It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

I promise... This is my last pumpkin recipe of the year. Really, it is. This year Laura had to work on Thanksgiving so Brennan and I had dinner at my parent's house. Then we had Thanksgiving II at home on Friday. We planned our menu of ham, sauteed brussels sprouts, green bean casserole, and au gratin potato casserole and Laura went to the grocery store to get everything. But we forgot dessert! How did that happen!? She saved the day by grabbing a Keebler pie crust and everything needed for the recipe on the back of the label. It was actually pretty darn good! Super easy, too!

Fluffy Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened

2/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 eggs

1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin

1 Keebler Ready Crust Extra Serving Size Pie Crust

In large mixing bowl beat cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy. Add sugar and spices. Beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined after each addition. Stir in the pumpkin. 

Pour into crust (on a baking sheet). Bake at 350 F for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is almost set. 

Cool for 1 hour on wire rack. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving. Garnish with whipped cream and a little spice. Enjoy!

Pumpkin and More Pumpkin...

I baked these muffins last weekend for coffee hour at church. They were pretty good but I'd make a couple small changes next time. The one I ate stuck to the liner more than I'd like. Now, that could mean I need to add a little more oil or it could be the unbleached liners. Also, I'd like a little more pumpkin pie taste so next time I'll try more cinnamon and nutmeg. Here's the recipe, unaltered. Please excuse the blurry picture. I dropped my camera in the sand while camping so I had to take this with my cell phone.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

Cream Cheese Filling:

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Muffins:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line standard muffin pan with paper liners.

To make cream cheese filling, beat cream cheese, sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.

To make muffins, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat eggs, pumpkin, milk, brown sugar, and oil until combined. Stir in the flour mixture, until just moistened and mixed. Divide batter between 12 muffin cups.

Please 1 teaspoon of cream cheese filling in each muffin cup and press lightly into the center of the batter.

Bake about 25 minutes until golden. Cool on a wire rack. Makes 12 muffins.

Me? Gluten-Free!?

Nope, not usually! But when the UUCA FoXY group planned our camping trip I volunteered to bake gluten-free muffins...VEGAN gluten-free muffins. Let me just tell you, I was more than a little intimidated. I did some research and quickly realized I'd be dealing with lots of ingredients I'd never even thought about using before (sorghum flour? xanthan gum?). With a little help from a friend, I decided on Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins. It's autumn and everyone loves pumpkin, right? I found all of the ingredients at MOM's Organic Market and ShopRite. Shopping gluten-free isn't as hard as it once was. But, it's NOT cheap! These muffins were easy though and tasted amazing. You'd never know they were vegan and gluten-free! I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

 

 Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Muffins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-muffin tin with paper liners.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together:

1 cup sorghum flour

1/3 cup organic coconut flour

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup tapioca starch

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Add in:

1 1/3 cups packed organic light brown sugar

1 cup organic canned pumpkin

1/3 cup light olive oil

2 free range organic eggs, beaten, or Ener-G Egg Replacer whisked with 1/4 cup warm water for vegan

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon lemon juice

Add in:

1/2 cup vanilla almond milk

Beat the batter to mix the ingredients.

Stir in:

1/2 cup roughly chopped pecans

Spoon the batter into muffin cups, filling them close to the top. Smooth the tops using the back side of a wet spoon.

Add a pecan half to each muffin top.

Bake until domed and golden, roughly 22 to 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.