Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

I have a confession to make. This Thanksgiving I did not make a pumpkin pie. Not. One. Even with 3 Thanksgiving family dinners. Pumpkin is a favorite flavor with our family and we have many ways of serving it. But this year instead of the pumpkin pie, I did this Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake - ohh, way better! 
A cheese cake is such an indulgent dessert that it is usually saved for special occasions. Not only is it rich in fat and calories, but also requires more care and steps to make than many desserts. There are some tips that I've gathered for a successful cheesecake:
* Use full-fat cream cheese. I usually try to cut the calories by getting the lower fat versions, and for many things that works. But for cheesecake, you want the regular full-fat. 
* The crumb crust is best mixed in a food processor. I like to use the processor for making the crumbs and then for combining the crust ingredients. Press into the springform pan with a custard cup using the straight sides and flat bottom for form a smooth crust. 
* Mix the cream cheese and sugar well, they should become very creamy and add some air for volume. But after the eggs are added just mix enough to incorporate the ingredients, overbeating can make the cheesecake tough. 
* Having all ingredients at room temperature before beginning makes them combine more quickly and evenly, so you're less likely to overmix or have lumps. 
* Baking with a water bath, either a pan of hot water that the springform pan sits in or a pan of hot water on the rack below the cheesecake will make the cheesecake a more moist product and be less likely to crack. 
* For food safety, check the internal temperature with a food thermometer at the end of baking. The cheesecake is done when the internal temperature is 150 degrees. 

I think you'll enjoy this cheesecake, it will work for a Christmas as well as Thanksgiving dessert. 

PUMPKIN SWIRL CHEESECAKE

Gingersnap Cookie Crust Ingredients:

1 ½ cups gingersnap cookie crumbs

¼ teaspoon each: ground ginger and ground cinnamon

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

¼ cup granulated sugar

Cheesecake Ingredients: 

Four 8-ounce blocks full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

1/3 cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

Instructions:

Adjust oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

Make the Crust: With a food processor, pulse the gingersnap cookies into crumbs. Measure 1 ½ cups crumbs and add back to food processor and pulse with ginger, cinnamon, sugar, and melted butter until combined. The mixture will resemble sand. Press firmly into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a 9-inch or 10-inch springform pan. (the pan doesn’t need to be greased). Prebake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly as you prepare the filling. 

Make the Filling: Using a handheld or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and granulated sugar together on the medium-high speed in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract, then beat until fully combined. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until just blended. Avoid over mixing. 

Scoop out 2 cups of batter and place in a medium mixing bowl. Stir the pumpkin, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice into this until combined. Begin adding spoonsfuls of each batter, the plain and the pumpkin, on top of the crust. Alternate until all the batter is used and pan is filled. Using a toothpick or knife, swirl the batters together by dragging the toothpick from top to bottom, then left to right. 

Bake in a simple water bath by placing the foil wrapped springform pan in a large roasting pan with about 1 inch of boiling water in it. Or place the pan of water on the rack beneath the rack the cheesecake will sit on. 

Bake the cheesecake for 55-70 minutes or until the center is almost set. If it seems to be browning too quickly, tent the top with foil. The cheesecake is done when the internal temperature measured with a food thermometer is 150 degrees. The center will slightly wobble if you gently shake the pan. Turn the oven off and open the oven door slightly. Let the cheesecake sit in the oven for 1 hour as it cools. Then remove from the oven and allow to cool completely at room temperature before refrigerating. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight before serving. Use a knife to loosen the chilled cheesecake from the rim of the springform pan, then remove the rim. Using a clean sharp knife, cut into slices for serving. For neat slices, wipe the knife clean and dip into warm water between each slice. Cover and store leftover cheesecake in the refrigerator. 

The spoonfuls of batter are added...

and swirled. 

New Tricks for Favorite Treats

Trick or Treat - The treats are always the best. This Halloween I've done some new tricks with a couple of favorite recipes. My all-time-best-banana bread has become Pumpkin Bread and the always favorite Chocolate Peanut Butter Blossom cookies have become Pumpkin Blossoms.

PUMPKIN BLOSSOMS

Ingredients:

2 cups light brown sugar, packed

1 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 large eggs

pinch of kosher salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½  teaspoon ground nutmeg

½  teaspoon ground cloves

48 (or more) Hershey Kisses, any variety, unwrapped

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Spray a mini muffin pan with baking spray. Set aside.

2.     In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, butter, pumpkin, egg and salt until combined . Add flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Blend completely for 1-2 minutes.

3.     Using a small scoop, fill each muffin cup with about 1 ½ Tablespoon of batter.

4.     Bake for about 18 minutes. Removed from oven and immediately press a Hershey Kiss in the center of each blossom.

5.     Allow to cook in pan about 10 minutes. Remove from pan and enjoy. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

I  had lots of help unwrapping the Kisses!

Pumpkin Kisses didn't hold their shape as well as the
chocolate ones below. 

