Pumpkin milkshake

Daytime Drinking is something I never do, but I made an exception when I saw a pumpkin pie milkshake on the menu at Holsteins Shakes and Buns.

The other seasonal shakes look good too, but I can’t resist a pumpkin pie shake. Ingredients: pumpkin pie, graham crumble, sapling liquor, cinnamon syrup, and pepitas brittle.

The Sapling Maple Liqueur is 70 proof, but there was no tipsy effect from the alcohol, or a pungent boozy flavor. The milkshake was just delicious. It tasted like really flavorful pumpkin pie blended with ice cream. The graham crumble was more like graham dust. It didn’t require chewing, but added extra texture. The cinnamon swirl was thick with sugar grain, and I loved it.

The pepitas pumpkin brittle was a nice touch – unshelled pumpkin seeds in sweet brittle.

I drank about a fifth of the glass, and totally neglected the extra shake brought in the metal mixing jar. It was so rich.

I still managed to find room for the salt and vinegar flavored popcorn,

 

and my burger. The “Hen House” is topped with bacon and a fried egg. I cannot resist runny egg yolk. Their onion rings are some of the best I’ve ever had – the fried coating actually sticks to the onion, and the batter is flavorful.

I wish I could eat it again right now.

TJ’s pumpkin chocolate mousse cake

This cake went straight in the garbage.

 
The shiny, mirror top looks really nice when the cake is defrosted.

I love the fine crumb of the cake, and the silky-smooth mousse filling. The cake layer tastes a little like chocolate, but mostly like weird cinnamon and mild spices. The mousse tastes bland and sweet, but not enough to offset the spices. There was really no pumpkin flavor to compliment the chocolate spice. It was so bleh and unappetizing that I lost interest after a few bites. The Mister felt the same way, and since neither of us had any interest in eating it again, it went in the trash. Sad trash cake.

 
The still-frozen cake

Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Chocolate Mousse Cake – 1/5

Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Macarons

A few days ago, I had a pumpkin macaron from a little French place, and it was delicious. I wasn’t sure how frozen macarons would add up, but I think the TJ’s macarons are great. Considering that it is easier to go to Trader Joe’s than to find a bakery with good macarons, I think these cookies are worth a try.

Just let the cookies defrost under a paper towel for about 30 minutes before devouring the fluffy little clouds of goodness.

The texture of the cookie is not what I expect from a macaron because it’s missing the chewy meringue texture. The cookie has an egg-shell crust, but the interior is soft and smooth, not slightly chewy. The filling tastes exactly like pumpkin and spice – delicious pumpkin pie. I would say that the pumpkin flavor is stronger than the spice flavor, which I LOVE.

The flavor more than makes up for the lack of perfect texture. Trader Joe’s pumpkin macarons get 5/5 from me, but if meringue texture is what you want, find a bakery.

Pumpkin strudel with pecan streusel

Recently, my ex-friend coffee and I got back together. It wasn't a painful break-up since coffee tends to have a negative impact on my life, but I did miss him when I was eating pastries. Sometimes the flavor of tea just isn't right.

When a friend shared this recipe with me, I was excited to try it for one simple reason - COFFEE. It's called a "streusel", but my Googling tells me that streusel is a topping, and strudel is a pastry. So I guess this is pumpkin strudel with pecan streusel. As is my custom, I followed few of the instructions.

The finished product

I skipped the maple brown sugar glaze and drizzled honey over the finished product instead. I wasn't looking for super-sweet cake - just something to go along with my friend coffee.

The braid in the background, the pecans on the left, and the leftover filling is center

The next thing I changed was the streusel - it's a topping. I didn't like that it went inside the braid, so I sprinkled it over the top before baking (this was a mistake. more on that below)

Close-up of the baked braid - the pecans burned a bit

As you can see, the streusel burned. I should have baked the braid for a bit before adding the topping.

There are lengthy instructions at the source, which you should follow if you decide to make this. My spices are different, and I doubled the butter for the streusel topping, but I made the dough to the letter. Maybe I rolled it too thick, or maybe I just don't like it, but I think it's the wrong type of dough for this type of pastry. It's too pie crust-y for me. The filling was okay, but the pecan streusel was delicious.

Close-up of the finished product

What I appreciated most about the recipe were the details for making the braid. It was remarkably easy and fun, and I want to try something similar again with my own, improvised ingredients and toppings. I definitely think it was a mistake to have the pecans on the outside of the braid. I would try a different pastry, roll it thinner, add more filling, and make the glaze.

The bottom line is that you should try the original recipe - I'm sure it's great! Don't be like me or else you'll end up with an enjoyable-but-disappointing, pastry/pumpkin/nut thing.

Pumpkin spice marshmallows

If you want to make a really easy and fun dessert for guests, and impress them by setting fire to your living room, make indoor s'mores with pumpkin spice marshmallows. They're ridiculously easy, and most people are really impressed that marshmallows can taste good and not like those round tubes of plastic sugar (aka commercially-produced marshmallows) from the supermarket.

There's chocolate hiding under all that melted marshmallow.

Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows

Adapted from Ina Garten's basic marshmallow recipe

Ingredients

3 packages unflavored gelatin

1/2 cold water

1 cup granulated white sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1 Tbs vanilla extract

1/2 c pumpkin puree

2 tsp of your choice of:

-pumpkin pie spice

-all spice

-cardamom

-cinnamon

-ground Saigon cinnamon

-nutmeg

Powdered sugar for dusting

Method

-Combine the gelatin and cold water in the bowl of an electric mixer with a whisk attachment.

