Easy Yummy Lower Fat Pumpkin Cheesecake

Heck of a title don't ya think? It's true. All of those descriptors are true. I made this out of one cup of fresh pumpkin and took it to Sunday dinner. Rob LOVED it and asked for a second piece, half the size of the first piece. He even said it tasted exactly like Pumpkin Pie!!!!

EASY Yummy Lower Fat Pumpkin Cheesecake

One Keebler Ready Made Graham crust (love these things)
1 and a 1/2 block Low Fat Cream Cheese (room temp)
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup pumpkin
2 eggs
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
a pinch of nutmeg
a pinch of ground cloves
1 tbs. flour
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In your mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add pumpkin and eggs and sugar and mix until well combined. Add spices and mix. Add flour and vanilla and mix again. Pour mixture into prepared graham cracker crust. You will have some left over. Pour that into a ramekin so you can bake it and taste it before you serve it. Ha (: Be sure to pull the ramekin out long before the pie.

Bake your delectable EASY Yummy Lower Fat Pumpkin Cheesecake for 1 hour. Remove from oven allow it to cool. Top pie the Ready Crust Plastic top and put that sucker in the refrigerator for a few hours or until ready to serve. Sometimes overnight is best. Serve with Cool-Whip or homemade whip cream. What ever makes you happy. It should be about being HAPPY.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Baked Pumpkins and Pumpkin Cupcakes

So I baked 2 pumpkins between yesterday and today. Normally I have boiled them. But the Queen Of Pumpkins from Lombardi Ranch bakes her pumpkins. She says wash it real good. Snap off the stem thing, put it on an old cookie sheet and bake it in the oven until it is soft and collapses a bit. Let it cool then cut into it, peel off the skin and puree it. I did this and yielded 15 cups of pumpkin. Enough for 6 small pumpkin pies and 2 large batches of pumpkin bread and Pumpkin Cupcakes and a half recipe of Paula Dean's Pumpkin Cheesecake.

It will be interesting to see if Robby can tell a difference in the pumpkin. I'm not going to tell and I can guarantee he does not read my food blog. Ha!

Pumpkin Cupcakes
Makes about 24 cupcakes

2 1/4 cup sifted flour
1 tbs. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs, white thingies removed slightly beaten
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup cinnamon chips

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Green sugar sprinkles
Brach's Pumpkin Mallow things

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and mix. Add pumpkin and mix. Stir in dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk. Mix until smooth after each addition. Add chocolate and cinnamon chips. Line muffin tins with cups or use souffle cups on a cookie sheet. Fill cups half way. Bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow cakes to cool. Frost with Chocolate Buttercream. Sprinkle some of the green sugar and then top with one of the Brach Pumpkins. Enjoy your festive treat!

Boiled Pumpkin Equals Fresh Pumpkin for Recipes

My boyfriend will only eat pumpkin pies with Fresh Pumpkin. He can tell the difference. Only the past year or two have I even attempted making a Pumpkin Pie. Tedious chore, labor of LOVE for Robby's Favorite Birthday and Holiday dessert. Fresh Pumpkin and homemade pie crust are a must, too. Bottom line, only Pumpkin Pies made by his Mom, Diane are the best. Hands down, Di is the Queen of the Pumpkin Pie.


Here is what you need.


One Large Jack O' Lantern Pumpkin uncarved.
A large stock pot
Water
Cuisinart
Ziploc bags
Sharpie Marker


Clean your pumpkin with soap and water. Rinse well and dry it. Carefully cut the top off of your pumpkin. Remove seeds and set aside if you want to roast them later. Using a bread knife, saw into the pumpkin. I usually cut 6 to 8 slabs, and then I cut the slabs into smaller chunks. Toss the chunks into your stock pot filled with water. Put the pot on the stove and cook until the pieces are fork tender. Sorry, I have not timed it. I do other things while my pumpkin is boiling, so check them periodically. Once pumpkin chunks are fork tender take them off the stove and drain them. Allow them to cool. Once pumpkin chunks are cooled, take a paring knife and cut the skin from the the chunks. (the first time I ever made pies, I called Robby's sister to ask how this process is done, she gave me directions. I did not write them down. I got to the cooled point, called her to double check and asked do I peel the skin from the chunks? She said No, thinking I was going to peel them before boiling. Anyway, I tried to run them through the Cuisinart and the skins would NOT blend up. My pies were made with the skins. People ate them though.) Process the chunks in the Cuisinart. Measure two cups of Pumpkin puree per bag or however much you see fit. I do two cups for pumpkin bread and pumpkin pies. Label your bags with the Sharpie.

Freeze them and use them for all your Holiday baking or for a Harvest Pumpkin Soup!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

LifeasMom.com is having a recipe swap. Pumpkin recipes a plenty! Life As Mom is a great site. Check it out! Every once in awhile she has a Recipe Swap. Last week was apples. This week its pumpkin. Here is my pumpkin creation. These pumpkin cupcakes are more bread like than cake like. But sooooo good



Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes


1 cup fresh or canned pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1 3/4 cups unbleached flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. soda


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with liners or place souffle cups on a baking sheet, set aside. Sift together dry ingredients and set aside. In a large mixing bowl combine pumpkin, eggs, oil and milk. Slowly add flour mixture until well combined. Fill cups to 2/3 full and bake in the oven 25-30 minutes or until tooth pick comes out clean. Let cakes cool.

Cinnamon Frosting

2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp cinnamon
a pinch ginger
1 stick butter (room temp)

Combine pwd. sugar and milk. Stir. Add vanilla, and stir. Add spices. Add butter and whip until fluffy. Frost your cooled cupcakes. Enjoy!