Today is a friends birthday, I'm sure there are disadvantages to having a birthday on Halloween, but it does make it easy to remember! So yesterday when I wanted to take her a seasonal treat, I altered the Banana bread I usually make by substituting 1 can of pumpkin for the 3-4 bananas.

Pumpkin Nut Bread

Ingredients: 

¾ cup butter, softened

1 package (8 0z) cream cheese, softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 ½ cups pumpkin puree

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ cups chopped pecans, divided

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin and vanilla; mix well. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, add to creamed mixture. Fold in 1 cup pecans.

Transfer to two greased 8 inch x 4 inch x 2 inch loaf pans. Sprinkle with remaining pecans. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 to 1 ¼ hours or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

In a small bowl, whisk the glaze ingredients (powdered sugar and pumpkin spice coffee creamer), drizzle over loaves.

Isn't this a lovely pumpkin color?

My favorite glaze ingredients

Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake

We're still celebrating Fall with pumpkin flavors and decorations. It is a good thing that pumpkins are grown around the world, except Antarctic, and in almost every state of the U.S. Pumpkin growers get a heavy yield on their crops - over 10 tons per acre. The production from one acre could fill four semi trailers! In the U.S. last year, over 66,600 acres of pumpkins were planted. That should keep our pumpkin tastes supplied!

Besides the lovely decorations, smells, and colors of autumn, the many pumpkin recipes are fun. This week's recipe is Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake. I shared half with the daughter and son-in-law up the hill who love pumpkin almost as much as I do. The cake was delicious, but I'll use another frosting recipe next time. The right thickness/thinness between not pourable and runny was hard to find. It tasted better than it looks! I did learn a tip for removing the cake from the Bundt pan. Spray or oil the pan just before adding the batter. This keeps the pan better coated without the oil pooling in the bottom (which turns out to be the top). That trick should help us all.

PUMPKIN SPICE BUNDT CAKE

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 (16 oz) can pumpkin puree

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons ground ginger

½ teaspoon nutmeg

Frosting:

6 ounces softened cream cheese

2 tablespoons softened butter

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tablespoons heavy cream

2-4 tablespoons water

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a Bundt pan with nonstick spray.  

2.     With an electric mixer, cream together sugar and oil on medium speed. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well in between.

3.     Add pumpkin and let the mixer run while you mix together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

4.     Whisk together dry ingredients – flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.

5.     Turn mixer to low speed and gradually add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix until incorporated.

6.     Spoon batter evenly into the Bundt pan, and smooth the top.

7.     Bake for 48-55 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick inserted in the top. Or you may check for doneness with a food thermometer reading 210 degrees.

8.     Remove cake from the oven and let cool in the pan for 15 minutes.

9.     Turn the cake onto a cooling rack. Tap the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to help loosen if necessary.

10. Let the cake cool completely before frosting.

Look how nicely this came out of the pan! 

 Whisk together cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar. Whisk in heavy cream, and then add water by the tablespoon until the desired consistency is reached. It should be just barely pourable, but not too runny.

The frosting isn't pretty, but it tastes good!

More than a Pumpkin...

     The pumpkin is more than a squash-like gourd! Our history and culture are full of stories of pumpkins and recipes for delicious meal sides and desserts. Pumpkins stories vary from Cinderella's coach to Jack-O'Lanterns and recipes vary from appetizers to desserts. And even jokes! "How do you mend a broken Jack O'Lantern?....with a pumpkin patch!"
   
   

 My latest favorite recipe - Pumpkin Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting was a winner with the family last weekend. I'm anxious to make it again.

            PUMPKIN ROLLS WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Ingredients:

4 ¼ - 4¾ cups all-purpose flour

⅓ cup sugar

2 packets Rapid-Rise yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

¾ cup canned pumpkin

3 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 egg

Filling:

⅓ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

3 tablespoons butter or margarine, very soft
(and I added chopped pecans - just because!)

Cream Cheese Frosting:

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

2 ½ cups powdered sugar

 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Combine 2 cups flour, sugar, dry yeast and salt in a large mixer bowl and stir until blended. Place water, pumpkin and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in high in 15 second increments until very warm but not hot to the touch (120 - 130°, butter won’t melt completely). Add to flour mixture with egg.

Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add 1 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in just enough remaining flour so that the dough will form into a ball, knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic and dough springs back when lightly pressed with 2 fingers, about 6 -8 minutes. Cover with a towel; let rest 10 minutes.

For filling, combine brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice in a small bowl. Set aside.

Roll dough into a 15x12-inch rectangle using a rolling pin. Spread 3 tablespoons butter over dough stopping at least  ½-inch from the edges on the long sides. Sprinkle with sugar mixture. Beginning at long end of rectangle, roll up tightly. Pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal pieces. Place, cut sides down in greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Cover with towel; let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Bake in preheated 350° oven for 25-30 minutes or until rolls are golden brown. Cool on wire rack for at least 20 minutes.

Combine all frosting ingredients in a large bowl and beat, adding just enough milk until frosting is creamy. Spread over rolls.