A Pumpkin Pie Variation: Pumpkin-Apple Pie

I tried a new variation on my pumpkin pie recipe, and it turned out pretty well. I just took this pumpkin pie recipe, omitted the maple pecans, and arranged two sliced apples in the bottom of the pie shell before pouring in the filling and topping with the streusel. The addition of the apple made for an interesting flavor and texture contrast that’s quite different from a basic pumpkin pie. 

 










Maybe it would be a good addition to your thanksgiving table this year. Particularly if you’re having trouble choosing between apple and pumpkin pie. : )

 

Pumpkin-Apple Pie

Vegan Pumpkin Peanut Butter Mini-Cheesecakes

Pumpkin and Peanut Butter may sound like an odd combination but it's actually quite compatible--somewhat reminiscent of the more popular peanut butter and banana pairing, just a little subtler.

I liked these cheesecakes. They're fun, nontraditional, and not very difficult. Including the optional lemon juice gives you a more authentic cheesecake tang, but I like them better without (That tang was actually part of the reason I never liked real cheesecake). Use as much or as little as you like.

These mini cheesecakes were an opportunity to try out my new silicon cupcake liners. They worked very well.  Paper liners don't do all that well with crumbs crusts; they tend to get greasy (or stick).
The silicon liners released the cheesecakes easily, and their floppiness allowed me to peel down the sides while pushing up the bottom, almost like a spring-form pan. I was quite pleased with them.

Cross-section view ; )

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Mini-Cheesecakes

Crust:

1 ¼ cups vegan ginger snaps (about 23 1½ inch cookies)

3 Tbsp oil

1 ½ Tbsp sugar or sweetener

Filling:

½ cup peanut butter (the thick no-stir kind)

¾ cup pumpkin puree

1 12 oz package silken tofu

¾ cup sugar or sweetener

1 ½ Tbsp cornstarch

2 tsp vanilla

¾ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ginger

½ tsp dried orange or lemon zest

dash each cardamom and nutmeg

¼ tsp salt

optional: up to 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice (only add if you prefer a distinctly tangy cheesecake; I leave it out)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Making the ginger snap crust

Pulse ginger snaps in food processor until they are fairly finely ground. Add oil and sugar/sweetener pulse until mixture looks like wet sand. Press crumbs into the bottom and up to ½ an inch up the sides of 12 silicon muffin liners. Bake for 8-9 minutes. Let cool five minutes.

Blending the filling

Place all filling ingredients into the food processor (no need to rinse it between crust and filling) and puree until completely smooth. Spoon filling into your cups and smooth the tops. Don’t worry about leaving room; these don’t rise.

Ready to bake

Bake for 20-22 minutes more. They should look firm and not at all wobbly. Let cool completely before you try to get peel them out of the cups

Then enjoy! This isn’t one of those cheesecake recipes where you have to chill forever before eating (although leftovers should definitely be stored in the fridge).

Happy Thanksgiving! Have a fun, stress-free holiday. Or failing that, just have some cheesecake!

Cheesecake: Therapy for Foodies

Incredibly Fancy Vegan Pumpkin-Sweet Potato Pecan Streusel Pie

This is for when a regular pumpkin pie won’t do. I’ve had people who hate pumpkin take a look at this pie and say, “Boy I wish I liked pumpkin pie, because that looks so good.” I won’t say that it will convert the haters—the pumpkin is not at all hidden here, if anything it’s emphasized. But I will say that the pumpkin and pecan both enhance each other: the candied pecans jazz up the pumpkin (which is sometimes bland) and the pumpkin tones down the somewhat sickly-sweetness that standard pecan pies are a bit prone to.

Pumpkin-Sweet Potato Pecan Streusel Pie

 

Pumpkin-Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

Filling:

2 1/3 cups pumpkin puree (most of a 30 oz can)

1 cup peeled, diced and cooked sweet potato

1 12 oz package firm silken tofu

1 ¼ cup sugar or sweetener

2 ½ Tbsp cornstarch

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cardamom

dash allspice

1 tsp vanilla

½ tsp coconut extract

¼ tsp salt

Pecans:

1 cup chopped pecans, plus 8 halves for garnish

2 Tbsp maple syrup (or sugar-free pancake syrup)

½ tsp cinnamon

dash salt

Streusel:

¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour

¼ cup ground pecans

1 tsp cinnamon

dash salt

¼ cup oil

½ vanilla

1-2 tbsp water

2 tbsp quick oats

1 pie crust (graham cracker or ginger snap crust works great)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Puree all the filling ingredients—you will need to do it in batches. Pour into crust and bake for 30 minutes.

Pumpkin-tofu filling

Meanwhile, stir together chopped pecans with syrup, cinnamon and salt. Make the streusel by whisking together flour, ground pecans, cinnamon, and salt. Drizzle in oil, vanilla, and water while tossing with fork until it looks like crumbly wet sand. Stir in oats.

After 30 minutes, pull out the pie. It should be somewhat firm and a little browned on top. Sprinkle the chopped maple pecans over the top, leaving a 1½-inch ring bare around the edge. Sprinkle the streusel over the ring around the edge of the pie. It’s fine if the streusel overlaps the pecans a little. Take the whole pecans, swirl them around in the residue of the chopped maple pecan bowl to coat them slightly. Arrange the whole pecans in a pretty pattern on the top of the pie. Bake for another 20-25 minutes.

