Pumpkin and Mascarpone
Cream Cheese
2 cups raw pumpkin, cooked on medium
heat for 8 minutes
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, room
temperature
1 cup cream cheese, room temperature
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp powdered sugar
Place cheeses, pumpkin, cream cheese,
mascarpone cheese, pumpkin pie spice,
salt, and powdered sugar in medium
bowl. Using hand mixer, beat on high
for 2-3 minutes, or until creamy. Place
back in fridge and chill untill serving.
YUMMY!!! The taste of a creamy pumpkin
pie cheesecake, but acceptable for
breakfast!!!!
breakfast
Cheesy Pumpkin Fondue
with Roasted Vegetables & Fruit
4 potatoes cut into 1 inch cubes, roasted
(see my recipe for roasted vegetables)
1/2 loaf French bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
Variety of items to dip in fondue: cooked
meats, fruit, roasted veges, raw veges...
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp dry mustard
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups raw, grated pumpkin
10 ounces cheddar cheese
8 ounces swiss cheese
16 ounces CREMA, 100% leche de Vaca
or if unavailable 1 cup sour cream
3 tsps cornstarch
Cook raw pumpkin in small pot for 10 min-
utes over low-medium heat with 1/4 cup
water. Place in blender with CREMA (or
sour cream) garlic powder, pepper, and
mustard and beat until smooth.
Place wine in a medium, heavy-bottomed
saucepan and bring to a simmer over
medium heat. Add pumpkin mixture and
continue to heat on medium.
Cut cheeses into cubes, or shred. In
separate bowl, toss the cheeses with
cornstarch. Add a handful of cheese
at a time to the pumpkin mixture and
continue to stir till all cheese is melted.
Cheese fondue can gently bubble, but
do not boil. Transfer to cheese fondue
pot and keep warm...serve immediately!
Pecan & Parmesan Encrusted Pumpkin Sticks with Creamy Pepper
Dipping Sauce
2 cups 1/4 inch x 2 inch sliced Pumpkin Raw
3 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup crushed pecans
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 cups oil
Sauce:
2 tsp favorite hot sauce (mine is Texas
Pete's Hot Sauce) more may be added
to desired heat
8 Tbsp mayonnaise
Preheat oil in frying pan on medium high
heat. Slice pumpkin pieces in 1/2 inch by
2 inch strips. Beat eggs in medium bowl.
Mix the salt, pepper, bread crumbs,
crushed pecans and shredded parmesan
cheese on plate. Dip the pumpkin strips
into the egg and throughly coat. Then dip
into the bread crumb mixture and
thouroughly coat. Drop gently into oil, and
cook until golden brown, flipping half way
through, about 6-8 minutes. Remove from
frying pan and place on paper towel.
Mix hot sauce and mayonnaise until
creamy. Serve pumpkin strips with some
sauce on the side, and sprinkle with extra
parmesan cheese for effect.
DE-LI-CIOUS!!!!!!
Granola Pumpkin Morsels
with Caramel
With two sick kiddos and recovering
from a spraying water heater that has
now been replaced, I wanted something
delectable that I could make with
ingredients that I already had in my
cabinet. Granola and yummy Caramel
topping, for our ice cream, seemed like
the obvious choice ...so here's my satis-
fying creation for the day. As you can see
from the picture, the caramel is more than
just drizzled, and if you so desire, place
a small dipping bowl of the sauce next to
your bite size morsels for full enjoyment!
Ingredients:
2 cups raw pumpkin, grated
3 cups granola, of your choice (I used
Bear Naked Fit-Vanilla almond crunch)
1 stick butter (8 Tbsp or 1/2 cup)
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
2 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder,
salt,and cinnamon in a medium bowl and
set aside.
Combine butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla
in a large bowl and beat at medium speed
just until smooth. Fold in pumpkin. Stir in
flour mixture until just blended. Add
granola last, so it keeps a crunchy texture
and doesn't turn to pure mush while baking.
Drop small spoonfuls onto cold baking sheet
two inches apart. Bake for 7-9 minutes or
until golden brown on top. Remove from
oven, and let cool for 5 minutes. Place
several on dessert dish while slightly warm
and drizzle (or drown depending on mood)
with caramel. May also be served with a
small dipping bowl of caramel. Ooooh la la!
Mascarpone and Pumpkin
Souffle Biscuits
6 GRANDS frozen biscuits
1 cup raw shredded pumpkin, cooked
in microwave for 4 minutes
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
Butter for muffin pans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter 12 muffin pans. Cut Grands
biscuits in half, making 2 circles.
place each thinner circle in the
bottom of each muffin pan section.
Mix mozzarella and cheddar cheese
together in bowl. Place cheese in
muffin pan, separated on top of
each biscuit bottom.
In a large mixing bowl, place eggs,
milk, mascarpone cheese and blend,
using hand mixer for 30 seconds.
