How to Roast and Puree a Pie Pumpkin

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, mainly because of the excuse to pig out on candy and all things pumpkin. These days you can find a pumpkin flavored version of just about anything in the grocery store and I definitely don't hate it. Pumpkin is one of my favorite flavors to bake with especially when mixed with the right combination of spices and seasoning. My great-grandmother made homemade pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving using heavy cream and real pumpkin that she roasted and pureed herself at home. Inspired by her, I decided to forgo the usual Libby's can that I reach for this time of year and make my own pumpkin puree instead. I was so pleasantly surprised by how simple and tasty it was that I haven't used anything else since. Freshly pureed pumpkin has a sweet and mild squash flavor and a gorgeous, bright orange-yellow hue. The trick is to start with a pumpkin that is small in size and heavy in weight by comparison.

I'm lucky enough to be currently living in farm country VA, where a farmer down the road toured me around his place on his gator and helped me select this perfect pumpkin for only $2.00. But you can now buy pie pumpkins (sometimes called 'sugar' pumpkins) in most grocery stores or stands where you buy your jack-o-lanterns. For a size reference, I put mine next to a medium sized apple.

The first step is to split this baby open. I sliced the top stem off of mine and then cut it in half twice to get four, even-sized quarters.

Then I scraped the insides just as you would if you were carving a pumpkin for Halloween, and of course reserved the seeds for toasting.

Put the quarters in a baking dish, dot with butter and sprinkle with salt. Depending on what you're going to use the puree with, you can also start flavoring the pumpkin here by adding stems and leaves of your favorite fresh herbs. Rosemary and sage are my favorite herbs to use for most squashes.

Bake in a normal conventional oven at 350 degrees for about an hour, or until your pumpkin is soft all the way through and starts to look like this:

You may have to adjust the amount of butter or baste halfway through baking depending on how dry the pumpkin looks.

After roasting, peel the pumpkin "meat" away from the tough skin and puree in batches using a food processor, vitamix, or strong blender. I add a little hot water or melted butter to the mixture if it looks like it needs a little push. You should have a velvety texture and a bright orange color when all is said and done. From here you can refrigerate your puree for up to two weeks or freeze to use all season long. I add a scoop to oatmeal, pancake batter or milkshakes or use in place of Libby's for all baking purposes. Stay tuned for the not-so-average pumpkin cupcakes that resulted from this beauty!

S'mores Cupcakes

In honor of the cooler weather, the return of Sunday football and campfires everywhere, I've been working on a new fall cake flavor. It's the perfect slice of heaven to brighten up your cozy evening at home on the couch, or add some flavor to your tailgate parties. The cake is a moist and delicious graham cracker pound cake that is designed to reflect the sweet and nutty flavor of Nabisco's classic grahams. It is stuffed full with a smooth and creamy dark chocolate ganache and topped with a toasted marshmallow frosting.

I went classic with the garnish and snapped off a piece of a Hershey's bar to place alongside a graham cracker. I usually prefer to 1) garnish with something either homemade or fresh and b) not use Hershey's chocolate in general but I made an exception for this one. Hershey's bars are just oh-so-s'mores-y, plus within the past year Hershey announced they are moving towards being fair trade which makes my certified chocolate loving heart very happy. 

But before I garnished, I toasted that gooey marshmallow frosting to give it an almost brǔleéd finish. 

  

And here's a shot of the chocolate lava center just in case you still needed convincing. I personally believe that s'mores don't taste as good unless you get them all over your face. The cupcake version is no exception!

Sweet Potato Cupcakes

Continuing my mini-blog series on fall flavors, this week I'm introducing you to the sweet potato cake. Sweet potato is one of my all-time favorite fall ingredients. This cake reminds me of Thanksgivings with my Great Grandmother, and her sweet potato casserole. It was like having dessert for dinner, which of course I am all for! Only slightly sweet and spiced up with cinnamon, cloves, ginger and all-spice, this cake pairs perfectly with the brown butter frosting on top which has a deeply sweet caramel flavor and super smooth texture. Topped with freshly topped walnuts,  this cake is perfect for a Fall bridal shower, birthday or Halloween party!

Fall Flavors

Back from my hiatus! College was taking up too much of my time due to my annoying habit of over-loading myself, but I finally found some time in the kitchen. Thank God for fall break! The thing I look forward to most about fall (besides boots and scarves) are the flavors that come with it. It's like one morning you wake up with frost outside the window, and immediately start craving cinnamon, pumpkin, apple cider, caramel, and cranberry...okay, well I do. I've been working on a few new cake flavors to share this weekend, and this is the start of a series of tantalizing fall cake flavors starting with (drum roll, please):

Caramel Apple Cider: [insert yummy noise]

These are a crisp apple cider pound cake topped with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Hiding in the center of each one and drizzled over the top is homemade caramel. Hope that gets you excited for Fall this Monday morning!