I fondly remember when my Mom used to make this dessert. I think of
her whenever I make it. From a technical cooking standpoint, it’s not
really a chiffon, but that is what my Mom called it, so I will leave it
as Pumpkin Chiffon.
It’s more like a pumpkin pie, without the crust. Super easy to make
and quite tasty. I bake it in a casserole dish but you could also make
it in individual ramekins. This recipe is always a big hit when I make
it for friends.
You could use canned or fresh cooked pumpkin or winter squash, like
butternut or Hubbard. I always cook up and freeze pumpkin and squash for
later use, so frozen would work, too. Because there is no crust, it is
also gluten-free. I sometimes serve it with gingersnaps and whipped
cream. It is a lovely Fall dessert.
Mom’s Pumpkin Chiffon
½ c. applesauce
1 c. cooked or canned pumpkin or squash
¾ c. brown sugar
1 t. cinnamon
½ t. salt
½ t. nutmeg
1/8 t. cloves
4 eggs, well beaten
1 c. half and half or evaporated milk
Stir together first seven ingredients. Beat in eggs and stir in milk.
Place mixture in 1 ½ quart casserole and bake in a 350-degree oven for 1
hour and 15 minutes. Serve alone or with cookies. Serves 6-8.
This pear-studded cake is perfect to have with that morning cup of coffee- or for dessert. The tender cake is topped with a lot of pears, cubes of cream cheese, cinnamon sugar and a vanilla glaze. The taste is amazing. I used Bartlett pears, but any ripe pear would work. The 4 pears weighed about 2 pounds.
I will say up front that this is not the most photogenic cake out there. It comes out of the oven kind of lumpy, from all those pears and the tiny cubes of cream cheese. Once you top it with the cinnamon sugar, and later the glaze, it looks a lot better. It is one of the tastiest, though, and isn’t that what’s important?
So if you want to enjoy one of my favorite Autumn fruits in a new way- try making this simple, tasty pear coffee cake. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Cinnamon Pear Coffee Cake
1 stick (½ cup) butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 c. half and half
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. vanilla
½ t. salt
2 lbs. pears, about 4 large, cored, peeled and sliced *
8 oz. cream cheese, cut in small pieces
Topping
3 T. cinnamon sugar
Glaze:
½ c. powdered sugar
1-2 T. milk
½ t. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and pour into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, half and half, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Pour directly over the butter in the baking dish, but do not stir. Drain pears well. Add the pears, arranging in a single layer as much as possible. Sprinkle cream cheese pieces over fruit. Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until top is golden brown and edges are bubbling. When you remove the cake from the oven, sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Set cake aside to cool. Make glaze by combining glaze ingredients. Add just enough milk for a nice consistency for drizzling. Drizzle over cooled cake. Store leftovers in fridge. Serves 12.
* To keep pears from discoloring place in a bowl with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons lemon juice
This pear-studded cake is perfect to have with that morning cup of coffee- or for dessert. The tender cake is topped with chopped pears, cubes of cream cheese, cinnamon sugar and a vanilla glaze. The taste is amazing.
I used Bartlett pears, but any ripe pear would work.
Why should apples get all the attention- right? Don’t get me wrong, I love apples. It’s just that I love pears, too. I think they don’t get used in baking as much as they should.
I will say up front, that this is not the prettiest cake out there. It comes out of the oven kind of lumpy, from all those pears and the tiny cubes of cream cheese. Once you top it with the cinnamon sugar, and later the glaze, it looks a lot better. It is one of the tastiest cakes, though, and isn’t that what’s important?
So if you want to enjoy one of my favorite Autumn fruits in a new way- try making this simple, tasty pear coffee cake. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Cinnamon Pear Coffee Cake
1 stick (½ cup) butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 c. half and half
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. vanilla
½ t. salt
2 lbs. pears, about 4 large, cored, peeled and sliced *
8 oz. cream cheese, cut in small pieces
Topping
3 T. cinnamon sugar
Glaze:
½ c. powdered sugar
1-2 T. milk
½ t. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and pour into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, half and half, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Pour directly over the butter in the baking dish, but do not stir. Drain pears well. Add the pears, arranging in a single layer as much as possible. Sprinkle cream cheese pieces over fruit. Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until top is golden brown and edges are bubbling. When you remove the cake from the oven, sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Set cake aside to cool. Make glaze by combining glaze ingredients. Add just enough milk for a nice consistency for drizzling. Drizzle over cooled cake. Store leftovers in fridge. Serves 12.
