Tag: Pumpkin Dessert

Pumpkin Bourbon Cream Cheesecake

Here it is… My first pumpkin recipe of the season! Not sure how many more are to follow. This could very well be the only pumpkin recipe I share this year. I’m just not into it this year as I have been in the past. I did get my fair share of pumpkin beverages from Starbucks last month during their BOGO promotion, so I am getting my pumpkin fill. Before we know it though, pumpkin will be replaced by peppermint and all the pretty fall colors will be replaced by holiday colors. I walked into a Lowe’s the other day and right smack in my face was a full Christmas display flanked by two very large Santa Clauses’. I had to stop and think for a moment what date it was and how long until Christmas is actually here. Don’t get me wrong I enjoy the holidays, but this year feels like it has flown by incredibly fast so savoring these last few months of the year and the remaining holidays would be nice. 

A few months ago, I received a bottle of bourbon cream from Nooku. They reached out to me on Instagram and offered to send me a bottle. I never tried bourbon cream before but was pleasantly surprised when I did. While the tasting notes are different, it reminded me of Irish cream. And while it is delicious to drink on its own chilled or at room temperature, I thought I could use it to make some sort of dessert. Initially I was thinking of making a bourbon cream cheesecake, but it being Fall and all I decided to give the cheesecake a Fall twist and add pumpkin to create a Pumpkin Bourbon Cream Cheesecake.    

So, with some bourbon cream, pumpkin puree and of course pumpkin spice (along with a few other ingredients) I ended up with a delicious cheesecake that’s perfect for these Fall days. And while I was initially thinking of topping the cheesecake with a chocolate ganache drizzle, I opted to go a simpler route and whipped up a small batch of bourbon cream whipped cream to pipe along the edges of the cheesecake which I then sprinkled with pumpkin spice (because you can never have too much of it).

Pumpkin Bourbon Cream Cheesecake

Ingredients:

For the Graham Cracker Crust:

12 graham crackers

1 tablespoon sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the Cheesecake:

3 8oz blocks of cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature

15oz. can pumpkin puree

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1/3 cup bourbon cream*

For the Bourbon Cream Whipped Cream:

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon bourbon cream*

1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Additional pumpkin pie spice to sprinkle on top of cheesecake

*I used Nooku Bourbon Cream

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

In the bowl of a food processor process the graham crackers into fine crumbs. Add the sugar and melted butter and pulse a few times until the mixture is combined. Transfer to a 9-inch springform pan and press the crumbs into an even layer along the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Set aside.

In a large bowl beat the cream cheese and both sugars with a hand mixer on medium speed until well combined. Add in the sour cream, pumpkin puree, vanilla extract and pumpkin pie spice until beat until just combined. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Finally beat in the bourbon cream.

Transfer the cheesecake filling to the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes. The cheesecake should be set but the center a bit wobbly.

Leave the cheesecake in the oven with the door open and allow the cheesecake to cool as the oven cools, about 30 minutes. Finish cooling on a wire rack and then cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

Before serving make the whipped cream topping. In a medium bowl beat the whipped cream, bourbon cream and confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Carefully remove the ring from the cheesecake and drop dollops of the whipped cream along the edge of the cheesecake. Finish by sprinkling pumpkin pie spice over the whipped cream. If you don’t have piping bags and/or tips, you can use a large resealable bag. Snip one of the corners and drop dollops of the whipped cream on the cheesecake. 

Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Recipe first appeared on Bead Yarn & Spatula

Chocolate Pumpkin Flan

It’s Fall Y’all! And you know what that means… It’s time for some pumpkin treats. Truth be told I feel like Fall came out of nowhere this year. Between working from home and barely going anywhere due to the pandemic the days are just passing by quickly and rolling into each other. Now that September is winding down though I’m doing my best to be cognizant of the days/dates to make sure I get all of my holiday projects and goodies done. I’m kicking off Fall with a Chocolate Pumpkin Flan.

While traditional flan uses eggs as the base to make the custard, this flan uses a combination of cream cheese, eggs and pumpkin. One thing that does remain the same though is the delicious caramel sauce. And I am happy to say that I was finally successful in making caramel sauce. I have tried in the past and all I have ended up with is burnt sugar. I was determined this time to get it right. One thing that helped, besides having patience, was using a smaller saucepan. I normally use a medium sized one and I think that was preventing the caramel from coming together. By using a smaller one it was easier for the sugar to melt into the water and begin the caramelization process. I also resisted the urge to stir it and instead swirled the pan every few minutes to ensure it wouldn’t burn.  As with a traditional flan, once the caramel was done I poured it into the pan I was using and then poured the batter for the flan over it. Oh, one other thing this flan has that a traditional flan doesn’t have… melted chocolate. If you didn’t know, chocolate and pumpkin go together really well. After baking in a water bath, initially I was thinking that I could bake a 9-inch pan inside of a 10-inch springform pan, but, after I added the water it seeped right out so I ended up baking it in a water bath inside of my roasting pan, I let it cool and then refrigerated it overnight before unmolding it. It didn’t come out easily, but, once it did it thankfully didn’t break apart.

