Search Results for ‘pumpkin’
This was such fun!
Just a little after 5PM I used Random.org to pick six winners. Random.org actually generates truly random numbers based on atmospheric noise, which is pretty neat if you’re a nerd like me. Here are the results!
So you don’t have to scroll through all 671 comments, here are the winners:
#226 Elizabeth
“i hope i win!!!”
#171 Emme
“Apple butter is my favorite — it’s like the essence of fall. The only thing that stands a chance of beating it is pumpkin butter ”
#518 Stephanie
“I love your site – the photos, the recipes, and the enthusiasm. Thanks for sharing your talents. I’ll definitely try out the iPhone app too. Way cool!”
#375 TiffanyL
“This is my first comment on your blog but I check it everyday for new amazing recipies and wonderful pics. You inspire me to be a better cook but more importantly to transition from a vegetarian to a vegan. what great work you do! Cheers
Oh did I also mention that I LOVE apple butter and I sometimes have a hard time finding it!
Tiffany”
#431 Angela
“Thanks so much for all your yummy recipes! The apple butter looks delicious!t”
#380 Ale
“Apple butter.. I’ve never tried it, but I saw a recipe of a cake that used apple butter. I think I’ll make some. I love your blog”
——————–
The winners should have an email from me in their inbox right now. Thanks to everyone for entering the contest. It was so much fun, I’m sure I’ll hold another one before too long. I love my readers! Yay!
November 11th, 2008
Stewart and I went apple picking a couple weeks ago, and in the little farm store we saw pumpkin whoopie pies. Stewart asked if I would make them, and when I said yes, he bought a sugar pumpkin to increase the chances of me keeping my promise.
I’ll be the first to admit that these aren’t perfect. Don’t get me wrong, they’re really really tasty, but the verdict is that they’re not exactly like traditional whoopie pies. I need to work on the batter recipe, because these are more like soft cookie pies than whoopie pies. I think with an even softer, spongier batter, we’ll be in business, but these are perfectly serviceable cookie-whoopie pies if you want to give the initial test recipe a shot.
I used homemade pumpkin puree, but the canned stuff will work fine. The homemade version is easy, but obviously more time consuming than opening up a can. As far as I can tell, the only difference between the canned puree and the homemade is the color. Homemade pumpkin puree is considerably lighter and brighter. I’ll include the preparation for the puree at the end of the post.
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Makes 18-24 Small Pies (36-48 pieces)
1/2 Cup Non Hydrogenated Vegetable Shortening
2 Cups Sugar
2 tsp Molasses
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 Cups Pumpkin Puree
4 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 Tbs Ener-G Egg Replacer
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Allspice
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375º. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Cream shortening and sugar together, using a stand mixer if available. You can also do it by hand. Add molasses and vanilla and beat well. Add pumpkin puree and whip until incorporated (don’t worry if the fat doesn’t mix in completely).
In a separate bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients and mix well. Add this dry mix to the wet until all incorporated. It will make a stiff batter.
I find it easiest to use and ice cream scoop that has a release lever to drop the dough onto your cookie sheet. The scoop I used holds 2 Tbs.
Wet your fingers and gently flatten the dough balls. This will prevent your pies from tipping over by creating a semi-flat surface for them to rest on.
Bake for 10-13 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, and the tops spring back when pressed in the center.
Remove cookies from the cookie sheet as soon as they come out of the oven to prevent over-baking. Cover them with a towel or plastic wrap to keep moisture/steam in, as this will prevent a hard crust from forming. Prepare the filling while your cookies are cooling.
Cream Cheese Filling
1/2 Container Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese
2 Cups Powdered Sugar
2 Tbs Earth Balance
Whip ingredients together until smooth. Set aside or refrigerate until use.
I put my filling in a zip-top bag and sliced off the corner to pipe the filling into the center. You don’t need that much filling per pie. Make sure the sides of the cookies that were touching the cookie sheet are the side that touch the filling.
Traditional whoopie pies are chocolate. I think these would be awesome with some mini chocolate chips mixed in, or perhaps some melted chocolate drizzled over the top. Store them wrapped in plastic wrap or in an air-tight container to keep them soft.
If you’d like to read about how to make your own pumpkin filling, click the link below the last photo!
Homemade Pumpkin Puree
Makes 3-4 Cups
1 Sugar Pumpkin, 3-4 pounds
1-2 Cups Water
Preheat oven to 400º F.
Slice pumpkin in half. Scoop out the seeds and strings–if you’d like to save the seeds, place the seedy pulp large bowl and set aside, otherwise discard it. Place pumpkin cut-side-down on a rimed cookie sheet or inside a large roasting pan. Add 1-2 Cups of water and bake for 90 minutes, or until flesh is very soft and the skin has darkened. Scoop out the soft flesh into the work bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth.