* To keep pears from discoloring place in a bowl with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons lemon juice
This pear-studded cake is perfect to have with that morning cup of coffee- or for dessert. The tender cake is topped with a lot of pears, cubes of cream cheese, cinnamon sugar and a vanilla glaze. The taste is amazing. I used Bartlett pears, but any ripe pear would work. The 4 pears weighed about 2 pounds.
I will say up front, that this is not the prettiest cake out there. It comes out of the oven kind of lumpy, from all those pears and the tiny cubes of cream cheese. Once you top it with the cinnamon sugar, and later the glaze, it looks a lot better. It is one of the tastiest, though, and isn’t that what’s important?
So if you want to enjoy one of my favorite Autumn fruits in a new way- try making this simple, tasty pear coffee cake. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Cinnamon Pear Coffee Cake
1 stick (½ cup) butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 c. half and half
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. vanilla
½ t. salt
2 lbs. pears, about 4 large, cored, peeled and sliced *
8 oz. cream cheese, cut in small pieces
Topping
3 T. cinnamon sugar
Glaze:
½ c. powdered sugar
1-2 T. milk
½ t. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and pour into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, half and half, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Pour directly over the butter in the baking dish, but do not stir. Drain pears well. Add the pears, arranging in a single layer as much as possible. Sprinkle cream cheese pieces over fruit. Place in preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until top is golden brown and edges are bubbling. When you remove the cake from the oven, sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Set cake aside to cool. Make glaze by combining glaze ingredients. Add just enough milk for a nice consistency for drizzling. Drizzle over cooled cake. Store leftovers in fridge. Serves 12.
* To keep pears from discoloring place in a bowl with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Sauerbraten is not a dish that you throw together on the spur of the
moment. The first time I had sauerbraten was at my sister Cindy’s home. I
was instantly in love with it. The flavors were so complex. I could not
get enough of that wonderful gravy.
The secret to sauerbraten is the long marinading process. A beef
roast marinades in a mix of vinegar, wine, veggies and spices for 3-5
days. In that time, the meat becomes very tender and it picks up all
those flavors. It’s almost like pickling the meat.
When ready to cook, the meat is dredged in flour, browned, then simmered in water until tender. All those ingredients in the marinade flavor the cooking water, creating a broth. The broth is tart. To offset the sourness of the vinegar, a gravy is made with the broth that contains cookies. Yes, cookies. Gingersnaps, to be exact.
It sounds odd, but it really is wonderful. The ginger, cinnamon and cloves in the cookies add such a wonderful flavor to the gravy. I made my own gingersnaps, but you can use store bought. I posted the recipe for gingersnaps earlier in the week.
Sauerbraten
Marinade:
1 c. red wine vinegar
½ c. cider vinegar
½ c. red wine
1 large onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
top from 1 bunch celery
few sprigs of fresh parsley or 1 T. dried
1 bay leaf
4 whole cloves
3 whole allspice
½ t. whole peppercorns
1 t. salt
4- 6 lb. lean boneless chuck roast – I actually used a bottom round roast
additional flour for dredging
⅓ c. oil
2 c. warm water
¼ c. flour
I T. sugar
1 c. crushed gingersnaps – or a few more
water
salt and pepper to taste
Combine marinade ingredients in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Add
meat and cover. Refrigerate 3-5 days. Tum meat at least once a day.
Remove meat from marinade and pat dry. Discard marinade. Dredge in
flour. Heat oil in Dutch oven and brown meat in pan. Add warm water and
simmer, covered, for 1- 2 hours or until fork tender. Start testing
meat for doneness after the first hour. Remove meat to platter and keep
warm while sauce is being prepared.
For sauce, strain the pan juices and discard solids. Skim off any
fat. Return the juices to the Dutch oven and keep hot. In small bowl
combine the ¼ c. flour, sugar, and gingersnaps. Stir in cold water until
smooth paste is formed. Whisk this paste into the hot liquid in the
pan and simmer, stirring until thickened. If it’s not thick enough, make
a little more paste with flour and water. Serve meat sliced thin, with
sauce on the side, and hot cooked noodles, potatoes, potato dumplings,
or spaetzle.
I have to thank my friend, Vicky Singleton, for the inspiration of this recipe. She asked if I had ever made chicken pot pie soup. I hadn’t. I told her I hadn’t ever heard of it. She explained to me what it was.