Final verdict… It was delicious. It had the exact consistency of an egg custard flan but the flavor of pumpkin and chocolate with a hint of spice thanks to pumpkin spice. Which is just a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and allspice.

So, even with all the craziness going on are you looking forward to the holidays? Me and a friend were saying the other day how when the summer started, we had no clue how the summer would be and what we would be able to do. And now here we are, the summer is over, and we made it through without doing anything really. With the extra time on the weekends I was able to get some projects done in my backyard and I am in the middle of remodeling my living room. All in all, I am sure most people are looking to put this year to bed. For now though, bring on the pumpkins, the mums and the scarves!

Chocolate Pumpkin Flan

Ingredients:

2oz. semi-sweet chocolate

1 1/2 cups sugar, divided

1/4 cup water

1 12oz. can evaporated milk

1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened and cubed

4 eggs

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin spice

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Microwave the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl on high for 1 minute, or until almost melted. Stir until completely melted, set aside to cool.

In a small saucepan add 3/4 cups of the sugar and the water. Cook on medium heat until the mixture is golden brown and a syrup-like consistency. This will take 10-15 minutes. Do not stir the contents, instead swirl the pan every few minutes. Pour into a 9-inch round pan.

In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, combine the evaporated milk and cream cheese and mix together until smooth.  Add the remaining sugar, the eggs, pumpkin, pumpkin spice and melted chocolate and continue mixing until well incorporated. Pour the mixture over the syrup in the pan.

Place the 9-inch pan inside of a larger pan, a roasting pan is ideal, and fill the larger pan with enough water that it comes halfway up the sides of the small pan.

Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let cool completely on a wire rack and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours before inverting and unmolding. Drizzle any remaining caramel sauce left in pan over flan. Slice and enjoy!

Recipe from Kraft Foods

Slow Cooker Sunday: Pumpkin Cheesecake

I am sneaking in one more pumpkin recipe this season before the Holidays take over… A Slow Cooker Pumpkin Cheesecake. This is actually the third cheesecake I’ve made in my slow cooker. Earlier this year I shared with you a Chocolate Chip Cheesecake and a Sour Cream Cheesecake. Out of the three, this one is my favorite. What can I say… I am a fan of Pumpkin. I actually adapted this recipe for a slow cooker as the original one called for it to be made in a pressure cooker. While I do own one, only because it was my parents, I am a bit fearful of using it. I remember my mom always using it to make beans. She preferred using dry beans over can ones to make habichuelas guisada (stewed beans) so she would use the pressure cooker to soften them up before making them in the stew… YUM! Maybe one day I will work up the courage to using it, but, for now, it is perfectly situated on the back of a shelf in my cabinet.

I began by making the crust. In my food processor I pulsed graham crackers into crumbs. I transferred the crumbs to a medium bowl and added in melted butter, cinnamon and sugar and mixed it together until it was well combined. I then pressed the crumbs into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a 6-inch springform pan that I sprayed with cooking spray.

Next, I made the filling. I beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth and then added in pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, flour, and whipping cream and continued beating until it was well blended. Finally, I added in the eggs and vanilla extract and beat it until just combined. I then poured this into the prepared crust.

I placed a rack in the insert of my slow cooker and then filled it with a 1/2-inch of water (about 2 cups for my 6qt. slow cooker) and then placed the pan on top of the rack. I covered it and cooked it on high for 2 hours. The center should still be a bit wobbly and the rest of the cheesecake set. You don’t want to overbake it. After the 2 hours, I turned off my slow cooker and left it covered so the cheesecake could cool. After the hour, I removed the pan and transferred it to a wire rack so it could cool completely.

After refrigerating it overnight, the following day I enjoyed a slice!

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients:

Crust:

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (from 7 graham crackers)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon sugar

Filling:

2 8oz. packages cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Spray a 6-inch springform pan with cooking spray. Place a rack inside the insert of your slow cooker and fill with a 1/2 inch of water (about 2 cups for a 6qt. slow cooker).

In a medium bowl mix the graham crack crumbs, melted butter, cinnamon and sugar. Press the crumbs in the bottom and slightly up the sides of the springform pan.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add in the pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, flour and whipping cream and continue beating until well blended. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until just combined. Pour into the prepared crust.

Place the pan onto the rack inside of the slow cooker, cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Turn the slow cooker off and keeping the lid on, let the cheesecake cool in the slow cooker for an hour. After the hour, remove the cheesecake and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate for at least four before serving.

Recipe adapted from Dear Crissy