Hallelujah it is November! I have been looking toward to this month for weeks now. Mainly because I thought my court stuff would be finished by now (bah ha ha. I should have known better by now), but also because The Weather Channel said that it would finally start looking like it was actually Autumn this month. Guess what? They were right? It is AMAZING! Leaves are falling off the trees like snow over Donner's Pass and the wind today ripped them off and flung them everywhere. Love it!
The absolute best thing about November 1st? Roasting the pumpkins from the night before. Now, you can do this with pumpkins any time of the year, but I do it after Halloween for a couple of reasons. 1) it just seems like such a waste to carve up half a dozen pumpkins and then watch them rot and 2) it is way too much work to gut the pumpkins twice. So, every year, we pick out our pumpkins some time in October and then wait until a day or two before Halloween to carve them. Then, once we finish our designs, we soak them in water overnight. This helps keep them from rotting so quickly. Then, the morning after Halloween, I chop them into quarters and roast them.
Roasting pumpkins is relatively simple. You gut and clean the pumpkin (save those seeds for my yummy roasted seed recipe!). Cut the pumpkin into quarters (I have done it in halves before, but if the pumpkin is too large, it won't cook evenly) and pop them in the oven. I don't use a rack and I put them in cut side up. Cook them at about 350° F until the flesh is soft and scoopable (usually around an hour). Remove them from the oven and let them cool. scoop out the flesh and puree in the blender (some water typically needs to be added, but not too much!). Now you have fresh (or frozen in freezer bags if you wish) pumpkin pureé to use for all sorts of goodies, like my favorite pumpkin muffins:
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
By: Barb
Servings: 18
Ingredients:
Filling:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar
Streusel:
4 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons chopped pecans
Muffin:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.
To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.
For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.
Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full. Then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter. Try to keep cream cheese from touching the paper cup.
Sprinkle on the streusel topping.
Bake at 375 degrees F (195 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes.
The absolute best thing about November 1st? Roasting the pumpkins from the night before. Now, you can do this with pumpkins any time of the year, but I do it after Halloween for a couple of reasons. 1) it just seems like such a waste to carve up half a dozen pumpkins and then watch them rot and 2) it is way too much work to gut the pumpkins twice. So, every year, we pick out our pumpkins some time in October and then wait until a day or two before Halloween to carve them. Then, once we finish our designs, we soak them in water overnight. This helps keep them from rotting so quickly. Then, the morning after Halloween, I chop them into quarters and roast them.
Roasting pumpkins is relatively simple. You gut and clean the pumpkin (save those seeds for my yummy roasted seed recipe!). Cut the pumpkin into quarters (I have done it in halves before, but if the pumpkin is too large, it won't cook evenly) and pop them in the oven. I don't use a rack and I put them in cut side up. Cook them at about 350° F until the flesh is soft and scoopable (usually around an hour). Remove them from the oven and let them cool. scoop out the flesh and puree in the blender (some water typically needs to be added, but not too much!). Now you have fresh (or frozen in freezer bags if you wish) pumpkin pureé to use for all sorts of goodies, like my favorite pumpkin muffins:
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
By: Barb
Servings: 18
Ingredients:
Filling:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar
Streusel:
4 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons chopped pecans
Muffin:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.
To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.
For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.
Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full. Then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter. Try to keep cream cheese from touching the paper cup.
Sprinkle on the streusel topping.
Bake at 375 degrees F (195 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes.
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