So what exactly is Chicken Pot Pie Soup? Imagine the ingredients of a
pot pie, only in a soup. Then imagine using baked pie crust like
croutons on the soup. A classic casserole, presented in soup form.
You want this soup to be creamy, like a pot pie filling. How
“thickened” is really up to you. I didn’t want my soup to be as thick as
a pot pie, but I wanted it thickened, so I played around with the
amount of flour I added to it. Half a cup of flour worked perfectly for
me, but you can add 1/4 cup more flour if you want a thicker soup.
The vegetable selection has some wiggle room, too. I think green beans would be a nice addition, I just didn’t have any. That is the fun part of making your own version. I think I might add mushrooms to the next batch.
I could see making this soup with leftover turkey after Thanksgiving.
I made my own pie crust, but feel free to use store bought. The
recipe for the crust is at the bottom of this post. I used cookie
cutters, but you could cut the crust out free-hand into little squares
or triangles.
So here is the version of Chicken Pot Pie Soup I came up with. I hope you’ll give it a try. You can thank Vicky.
Chicken Pot Pie Soup
Dough for 2 pie crusts – recipe follows
3 T. oil or butter
1 large onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced thin
1 c. sliced celery
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 c. fresh or frozen corn
3 c. cooked chicken, diced
8 c. chicken stock
1 c. peas, fresh or frozen
½ c. flour
¼ c. fresh chopped parsley- or 1 T. dried
Salt and pepper to taste
The pie dough makes the croutons for the top of the soup. You can use
homemade pie crust or store bought. Roll out the crust to about
1/8-inch thick and cut out in pretty shapes to top your soup. Re roll
scraps and place all the cut out dough pieces on an ungreased baking
sheet. It will take two sheets for all the dough. Bake in a 350 degree
until golden, about 7-10 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack.
In a soup pot, heat up the butter or oil and add the onions, cooking
until onions are tender. Add the carrots, celery, potatoes, corn and 7
cups of the stock. Set the remaining cup of stock aside for now. Bring
to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, until the vegetables
are tender. Place the reserved stock in a jar with a tight fitting lid.
Add the flour, close jar tightly and shake until the mixture is smooth.
Add the flour/stock mixture to the soup along with the peas and parsley.
Bring to a simmer and cook, covered 5 minutes- or a little longer.
Adjust seasonings.
Ladle soup into individual bowls and top with some the pie crust croutons. Serves 6-8.
Flaky Pie Crust
2 c. flour
1 t. salt
3/4 c. butter, chilled – you could also use chilled coconut oil, lard or shortening
1 T. cider vinegar
4-5 T. cold water
Combine flour and salt and cut in butter. Toss in vinegar and water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough holds together. Use a fork to toss the ingredients together and as soon as the mixture holds together stop adding water. Makes 2. Chill well before using.
I am posting this as a public service to those of you with leftover Halloween candy.
Sometimes you end up with leftover Halloween candy. It was cold and
rainy here last night, so there were not as many kids out as usual. I am
sure some of you have leftover candy, too.
You could just eat the candy- or you can transform it into a dessert.
The idea I came up with was mini cheesecakes. I’ve made them before,
so I used my recipe, and just folded in crushed candy bars. Once the
cheesecakes cool they deflate a little, so I also added some crushed
candy bars to the top to make them look nice.
Only change from the original recipe was a slight decrease in sugar, to compensate for the extra sweetness of the candy. I used what I had, but I am sure a lot of different candy bars would work. I used a small food processor to really crush up the candy bars. I made 2 batches, one with cookies and cream candy bars and the other with Kit Kat bars.
Since the candy will keep, you could use the candy in a Thanksgiving dessert. Of course, the candy might not last until Thanksgiving.
Halloween Candy Mini Cheesecakes
12 vanilla wafers
2 (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 c. sugar
2 t. vanilla
2 eggs
2/3 c. crushed candy bars plus 1/4 c. crushed candy bar, for topping
Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 wafer in each. Beat
together remaining ingredients (except candy) for 1 minute with
electric mixer. Fold in candy. Divide this mixture in the muffin tins,
filling each 3/4 full. Bake 25 minutes at 325 degrees. Cool and decorate
with extra crushed candy. Makes 12. These can be frozen.