Putting the pecan topping on (before the streusel is added)

Let cool at least a few hours before attempting to cut. Will store well for a couple days.

Variations:  You can of course leave off the pecan and streusel toppings for a plain pumpkin pie.

You could also make either a straight pumpkin or sweet potato pie instead of combining them. A butternut squash pie would be nice too.

Other nuts such as walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds could be used in place of the pecans.

Note: To cook a fresh pumpkin or squash for a pie:  cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and strings, and bake it cut side down for 45 –60 minutes at 350 degrees F, until it is easily pierced by a fork. Then just scoop the flesh out of the skin and run it through the blender. It may be a little bit runnier than the canned puree. You can compensate for this by adding an extra tablespoon or two of cornstarch or by reducing it—simmering the puree on the stovetop until it is thickened and concentrated.

By the way, not all pumpkins are equally suited to pie making. Small pumpkins often have better flavor than giant ones, which are watery. Some kinds are specially bred for sweetness and flavor, such as Sugar Pie Pumpkins. Others are bred for looks and size and are quite bland.  At the farmers market you can ask the vendor if a particular type is good for pies. You could also research particular varieties—there are a number of heirloom varieties that have their proponents.  Taste is subjective, though, so you might not agree with others’ opinions. It’s probably best to experiment for yourself.

Happy Halloween!

Well, I had a nice low-key Halloween this year. We stayed in and ate vegan chili dogs and watched old scary movies. It was fun.

   

Vegan chili dog

Carob covered walnuts

We had a couple of treats too: pumpkin bread and carob covered walnuts. I thought I’d share the recipe for the former below, and as for the latter, it couldn’t be simpler: Just melt carob or chocolate, stir in some nuts, then just dump the whole thing onto wax paper and spread out and separate with your fingers. Then let harden for about 15 minutes. It’s quite a bit faster and easier than trying to dip the nuts individually and tastes just as good.

Pumpkin spice bread

Pumpkin Spice Bread

Dry ingredients:

1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour

½ cup oat bran

1 cup sugar or sweetener

1 tbsp chia seeds or ground flax seeds (optional)

2 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

Spices:

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp ginger

½ tsp dried orange zest

½ tsp cardamom

¼ tsp coriander

¼ tsp allspice

Wet ingredients:

1 ½ cup pumpkin puree (one 15 oz should cover it)

1/3 cup oil

¾ cup soymilk

2 tsp vanilla

½ tsp maple extract

2 tbsp finely chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

a handful of dried cranberries (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Whisk together all dry ingredients, including spices. In a separate bowl, stir wet ingredients together. Combine two mixes, taking care not to over-mix. Add cranberries and ginger if using.

Spray a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 55 minutes, until a toothpick comes out fairly clean.

Variations: 

You could change the add-ins, replacing the cranberries and ginger with raisins, nuts or chocolate chips.

Coconut might be interesting too.

You could also use another pureed fruit or vegetable in place of the pumpkin, such as mashed sweet potatoes or bananas or apple or pear sauce.

Pumpkin bread slices

This year's Christmas Feast

Pumpkin Lasagna (before baking)

I decided to make this for Christmas this year because I was a little short on time and energy and needed something easy but festive. It comes together pretty fast if you do the no boil version.

Pumpkin Lasagna

Tofu artichoke filling:

2 1-lb packages firm tofu, mashed coarsely

1 15 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 cup chopped onion (I used frozen)

1 tbsp dried basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp bouquet garni or similar seasoning mix

¾ tsp salt

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

¼ cup lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil

a dash or two of lemon pepper

1 29 oz can pumpkin puree

½ cup soymilk

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp sage

a dash or two each onion and garlic powder

up to 1/3 cup sweetener

lasagna noodles

soy cheese or more nutritional yeast or breadcrumbs (optional)

Mash tofu until it is crumbled into small chunks.  Add other filling ingredients and stir well. 

Stir together pumpkin with soymilk, spices and sweetener.

Mid-Assembly

At this point you can either precook the lasagna noodles or not.  This is a moist recipe that will actually work with raw noodles if you like. This would save time and result in a final product that is firmer and holds together better. If you are more comfortable cooking the noodles though, go ahead.

Assemble the lasagna: Spread a thin layer of pumpkin sauce over the bottom of your baking pan. Place a layer of noodles on top. Next comes a portion of the tofu filling, then more sauce, more noodles, etc repeated until everything is used up. The last two layers should be noodles then sauce, with the noodles well covered enough to keep from getting crunchy.  Sprinkle with nutritional yeast, breadcrumbs, or another crunchy topping if you like. If you want to put a little shredded soy cheese on top, I’d wait until the last ten minutes.

Cover pan with foil and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Variations: 

The tofu filling works just as well in a standard tomato lasagna.

You could also add cubed roasted butternut squash to either the sauce or the filling for more texture.

A bechamel would be a nice addition for a creamier final product.

For more lasagna variations, see this post.

Partially decimated