Blend in the black pepper, mustard,
red pepper and salt. Pour egg mixture
over each biscuit half to top of muffin
pan. Sprinkle more red pepper flakes
on top of each muffin section.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-35 minutes,
or until souffle is golden brown, and
puffy. Remove from oven and serve
immediately!
At some point on this pumpkin
journey, my love for pumpkin was
destined to intersect with my love for
Indian food! For those of you who
look at my picture tonight of a green
concoction, and do not know the
sheer pleasure tasted in Indian
chutney, I apologize. For those of
you who understand...this is for you!
The first time I tasted Indian food,
I was addicted. Since then, it has been
a struggle to find that PERFECT,
tantalizingly, addictive, mint chutney
flavor. With each restaurant serving
from a different area of India, some
Northern India, some South, and a
million different varieties of just one
chutney...I had to create my own to
find that JUST RIGHT flavor I was
craving.
The first time I tasted food from
India was with my friend Esther, in
Ft. Worth, Texas. She told me the
perfect things to order, which made
it easy! Since that first very
time, I was hooked!!!! YUM!!!!
Then, I found that it was hard to
find that original taste that I craved.
From different recipes, coastlines (I
was a traveling nurse for years),
to different personalities-interpretations,
it was pure torture even asking for the
same thing. Papads-papadums, Mango
Lasses-different yogurts, Mint chutneys
vs pepper chutney...and still NOT found!
The Indian restaurant where I live now
was physical torture! Going with friends
and children the first time,
the waitress/co-owner chewed us out
about wasting expensive bread when we
left some Naan on our plates. Leaving,
and reading reviews on the restaurant,
I was surprised to find that we were not
alone. The owner/staff had insulted quite
a few customers in this fashion!!! The call of
Indian food summoned me ALONE
for a second attempt to eat in front of
the "Soup Nazi"(from Seinfeld.) I
literally sat, completely rigid and ate EVERY
bite on my plate! Well, no, I smashed
three horrible bites under a bowl...but
I must have passed the test! The owner
smiled and called me sweetie. PURE
torture!!!
And so, this is the reason why I have
shared and perfected the flavor of this
chutney with you tonight!!! Please enjoy
without the drama attached!!! The
papadums are a crisp delight with a
perfection of mint/chili/cilantro chutney,
and a bonus hint of pumpkin for
pure pleasure!!!
Pumpkin-Cilantro Indian Chutney
& Papadums
CHUTNEY:
1 cup raw, grated pumpkin
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
or 1 tsp crushed dried mint
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1 Indian Green Chilli (piments verts)
or 1 fresh hot green chili
Place pumpkin and water in small pot
and bring to boil. Cover and turn heat
down to low. Cook for 5 minutes.
Place mint, cilantro, lemon juice, salt,
chili, and olive oil in blender. Mince for
1 minute.
Add pumpkin to blender and
puree to desired texture. I like the
chutney a little thicker, but you may
like it thin and creamy. Also, you may
like yours a little spicier. In that case,
more than 1 chili can be added. The
chilli's that I prefer can be VERY hot.
The ones listed above come frozen
from our specialty indian food store,
SWAD brand.
They have an INCREDIBLE flavor!
PAPADUMS:
1 package Plain Papadums (sometimes
called papads, depending on your
Indian store. I believe papadums
are the Southern India word for
papads, so they could be called
either). Other flavors can be used,
above shows garlic papad, which is
a slightly darker color than the plain
papadum in the picture on the right.
2 cups olive oil
Heat olive oil in frying pan on medium
high. Make sure heat is not too high, or
papadums will curl when cooking. If the
heat is too low, they will not puff into a
desired crisp chip. Cook one papadum
at a time till lightly tanned on each side.
Remove from pan and layer each on
paper towels to remove excess oil. Keep
slightly warm until serving. Serve on
plate in a pile like pancakes with
a bowl of chutney on the side, or in
basket with towel. I am in love
with this one!!!! So good!
Betty Crocker's Carrot
& Pumpkin Cupcakes
As I woke up this morning after a very
long and restless night sleep, with my
little girl pasted against me, finally
resting after seemingly endless kicks
and 1000's of tosses, I didn't even
know if I was late or early. So simply
confused with time change and lack of
sleep, I crept cross-eyed into the
kitchen to attempt brewing coffee for
my husband at 6 am, or was it 7???
After sending him off to work at a very
abnormally bright 6:45, I succumbed to
as long of a hot shower that 10 minutes
would allow me!! Jumping out of the
shower, momentarily refreshed, I pulled
my sleepy daughter out of her nest, and
plopped her on the couch. She then
proceeded to tell me that she couldn't
sleep all night because her head hurt so
bad....and so began the Betty Crocker Day.
Feeling guilty for complaining
about a simple lack of sleep, when my
little angel was actually legitimately sick
ALL night, I went into my nurturer mode.