-In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the white and brown sugars, corn syrup, and salt, and stir until the sugar dissolves.

-Turn the heat up to high, and cook until a candy thermometer registers 240 degrees

-Remove from heat

-Turn the mixer on low and slowly pour in the sugar syrup. (Be very careful as the mixer can spit hot candy into your face.)

-When the syrup is fully incorporated, turn the mixer up to high and leave it until the mixture is very thick and fluffy

-Add the vanilla, pumpkin puree, and spices; incorporate

-Grease a large casserole dish (I used a 13" x 9" Pyrex baking dish) and then dust it heavily with powdered sugar. It's very important to use a LOT of powdered sugar in the dish because it will be easier to remove the marshmallow.

-Pour the hot mixture into the prepared dish, sprinkle more powdered sugar on top, and leave the dish uncovered overnight to set.

-The next day, use a serrated knife to cut the marshmallows into bite-sized pieces, and roll each marshmallow in powdered sugar.

Serve with graham crackers, chocolate, wooden skewers, and a can of sterno in an oven proof bowl. This bowl will get hot, so you should put the bowl on a plate or trivet.

It sounds like a lot of steps, but I swear it's really easy and satisfying. This recipe is fool-proof as long as you heat the sugar syrup to the right temperature. You might want to put a kitchen towel over the mixer as you whip the syrup into the gelatin. This will stop you from finding marshmallow dots all over your walls.

For my marshmallows I used quite a bit of Saigon cinnamon and cardamom, with less pumpkin pie spice and all spice. Taste the mix before you pour it into the dish to make sure that you like the flavor. The basic recipe can be used to make all kinds of flavored marshmallows.

If you have a lot of leftover 'mallows, you should try dipping some in melted chocolate and then topping them with sprinkles. I did that last year and people were impressed. Sprinkles. That's all it takes.

Pumpkin Popsicles

This is an idea I've been working on for quite a while - there have been a few other styles of pumpkin popsicles, and they were just awful. First, I thought it would be good to have a popsicle with a coconut milk base. That was a horrendous idea. I tried a few other flavors (note: condensed milk does not freeze), but I finally settled on an apple cider base. I've never been a fan of hot apple cider, but I love cold apple cider. I think these work, and I like the soft, applesauce-like texture that the pumpkin adds.

Overly dramatic picture of a popsicle. It makes me laugh.

Pumpkin Popsicles

Ingredients

1/2 c pumpkin puree

2 c apple cider (I used Bolthouse Farms Gala Apple Cider)

1 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoon molasses

3/4 teaspoon Saigon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

scant 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

pinch of ground cloves

Method

Whisk it all together, pour into molds, and freeze until solid.

As I said before, the pumpkin makes the apple juice have a softer, applesauce-like texture. The popsicles aren't overtly pumpkiny, but they definitely taste like frozen autumn. I'll probably make them again, and re-vamp the recipe a little, but this is a good start, and a far cry from the coconut milk popsicles that I made a few weeks ago.

Pumpkin cupcakes with maple-cream cheese frosting

My second and final birthday baking effort in October produced these little babies.



I love them more than I can say. The crumb is delicate, and the peppery hit at the end makes it more spice cake than cupcake. They aren't super sweet, so the icing is a nice touch, but next time I would probably just dust them with powdered sugar and devour them warm.

Even the batter was pretty - so light and fluffy.

Adapted from David Leite, found via Smitten Kitchen

Makes about 20 cupcakes

Cake

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup light brown sugar

2 Tablespoons molasses

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 cups sifted cake flour (I sifted before measuring)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground Saigon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

scant 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 eggs

1 1/4 cup pumpkin (I used fresh - the last of my garden pumpkins)

1/2 cup Trader Joe's Organic Whole Grain Drink, original

1 Tablespoon vanilla (add to "milk")

1 Tablespoon lemon juice (add to "milk")

Frosting

12 ounces cream cheese

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup maple syrup

hefty splash of "Maple Concentrate"

enough powdered sugar to get the right consistency - at least 2 1/2 cups

Method

-beat the sugars, molasses, and the butter together until fluffy

-sift and measure the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper into a bowl

-add the eggs 1 at a time until fully incorporated

-alternate adding the flour and milk mixtures, starting and ending with the flour mixture

-add pumpkin until smooth

-fill the liners

-bake in pre-heated oven at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake

I used a few cupcake baking tins lined with Halloween wrappers and sprayed with Bakers Friend. To get the right amount of batter into each cavity, I used a #20/3T disher like this. (love that thing, and it's leftie-friendly)

For the frosting, mix the wet ingredients, then add the powdered sugar until it is the right consistency. I would cut the frosting recipe in half next time, and I would not use maple syrup at all. I don't like to use things like creepy generic bottles of MAPLE FLAVOR, but as some people in the Smitten Kitchen comments suggested, real maple syrup did not add enough flavor. There was no maple hint after adding 1/4 of syrup, and that stuff is expensive. The bottled Maple Flavor tasted fine and added exactly what I wanted.

To make these cupcakes birthday-appropriate, I piled on a little too much frosting. I'd recommend a light swirl of frosting on top.