It seems a little late in the season to be cooking with pumpkin, I know. We often equate pumpkin with Halloween & Thanksgiving then put it out of our minds until next year. In fact, that was exactly my line of thinking until 2 little sugar pumpkins showed up in my first of the new year CSA share…
I was a taken aback at first, but pumpkin is a “winter squash” after all, so I should not be surprised. And, it is “technically” winter, however you’d never know it living in sunny So Cal. It had been in the high 70s until a few days ago & this morning we were finally blessed with a sprinkle of rain. Raining mornings are perfect for baking & that was #1 on my agenda for this holiday Monday. I knew just what to do with my little pumpkins - make The PPK’s Chocolate Pumpkin Loaf, with fresh local pumpkin puree.
I followed the instructions for homemade pumpkin puree from Sweet Pea’s Kitchen.
I seeded, sliced, roasted, peeled & pureed the pumpkin, omitting the final straining step, as my puree seemed the right consistency for my needs. My little pumpkins yielded the perfect amount of puree for the recipe…
Then it was on to making the loaf! I must say that the iPad makes cooking from blog recipes an absolute breeze! No need to squint at the iPhone screen, fuss with the laptop or waste paper. It’s no wonder it made The PPK’s Top 100. I was lucky enough to inherit a first generation iPad from my Grandpa, who passed it on to my Mom, who passed it to me. It’s awesome…
After measuring, mixing, stirring, & 55 minutes of an amazing aroma filling the kitchen air, this…
became this…
Gorgeous scrumptious ooey gooey chocolate pumpkin loaf! Yummy! I forgot the little trick I picked up on the Food Network about coating the chocolate chips in a bit of flour so they will more evenly distribute, but in a way these heavy huddles of chocolate actually make it even more decadent. The pumpkin flavor is very mild & the chocolate is the star. The subtle hints of ginger, nutmeg, clove, & cinnamon are reminiscent of the holiday season that just passed, but lingers in our thoughts.
Serve warm as dessert with a dollop of cashew creme fraiche, or dip in morning coffee for a sweet & indulgent way to start the day. This bread will be making appearances next holiday, for sure. As always thank you Isa for your amazing vegan recipes. What a delightful way to spend a rainy Monday…I don’t want to go to work tomorrow, but I look forward to breakfast!
I’ve found yet another amazing vegan cookie recipe! Yay! Two in a row!
This latest batch “Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies” come from The PPK. These are moist & chewy with tons of rich flavor from the molasses & pumpkin, & packed full of plump raisins, crunchy walnuts & healthful oats. I can’t stop eating them.That means I finally must be feeling better after several days of illness, lack of sleep, & little appetite - I seriously could devour these by the plateful… I think they’ve brought me back to life!
The recipe makes 4 dozen - plenty to fill your holiday gift plates high. I will most certainly make these again.
All that Thanksgiving recipe research I did yesterday made me hungry, & I was ready to make a scrumptious meal. It was cold & rainy evening, so the obvious choice would’ve been a hearty stew. But I had something else in mind…
I absolutely love risotto for so many reasons! First, it is versatile. You can tailor risotto to the season - asparagus & pea in the spring, tomato & basil in the summer, butternut squash in the fall. Second, it’s fun to make. It may require some TLC, but I enjoy the process of standing over the stove, stirring with one hand & sipping a glass of wine with the other! Next, it’s great as a meatless main dish, but also makes a nice side. Finally, it’s always a crowd pleaser!
So on that damp & dreary Sunday, I put on my slippers, lit some candles, poured some wine & made a fit-for-fall risotto. I was craving rich & warm “Thanksgiving-ish” flavors. I remembered a recipe I saw here, took a quick inventory of pantry items & found that I had pumpkin puree, a few sweet potatoes, ginger, sage & all the other elements needed & my vegan version was born…
“Vegan Pumpkin, Sweet Potato & Sage Risotto”
Serves: 4
- 1 medium sweet potato
- 1 shallot, minced
- 2 Tbsps. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 3 cups organic vegetable broth
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoon fresh sage, minced
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- pinch ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut sweet potato into 3/4” cubes, drizzle with evoo & sprinkle with sea salt. Place on a foil lined baking sheet & roast for about 25-30 minutes, or until very tender.
- Meanwhile, bring vegetable broth to a simmer in a small stockpot. Heat olive oil in a dutch oven or large stock pot over medium-low heat. Add shallot & saute until translucent, but not brown.
- Add rice to the shallot mixture, stir to coat the rice in the oil, then toast rice for about 2 minutes. Add wine & simmer about 2 minutes, until mostly absorbed.
- Add 2 ladles worth of broth, plus sage, salt & pepper, nutmeg, ginger & pumpkin puree. Stir frequently until broth is almost absorbed. Repeat adding 1 ladle at a time until broth is all used. Remove from heat and stir in nutritional yeast, season if needed & serve.
Let it shine as a main dish, or serve in individual ramekins as a satisfying side.
Enjoy!
Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake with Fresh Cranberry Sauce
Yay! The cheesecake I whipped up last night was a huge success! Thank you “New Vegan Table” for this fabulous recipe!
This is by far the best vegan pumpkin cheesecake I’ve ever had! Everyone in the family was fooled - even my brother, who is the pickiest eater I know, gave his approval! So yummy!
I’m currently baking this beauty for tomorrow’s feast!
I’ve been collecting “Wee-be-little” pumpkins from the CSA & am so happy to be able to put them to good use, as this recipe calls for fresh pumpkin puree, not canned! The recipe is from “The New Vegan Table” & can be found here!
I’ll let you know how it turns out!
One of my favorite things to do for Halloween is carve pumpkins! I didn’t get around to getting some this year, as life has been very, very busy! So, this Halloween, rather than carving, I tried cooking with pumpkin!
I had some darling baby sugar pumpkins from the CSA & found this recipe amongst several pumpkin recipes on wholeliving.com. Of course, I left out the anchovies & substituted the honey with agave nectar & the Parmesan with nutritional yeast (that reminds me, I need to order vegan Parmesan!).
By the way…here are great tips for peeling & prepping these little guys!
I love it when an “experiment” comes together as a really great dish! One of my absolute favorite things to make is risotto! I quite enjoy standing over the stove with a glass of wine & stirring, stirring, stirring…
I’d made “Fennel & Onion Risotto” in the past & knew that it was a win! I had more CSA fennel on hand & 1/2 a can of pureed pumpkin left over from my pancake feast, & got to thinkin’…
I did a little googling & found that fennel & pumpkin go well together, so I followed the previous recipe, but added 1/3 cup of canned pumpkin to the dish in the last few minutes of cooking. Then, I sprinkled in a dash of cinnamon & allspice for some Fall warmth, & finished it with fresh sage instead of parsley.
The result…perfectly rich, creamy, comforting & decadent risotto!
Even though it feels like summer again here in sunny San Diego, I’m inspired by all the ”autumnal recipes” & beautiful pumpkins I’ve been seeing everywhere!
I love to make a nice breakfast on the weekends, so I decided to make these moist, fluffy, & tasty pancakes…
Vegan Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 2 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup organic canned pumpkin
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- Combine almond milk with the tsp vinegar in a separate bowl. Give it 5 minutes to curdle (this is like using buttermilk).
- Stir together pumpkin, spices, water & almond milk in mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients & stir until most.
- Let sit 5 minutes to rise & lightly stir again. Let rest 5 more minutes & cook them up. Makes twenty 4” pancakes.
***I sprinkled dried pomegranate seeds on top & served with Earth Balance Spread & Trader Joe’s Organic Maple Agave Syrup!
Enjoy!