In a continued attempt to make my girl
feel better, when she asked for cupcakes,
this was my way of making something a
little healthier. When she wanted flowers
and hearts for shapes...well, you see what
the picture shows. So today, the Betty
Crocker Day, was all for my little girl...as
any mother would do for her little one!
Ingredients:
1 Box Betty Crocker Super Moist Carrot
Cake Mix
1 cups raw, shredded pumpkin, cooked in
microwave 5 minutes, and mashed
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease
bottom and sides of muffin pans, or use
paper baking cups. Mix cake mix and
cooked pumpkin together in large mixing
bowl. Mix water, eggs, and vegetable oil
in separate bowl, and add to cake mix.
Beat on low speed 30 seconds, or hand
mix about 100 times, scraping bowl sides.
Pour into muffin/cupcake pans, 3/4 full.
Bake for 22-25 minutes, depending on
darkness of pan, or until toothpick comes
out clean. Remove from oven, cool for 10
minutes, and remove from pans. Decorate
per your sweet little one's special request.
Mine really wanted flowers, and was not
pleased with just the heart shaped ones in
her most favorite color of pink. You
can see that I was so sleepy while making
the flower, that I didn't even realize they
were two different colors of petals until
looking at the picture just now!!! She was
happy, though, and that made it ALL worth
while!!!
Rustic Roasted Potatoes and Pumpkin
with Rosemary
7 medium Yukon Gold Potatoes, unpeeled,
cut into sliver strips
2 cups raw, peeled, sliced pumpkin (2 inch
x 1/2 inch pieces)
1 onion sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp fresh Rosemary, chopped finely,
or 1 Tbsp dried
3 Tbsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice potatoes and onions. Place in covered
roasting pan. Mix 2 Tbsp of olive oil (keep
1 Tbsp for later), salt, garlic, pepper, and
rosemary together in small bowl. Drizzle
over potatoes and onions and toss well.
Cover with lid, or aluminum foil, and bake
at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.
While potatoes baking, slice pumpkin in
thin 2 inch long slices. Sprinkle with
remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil. When potatoes
have roasted for 30 min, remove from oven.
Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees
F. Mix pumpkin with potatoes and place
in oven. Roast UNCOVERED for 25-30
minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, or
until lightly browned and easy to pierce
with a fork. If you like them a little
crispier and brown on the edges, turn
heat up to broil and cook another 3-5
minutes, watching carefully. Makes a
delicious addition to chicken or fish.
Simple, but great flavor!!!
Pumpkin Dream Pie
2 cups raw, grated pumpkin, cooked in
microwave 3-5 minutes, or until done
or may replace with 1 cup canned
pumpkin
2(8 inch) prepared graham cracker pie
crust
1(14 ounce) can sweetened condensed
milk
2(8 ounce) package frozen dessert
topping, extra creamy or replace with
your desired frozen whipped topping
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 dollop of whipped cream per slice
sprinkle of cinnamon
May add orange food coloring to
desired "pumpkin" color!
Add cooked pumpkin, condensed milk, salt,
pumpkin pie spice, and cloves in blender.
Blend on high speed until smooth and
creamy. Place pumpkin mixture in large
mixing bowl. Fold in whipped topping
and mix until smooth. Pour mixture into
graham cracker crust. Refridgerate at
least 1 hour before serving. Serve in large
slices with fresh whipped cream and a
sprinkle of cinnamon.
Pumpkin Pie Shake
1 cup grated raw pumpkin, cooked in
microwave for 3 minutes or 1/2 cup
canned pumpkin, non flavored
2 scoops vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup whole or 2% milk
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
whipped cream for topping
Combine milk, ice cream, pumpkin,
and pumpkin pie spice in blender.
Blend until smooth. Pour into a
tall glass and top with whipped
cream. Sprinkle pumpkin pie
spice or cinnamon on top.
Ooooh...super creamy and yum!
Pumpkin Goat Cheese Strata
1 cup whole or 2% milk
5 large egg whites
3 large eggs
2 tsps olive oil
1 cup thinly sliced onion
1 Tbsp chopped fresh sage
1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove, sliced
1/4 tsp salt
8 cups (1-inch) cubed, or pulled apart
French Bread
1 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 cup raw grated pumpkin
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Pull apart French bread in 1 inch
pieces and place in casserole dish.
Combine milk, egg whites, and
eggs in bowl, and set aside.
Heat oil in skillet over high heat.
Add onion and pumpkin, saute
for 2 minutes. Add sage, rosemary,
garlic, and salt. Saute for 2 more
minutes. Add pumpkin mixture to
bread in dish and toss gently. Add
Cheese and mix. Pour egg mixture
over top of bread.
Place pan in oven and bake at 450
degrees for 25 minutes, or until
egg is set. Let stand 5 minutes,
and make sure egg is done in
center. Serve in slices. Mmmmm!!