We made this dish in class the other night. It was really wonderful. I had planned on making a different recipe, using potatoes. When I picked up this beautiful purple cauliflower at a local produce market, I thought it might be fun to use it, instead of the potatoes. I am happy I did. The dish came out great.
Just because I used a purple cauliflower, does not mean you have to. Any color cauliflower will work in this recipe. I just like the purple.
I could see making it ahead of time, then just reheating it at dinner time, maybe adding some extra Parmesan cheese to the top and baking until the edges get golden.
So here is the recipe. Enjoy.
Roasted Garlic Mashed Cauliflower
8-10
cloves garlic, peeled
¼
c. olive oil
1
large head cauliflower, trimmed and cut in 1-2 inch pieces
½
c. half and half or milk, warmed
½
c. grated Parmesan cheese
4
T. butter
Salt
and pepper to taste
Preheat
oven to 325 degrees. Place garlic cloves in a small baking dish. Drizzle with
olive oil, cover, and bake 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Don’t let it
burn. Remove garlic from oven and set
aside. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Add cauliflower, and
cook until tender. Drain well, and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Place
roasted garlic, milk, Parmesan cheese, and butter into the bowl with the cauliflower.
Season with salt and pepper. Mash until ingredients are well combined. Mixture
will not be perfectly smooth. Adjust seasonings. Serves 8.
Note: You can always add more garlic. Roasting mellows out the flavor a lot. When adding the garlic, don’t drain off the olive oil, it will add richness to the dish.
I never met an onion I didn’t love. Most
of my savory dishes start with sauteing onions in a pan. But in many
ways, the onions are in the supporting role, making the other
ingredients taste better.
In this recipe, the onions are the star. Plain old yellow cooking onions are elevated to a tasty side dish I think you will like. This would make a great side dish for Thanksgiving or any holiday meal.
The onions are peeled, halved and drizzled with a vinegar/sugar mix.
Then, they are topped with a bread crumb and herb mix that gets crispy,
while the onions roast and become tender. The recipe reminds me of onion
rings in flavor. The presentation is so pretty, though. Much more
elegant than onion rings.
If you never tried baking onions this way, you might want to try it.
Just a warning- they are addictive. Bake a few more than you think you
need. People go for seconds on this dish.
Sweet and Sour Baked Onions
4 large onions, peeled and halved- I use yellow onions, but you can use red or white
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup dried bread crumbs
1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange the onions in a 9×13 inch baking
pan. Arrange the onions round side down. In a small mixing bowl mix
together the vinegar and sugar. Spoon the mixture onto the flat surface
of the onions. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. In another mixing
bowl combine the breadcrumbs with 1/4 cup oil, rosemary and parsley.
Mix until well combined. Pat the mixture evenly onto the flat side of
the onions. Drizzle the remaining 1/4 cup of oil over the onions and
bake for 45 minutes or until the onions are tender when pierced. Let the
onions cool a little at room temperature. Serve with extra salt and
pepper to taste.
Gingersnaps are one of those cookies- the people that love them –
REALLY love them. I will admit to being one of those people. The mixture
of spices and crunchy texture just work together so well.
I cannot remember where I first got this recipe. This richly spiced
cookie is perfect with a cup of coffee or a cup of tea. They are not too
sweet, which I also like.
You can use either dried or fresh grated ginger. I really prefer fresh. I keep a piece of ginger root in my freezer, then just grate what I want, whenever needed. The ginger lasts nearly forever that way. When I got a new refrigerator last year, I emptied out my freezer and found I had more than a pound of frozen ginger root. That’s a lot of ginger. I guess I buy a fresh piece every time I go to the Asian grocery store. I have been making a real effort to use it all up.
The original recipe called for shortening. I use butter, but chill the dough at least an hour before baking. You can use shortening, if you prefer.
So here is the recipe. Enjoy!!
Gingersnap Cookies
2 c. flour
2 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
¾ t. ginger (fresh grated preferred)
½ t. cloves
¼ t. salt
1 c. sugar, plus extra for rolling
¾ c. butter
¼ c. molasses
1 egg
Mix together dry ingredients and set aside. Beat together sugar with
butter, molasses and egg until light. Stir in dry ingredients and chill
dough at least an hour. When ready to bake, roll dough into 1-inch
balls. Roll balls in additional sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased
baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 10-12 minutes.
Edges should look dry. Cool on sheet for a few minutes and then move to
rack. Makes about 36.
