Pumpkin Cheesecake

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Yum.

That's all you have to say about this recipe. It's amazing. It needs to have a monument.

CRUST:
1 package of graham crackers (know how they come 3 to a box? You want 1/3 of a box)
1 stick of butter
2 tablespoons sugar

FILLING:
2 eight ounce packages of SOFTENED cream cheese
2 eggs
3/4 of a LARGE can of pumpkin (don't ask me how many ounces it is, there are 2 sizes, get the big one.)
1 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Cinnamon & Nutmeg to taste

Crush up your graham crackers and add in 1 stick of melted butter and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Mix well. Press into a springform pan OR a pie pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

You need to let your cream cheese sit on the counter for a few hours. Or stick it in the microwave for 45 seconds.... but it doesn't work AS well. So let it sit on the counter. Add it to a bowl, with the sugar, and beat on high until its well mixed. Add in one egg at a time and make sure its incorporated well, then add in the pumpkin. Get over the willies of tasting something with raw egg and taste it to make sure that there is enough pumpkin flavor for you. I made mine with like 20 ounces of pumpkin and it STILL wasn't very strong!

Once you're happy with the pumpkin, add in spices to taste. Pour onto the cooled crust.

Bake in a 325 degree oven. I added in a big dish of water (because the pie pan was too big to fit IN a pan of water). I baked mine for around 50ish minutes. If it still jiggles a TINY bit in the middle, thats okay. It'll set up in the fridge.

Chill as long as you can stand it. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

I made this for our churchs Thanksgiving Brunch recently, and got a request for the recipe, plus, my foodie buddy wanted it as well! I got the inspiration from Bobby Flays throwdown with my fav Ree Drummond!

You will need: (Makes a roasting pan full!)

Bread (I used the ends of loaves, for my recipe I used 2 hamburger buns and around 4-5 slices of bread)
3-5 large eggs (depending on how much bread you use)
Milk
Vanilla
Sugar
Pumpkin

Start off by setting your bread out on the counter a few hours before you want to make it. Overnight works as well. You want your bread to get stale. Now, I didn't have that much time, so I cut it up into chunks and then put it in the oven on 350 for about 20 minutes, stirring regularly. You want it to be dried out and crusty (but not burnt. Mine was burnt. Yeah, I suck at making anything bread related... just a hint: DON'T get all impatient and turn the broiler on and then start washing dishes... bad idea)

If you're using about as much bread as me (and my recipe makes a large roasting pan full) you want to add around 5 eggs. Beat the eggs until they are well scrambled, add a couple of splashes of milk (I really have no idea how much I added. A half of cup maybe?), 2/3 a cup of sugar (or a little more if you like it sweeter), and a good splash of vanilla. Whip until well incorporated. Now you're going to add your pumpkin. I used about 3/4 of a can of pumpkin (15oz can). I didn't find it to be highly pumpkiny. If you want more pumpkin flavor, use the whole can. It'll take a little bit to get it incorporated with the eggs and such. Once it is, mix with the bread. If your bread is not well coated, or soaked with the mixture, then add some more custard liquid (I just beat 1 egg and milk and a teaspoonish of sugar in a separate bowl and then added to the bread mixture).

Put in a greased pan, and bake for 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees. Once the custard is set (its no longer jiggly) its done! You can serve with a caramel sauce (or even a caramel whiskey sauce!) for even more deliciousness!