pumpkin cream cheese pie

I'm about one pumpkin away from exploding, and you wouldn't know it, as I've posted nothing with pumpkin in it. That doesn't mean that pounds of pumpkin haven't traipsed their way through my door.

I had to revisit my favorites, pumpkin bread with pecan streusel and pumpkin whoopie pies. Then I had to make way for pies. I tried the standard. I wanted more. This recipe, found on foodnetwork.com, caught my eye. With its inclusion of a block of cream cheese, it's not quite a cheesecake, nor is it quite a custard.

pumpkin muffin with eggnog cream cheese

BRACE YOURSELF! Yes, it is another pumpkin recipe. I'd been wanting to try a muffin recipe with cream cheese ever since I saw one at Starbucks this fall, and kitchn.com conveniently had a lovely one to try.

pumpkin rolls with cream cheese glaze

I had bookmarked this recipe and knew it was time to try it when The Sister forwarded it to me. Pumpkin lovers, rejoice! This is a fantastic recipe which I adapted slightly by changing out the glaze. It has everything you want from a cinnamon roll— fluffy and yeasty— plus the addition of pumpkin.

pumpkin chocolate chip loaf

Here's another pumpkin recipe to add to your file. This recipe does not call for any milk, buttermilk or sour cream— thankfully, since I had none of the above in the house.  Just some vegetable oil and water.

The Discerning Daughter tasted it and said that she wanted more spice and asked for this pumpkin bread recipe instead. I realized she was missing the cloves and ginger. So, add the spices you like, hold back on ones that you don't. If you want cloves and ginger here, ¼ teaspoon cloves and ½ teaspoon ginger is a good place to start. But whatever you do, definitely don't leave out the chocolate chips!

all-in-one holiday bundt cake {bwd}

What are your favorite flavors of autumn? Is it pumpkin? Cinnamon? Apple? Cranberries? Pecans? How about all of the above, wrapped up into one delectable bundt cake?

That is exactly what the bakers at Baking With Dorie Greenspan baked this past week.  I was very excited to tackle the recipe —then the storm came and potatoes and cookies upended my baking schedule, but here the cake is, a little late, but in all its seasonal glory.

It's wonderful for breakfast or with a mid-afternoon snack. The cake is moist and lightly spiced, the cranberries are tart, the pecans add a nice crunch to it. I didn't have the time, but I would suggest toasting the pecans before adding them to the batter.

pumpkin brown butter cupcakes

If you're a baker, you've probably already tried a pumpkin recipe this fall. Maybe a loaf or two of bread? Whoopie pies with cream cheese filling? Perhaps a pie?

May I suggest to you another baked good to add to your arsenal of autumn sweets? These cupcakes, I admit, have the texture more akin to bread or a muffin, but there is an ingredient that makes this oh-so-special and worth a try.

Browned butter. You use it not just in the cake, but also in the icing. Lick the bowl, good to the last drop, positively, delectably delicious. And oh, the aroma! The nutty, rich smell of the butter...

The flecks of milk solids are turning golden at the bottom of the skillet.

You can see some of the flecks in the batter.

Vanilla is used in the frosting, along with browned butter,

confectioner's sugar, and a smidgen of milk.

Even without the icing, the cupcake/muffin is pretty darn good.

With the icing, however, the cupcake is divine.

Thanks to Monica of My Cupcake Journey for choosing the wonderful recipe. I baked this with a bunch of bloggers who are baking through Martha Stewart's Cupcakes- you can join in on the fun too if you'd like!

Tastewise, I felt it was little flat. I would add at least a quarter teaspoon each of ground ginger and cardamom to the spices. Also, I didn't use sage in the recipe. I didn't want that herbal note with my pumpkin cake.

Pumpkin-Brown Butter Cupcakes

adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

Printable Recipe

¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for tins

1⅔ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for tins

¼ cup fresh sage leaves, cut into chiffonade (optional)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ginger

¼ teaspoon cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs
Brown-Butter Icing (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Brush standard muffin tins with butter; dust with flour, tapping out excess. In a sauce pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the sage, if desired, and continue to cook, swirling occasionally, until butter turns golden brown. Skim foam from top, and remove from heat. Pour into a bowl to stop the cooking, leaving any burned sediment behind; let cool.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In another bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, both sugars, eggs and brown-butter mixture. Add flour mixture, and whisk until just combined.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

To finish, dip top of each cupcake in icing, then turn over quickly and let set. Cupcakes are best eaten the day they are glazed; keep at room temperature until ready to serve.

Brown Butter Icing

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk, plus more if needed

Melt butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat, swirling pan occasionally, until nut brown in color, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and pour butter into a bowl, leaving any burned sediment behind.

Add confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk to brown butter; stir until smooth. If necessary, add more milk (up to 2 tablespoons) a little at a time, just until icing is spreadable. Use immediately.

This post is linked to Chic and Crafty

pumpkin streusel coffee cake

Today is THE PERFECT fall day. Loads of sun. Breezy cool air. Auburn leaves. Invigorating and refreshing, all the day needs now is a little cinnamon and spice.

Enter this pumpkin cake. I mixed it up in about 20 minutes, and it baked for about 40, just enough time for me to de-clutter the kitchen and get the bathroom cleaned. All in time for my music meeting.

The Committee Members enjoyed it, with two of them saying that they're not huge pumpkin fans and that this was the perfect amount of pumpkin. (They don't like pumpkin pie, so if you do, you might want a recipe with more pumpkin in it.) I personally like pumpkin any which way, a little more, a little less, it's all good.

pumpkin bread with pecan streusel topping

The Daughter wanted me to make "something quick and easy" as a thank-you gift for her english teacher. I had an extra cup of pumpkin purée that needed to be used up, and this recipe fit the bill perfectly.  The Illinois BFF inspired the topping, as she usually tops her bread with some pecan pralines, which are particularly handy if you are in a time crunch.

pumpkin ginger custard {sms}

I cannot tell you when I last ate homemade pumpkin pie.  I believe pies eaten were by Mrs. Smith, Entenmann's, or ShopRite, which, while wonderfully spiced and smooth, still fall short of the real thing.

And that is why I fell in love with this custard.  I need the real deal.  It is silky.  It is smooth.  It is decadent, but only in the best possible way.  AND it is simple and fast to make.

pumpkin love ~ pumpkin whoopie pies

I was delighted to be invited, by Carmen of Baking is My Zen, to participate in a Pumpkin Love Blogfest. We chose favorite pumpkin recipes and are sharing them with each other and our readers.

For my Pumpkin Love post, I couldn't resist making BAKED's Pumpkin Whoopie Pie. Not quite a cookie, not a quite a cake, they are moist, flavorful, spicy, soft and unbelievably delicious.  The cream cheese filling adds a lovely tangy counterpoint.  To add a little texture, I topped it with some smashed almond brittle.

pumpkin chocolate chip muffins {bwd}

Fall and pumpkin go hand in hand. Once the leaves start changing colors, I'm itching to bake something with it. Today's Baking With Dorie assignment is perfect for the pumpkin state of mind I'm in.

pumpkin bread pudding {sms}

If are an {sms} baker, you will have noticed the omission of the caramel rum sauce in the title... because I ran out of time to make it.

Believe you me, I love rum and I love caramel, and I SO wish I had the time. This bottle has already been used twice this week in other recipes, which is twice more than in the past five years. Odd how that happens.

On to the bread pudding. I accidentally plopped the whole 15 oz. can into the eggs, but was fortunate enough to scoop out maybe 1/2 cup. Oh well. I think that I could have left it in and it wouldn't have made a difference. The more pumpkin, the better!