Tip for Seeds
Place the pulp and seeds in a large bowl and cover with a generous amount of water. Squeeze the pulp to separate it from the seeds. The seeds will float. Use a slotted spoon to skim the seeds from the top of the water. Dry the seeds well and roast and season if desired.
October 26th, 2007
Is the idea of a fall-food flavored pasta weird? If it is, then I love weird pasta.
In an effort to get excited about autumn, I’ve been doing my best to pick up some new ingredients. Goodness knows I’m not looking forward to winter, so food may be the only way I can actually celebrate the changing of the seasons. One of the ingredients I picked up was a little tub of organic pepitas. Pepitas are pumpkin seeds, and they are usually sold with the white hull removed, revealing a smooth olive green seed. If you decide to use pumpkin seeds from the pumpkins you carve this year, be sure to wash and dry the seeds throughly and roast them in a low oven for an hour or so until dry and toasty. Don’t worry about removing the white hull.
This pasta is flavored with tamari and maple syrup, but only a little of each. This coats the pasta and gives it a nice, balanced sweet flavor without actually being a full-on sauce. The spinach is sauteed with red pepper flakes for a bit of heat, the cranberries add a pop of sweet tanginess, and the crushed pepitas round the whole thing out. It’s really a lovely meal, and what’s more, it’s super easy to prepare. It should only take as long to make this dish as the pasta takes to cook.
I made it for lunch, so this recipe only serves one. It should be very easy to increasing the servings should you want to make it for more than one person.
Pepita Fettucini with Spinach and Cranberries
Serves One
Fettucini for One (which, is it just me, or is that 1/2 the box that “serves 8″?)
1/3 Cup Raw, Unsalted Pepitas
1 Tbs Oil
1/4 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
2 Large Handfuls Spinach, torn
1 Tbs Soy Sauce
1 Tbs Maple Syrup
2-3 Fresh Thyme Sprigs, optional
1/4 Cup Dried Cranberries
Begin by bringing a pot of salted water to boil. While the water is heating, run the pepitas around in your food processor until pretty finely chopped. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add spinach. Use tongs to coat the spinach in the hot oil. Add the red pepper flakes, the tamari and maple syrup, and the thyme if you’re using it. Toss in the cranberries and mix everything up really well. Turn heat to low (or just turn it off and cover it until your pasta is cooked).
Drain pasta and add it to your skillet. Add crushed pepitas and toss well until everything is coated. Taste a noodle and see if you need an extra splash of tamari and/or maple syrup. The noodles should look like they don’t have a sauce on them, but they’ll taste like they do.
Serve immediately.
October 11th, 2007
This is my first experience with Kabocha squash, a japanese winter pumpkin. I saw them at the co-op and couldn’t resist their cute size – I immediately wanted to make little soup bowls out of their rinds. Besides being cute, they’re also tasty and good for you, rich in beta carotene, with a decent amount of vitamin C and iron to boot.
When I cut them open I was so surprised by their color. The flesh near the rind was avocado green, giving way to a bright yellow-orange. I roasted them before I scooped out the flesh for the soup, but only one of my squash rind soup bowls survived the roasting process. The second came out of the oven with large cracks in it. Since I’ve never worked with this squash before I’m not sure if I was extremely lucky to have one survive, or unlucky to have one break.
This soup is really simple, complicated only by creating the decorative bowl for it. The rich yellow color makes the soup look for all the world like it was spiked with tumeric. It’s very rich so a small serving alongside some hearty steamed kale was just the thing I needed for a cold February night.
Kabocha Squash Soup
Serves Two
2 Small-Medium Kabocha Squashes, of similar size
1 Cup Soymilk
1/2 Can of Coconut Milk (about 7 oz)
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1 Vegetable Bullion Cube (package should state that 1 cube makes 2 cups of broth)
1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
Black Pepper to taste
Smoked Paprika
Parsley
If not making bowls from the rinds, halve squashes, scoop out the seeds and coat with olive oil. Sprinke with salt and place in a 400º F oven for 30 minutes, or until flesh is tender enough to spoon from the rinds.
Scoop out flesh into a soup pot, it will look sort of dry. Add remaining ingredients, less paprika and parsey. Whisk to break down lumps while simmering. Transfer to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
The thickness of the soup will depend on how much squash you scraped out of the rinds, so feel free to add liquid (more coconut milk, soymilk, or even water) at this point to reach a consistancy you like. Reheat on the stove if necessary. Serve, garnished with paprika and parsley.
February 10th, 2007
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