than would comfortably fit into twelve 5-cm wells.)
11. Bake at 180°C (350°F) until toothpic/skewer poked into centre comes out clean (~20 minutes or a bit more if you overfilled your pans like me).
Let cool in pan for 5 minutes then turn out onto wire rack to finish cooling.

Icing

1. Beat cream cheese with butter until mixed well.
2. Beat in the vanilla.
3. Mix the cinnamon with 1/2 c. of the flour and add it to the cream cheese mixture.
4. Continue adding icing sugar to the cream cheese mixture, half a cup at a time until it's all been incorporated.
5. Once the cupcakes are completely cool, spoon a big dollop of frosting on top of each one.