Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins

I made these muffins last Monday. They were Delicious! There is a Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe, but I didn't use it...trying to eat a little healthier. I found these beauties at Pioneer Woman Cooks. Check out here site...she gives great step by step instructions and has amazing pictures.

Muffins:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup Walnuts or Raisins (optional!)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 12 muffin tins.

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until all incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg, and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined. Pour into greased muffin pan—batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to 1/2 full. Sprinkle generous amounts of cinnamon-sugar over the top of each unbaked muffin.
Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. Ice with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/4 cup softened butter
4 ounces cream cheese
1/2 pound powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or place into a large pastry bag with a large star tip and go crazy!

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Pumpkin Pie Bites

I found these sweet bites at Bakerella. She is amazing and I always love her ideas. I even used her recipe for the pumpkin pie...they were delicious and really not that hard.

Roll your premade crust a little thinner than normal. Use a pumpkin cookie cutter or a round cookie cutter and make the stem out of scratches. Cut them out and place them into mini cupcake pans. You can try to fill them all, but make sure the crusts are not touching. I left a couple of empty spaces in the pan.

This is what they look like before you bake them. Make sure you brush the crust that is showing with egg white.

Looks good, now lets finish them off...

The finished product looks great and tastes great.
I think hubby downed more than a handful of these.

Pumpkin Pie Bites

2 refrigerated ready-to roll pie crusts

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter

Optional (for the choc. drizzle)
1/2 cup chocolate morsels
vegetable oil
re-sealable plastic bags

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Use cookie cutter to cut 12 pumpkin shapes from each pie crust. You will need to roll the dough thinner than it comes out of the box.
Press dough shapes into a 24 cup mini muffin tray. (Make 12 at a time, alternating cups to make sure pie crusts don’t overlap each other.)
Apply egg whites from one egg to the top edges of each pie.
Mix cream cheese, sugar, canned pumpkin, remaining 2 eggs, vanilla and pumpkin pie spice together until thoroughly combined.
Spoon mixture into each pumpkin-shaped pie crust. Brush the crust with egg white.
Bake for 12-15 minutes.
Remove pies to cool and repeat with second pie crust. Place the muffin tray in the freezer to cool it quickly for re-use.

Makes 24 pies. Keep refrigerated.

To decorate, melt chocolate in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave on medium. Heat in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted. Add a little vegetable oil to make the chocolate more fluid. Transfer to a re-sealable plastic bag and cut the corner off. Drizzle or draw faces on pies.

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Pumpkin Pie Pops

I was in the mood to be in the kitchen yesterday, so I have lots of things to post. Here are some pumpkin pie pops that I made. If you love pie crust, then you will love these.

First you buy pre made pie crust, roll it out with some flour. I made the crust a little thinner than normal, and next time I might even go a little thinner. Use whatever shape cut out you want and cut as many as you can.

Lay one pumpkin down and put a Popsicle stick onto the crust.

Dollop a little pie filling (whatever filling you LOVE) right in the center. Wait...dont put too much or it will squeeze out of the sides. Then take another pie crust and set it on top.

Then you need to push the sides down with the corner of a Popsicle stick...Like this. Oh, and then take an egg white and brush the top of these so they don't burn. Then Bake them for 12-15 minutes at 375.

Dont they look yummy...(one tip...make sure you push the crust tightly around the stick...otherwise they will be loose when they come out).

Use a little melted chocolate if you would like to dress them up a little. And then enjoy!

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Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

If you haven't already noticed. I love Fall, and the main reason...pumpkin flavored desserts. I have been searching for something similar to this for a long time. I am going to try it this weekend. I will let you know how it goes. I found this one on Baking Bites.

Chocolate Pumpkin Pie
Graham Cracker Crust*:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
1 tbsp sugar

Filling:
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 - 15-oz. can pumpkin puree (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice)
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup milk (low fat is fine)

Preheat oven to 350F.
Combine all crust ingredients into a medium bowl and stir to combine. Press wet crumbs into the bottom and sides of a 9 or 10 inch pie plate. Bake 12-15 minutes, until just beginning to brown at the corners.
Set aside to cool completely before filling.

Turn oven up to 425F.
In a large bowl, beat eggs with a whisk until slightly foamy, about 1 minute. Whisk in all the remaining ingredients, except the milk, and beat until smooth. Then whisk in the milk.
Pour mixture into prepared, cooled pie crust (you can also use a pastry crust or a store-bought pie crust) and bake for 15 minutes at 425F. Reduce the temperature to 350F and bake for about 30 more minutes, until the pie filling jiggles only slightly and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting and refrigerate if storing leftovers.

Serves 8-10.

*While I typically like graham cracker crusts with pumpkin pie (and the one pictured here has a graham crust), this pie is also excellent with a regular crust. Use the instructions for this single crust pie to make and prebake the shell, then fill it with the pumpkin filling and bake as directed above.

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Pumpkin Pie Swirled Brownie Tart

I found this one at Picky Palate. I figured I would try it out today. I didnt try the topping. I thought I had everything for it and I didnt, so I just used whipped cream. I would rate this one an 8. Worth trying.

Pumpkin Pie Swirled Brownie Tart

2 rolls Pillsbury pie crust, thawed (or use your own pie crust recipe)

2 boxes brownie mix (8×8 inch size)

1 Cup pumpkin, from can like Libby’s

1/4 Cup granulated sugar

1/4 Cup evaporated milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 egg beaten

______________

4 oz softened cream cheese

1/2 Cup powdered sugar

1 Tablespoon milk

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Unroll pie dough from packaging and press into 2 tart pans with removable bottoms or 2 pie pans work just fine too. If you are using a pie pan make sure it’s not a deep dish style, the brownie mix will not fill to the top. With a fork, poke holes into the bottom of each crust then bake the pie crusts for 15 minutes then remove from oven. Prepare each brownie batter according to package directions. Pour each of the mixes into your tart or pie pan.

2. In a large bowl beat the pumpkin, sugar, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg and egg until well combined. Divide into 2 equal parts and dollop spoonfuls over each brownie pie. Take a knife and carefully swirl pumpkin pie into brownie batter without over swirling. You should see swirls. Be careful not to run your knife too far down tearing the crust. Bake for 35-38 minutes or until a toothpick comes out nearly clean when poked in the center of the brownie pie. Remove and let cool completely before slicing.

3. In a large bowl mix the cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk and cinnamon until smooth and creamy. Place dollops over each slice of pie. Serve with a tall glass of milk, enjoy!

8 slices

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Pumpkin Walnut Cookies

Pumpkin Walnut Cookies
By: Land O'Lakes

Cookies Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup (8 ounces) canned pumpkin (pumpkin comes in 15 ounce cans; not pumpkin pie filling)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped walnuts

Frosting Ingredients:

2 cups powdered sugar (I recommend sifting this)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat Neufchatel cheese)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice)
Walnut pieces, if desired

Direcetions:

· Heat oven to 350°F. Combine butter, brown sugar and sugar in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; add flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Beat, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Stir in 1 cup walnuts by hand.

· Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool completely. (I let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cookie rack to finish cooling - they are soft and delicate, so be careful.)

· Combine all frosting ingredients except walnut pieces in medium bowl. Beat at low speed, scraping bowl often, until smooth. Frost cooled cookies. Garnish with walnuts, if desired.

Yield: 5 dozen cookies

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