November: Stuffing and Pumpkin Dessert Cook-Off!

What a night we had a Kathy’s last night! We all left thoroughly edified, if not a little sick to our stomachs from all of the rich and glorious tributes to the autumn harvest, aka, sweet pumpkin treats!

 

But first, let’s crown our first ever Coal Creek Cook-Off Champion, Allison Bird, who won “Best Overall Recipe” with her pumpkin crumble. Here she is holding the gilded trophy of culinary superiority (thanks Kara for all the smelting, spraying and gluing).

 

And here is Allison’s prize-winning recipe--

Pumpkin Crumble

Crust:

1 yellow cake mix (reserve 1 cup for topping)

1/2 cup soft margarine

1 egg (beaten)

Mix together & press (with floured finger tips) into 9x13 cake pan

Filling:

1 29oz can pumpkin (do not use fresh pumpkin)

2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup "packed" brown sugar

3 eggs (beaten)

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 tsp all-spice

Combine ingredients and mix well;  pour over crust

Topping:

1 cup reserved cake mix

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup soft margarine

Mix together & sprinkle over top of filling (mixture will resemble course crumbs).

Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts -- sprinkle over topping.

Bake 350 degrees for 1 hour (test by inserting knife -- knife should come out clean).

Best served warm with a dollop of whipped cream or scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

 

But Allison wasn’t the only winner—Sarah Gray won “Best Stuffing Recipe” with

Nielson Family Stuffing

 

16 c bread crumbs (I used a mix of whole grain bread, artisan ciabatta, and homemade cornbread; I used my food processor to turn it all into crumbs)
3 12-oz rolls of sausage
3 cubes butter
1 1/2 c chopped onion
3 c chopped celery
1 1/2 tsp sage
pepper to taste
1-1 1/2 c chicken stock
Brown sausage and drain fat. Put aside to cool. Sauté onions and celery in butter until tender. Place vegetable/butter sauté in a large bowl. Add bread crumbs and seasonings to the vegetables and mix together with a light hand. Add the sausage along with enough stock to moisten the stuffing (do not add too much liquid). Put stuffing in bread pans or other baking dish, cover with aluminum foil, and refrigerate. Bake stuffing at 325 for 30 minutes.

 

April Ulrich won “Best Pumpkin Dessert Recipe” with

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes

 

Cake:

1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix

1 egg

8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

8 tablespoons butter, melted

1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh maple whipped cream:

1 1/4 cups heavy cream, very cold 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out and reserved 2 tablespoons Grade B maple syrup 1 tablespoon Cinnamon

Combine the cream, vanilla seeds, cinnamon and maple syrup to taste, in a large chilled bowl, and whip until soft peaks form.

 

And Gabby Gorden won “Most Visually Appealing” with her

Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle (sorry, Gabby, that I didn’t get a more representative picture)

 

And the there were loads of other great recipes—it was so hard to pick a winner! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

 

Pumpkin Muffins

 

 

Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Oat Bars

 

 

Pecan Stuffing

 

Traditional Pumpkin Pie

 

 

Frosted Pumpkin Cake

 

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Pecan Crust

 

Crust:

1/2 c melted butter
1/4 C oats
1 1/2-2 C coarsely chopped pecans
3 Tbs brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Filling:

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour (or cornstarch)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For crust:

Pulse nuts, oats and spices in food processoe. Add melted butter. Press down flat into a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.

For filling:

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and the spices. Add flour and vanilla. Beat together until well combined.

Pour into crust. Spread out evenly and place oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.

Pumpkin Pecan Pie

 

PUMPKIN LAYER

2 eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup canned pumpkin

2/3 cup milk

1 unbaked deep-dish pastry shell (9 inches)

PECAN LAYER:

2 eggs

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons molasses

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon Spice Islands®, All Natural, No Corn Syrup Added, Pure Vanilla Extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup pecan halves

Directions

In a bowl, beat eggs, sugars, flour, pie spice and salt until smooth. Mix in pumpkin. Gradually beat in milk. Pour into pastry shell.

Bake at 425° for 10 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350° and bake 15 minutes longer.

For pecan topping, beat eggs in a bowl until foamy. Add corn syrup, brown sugar, molasses, flour, vanilla and salt. Pour over filling. Sprinkle with chopped pecans; cover with pecan halves.

Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until set. Cool completely. Store in the refrigerator. 

And here are some candid shots from our fun evening. See you at the cookie exchange and Relief Society Christmas Activity on Dec. 1 at Sherrill William’s house.