So, you’re lucky enough to have somewhere to go for Thanksgiving (if you don’t, there are options). Show your appreciation by NOT showing up empty handed. Here are some great things to make that are most definitely not pumpkin pie, but sure to be appreciated. They also travel very easily! Just like LeBron!
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies!
These delicious little cake discs are a cinch to prepare. No mixer needed. The ingredients are super simple and they make a fine carrier for a spiced and spiked cream cheese filling. Use a small ice cream scooper to keep the size as uniform as possible. This recipe yields about 16 whoopie pies.
Ingredients:
Cookie Cakes
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin (not pie filling)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling:
- 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon bourbon
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. No need to spray or grease.
- Combine flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices in a bowl and whisk to combine.
- In another bowl, mix together together sugar, oil, pumpkin, egg, and vanilla until well combined. Then mix in the flour mixture. It should have the consistency of a thick cake batter. Don’t mix it too much or you’ll develop the gluten and make them tough.
- Using a one or two-ounce ice cream scoop or large spoon, drop a scoop’s worth of batter or two tablespoons of batter onto a lined baking sheet to form one mound. Position them a few inches apart so they have some room to spread and the air to flow around
- Bake until springy to the touch, 12 to 18 minutes. Cool completely before filling.
- Fill a pastry or large ziplock bag with the filling and place about a tablespoon’s worth to make the sandwich.
Pumpkin Mini Cheesecakes!
Little baby pumpkin cheesecake
Serving dessert in small individual servings is a great way to sneakily introduce some portion control into Thanksgiving. These keep really well in the fridge, too. Extra credit if you make some frosting and pipe a tiny pumpkin on top. This recipe makes 12 in a mini-cheesecake pan or 10 in a standard cupcake tin.
Ingredients:
- 20 gingersnap cookies
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin spice
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Spray mini cheesecake pan (or a cupcake tin) with cooking spray or line with cupcake papers.
- Pulse cookies in a food processor until finely ground, add the melted butter and mix in. Press into muffin tins firmly and bake for five minutes. No food processor? Crush them up in a ziplock bag with a rolling pin or bottle of wine and then add melted butter to mix.
- Beat cream cheese and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy; NO LUMPS! Add in pumpkin, sour cream and salt, scraping bowl frequently. Once it’s homogenous, add egg, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg; beat until well blended.
- Divide mixture evenly into crust-lined cups.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until set; no jiggling. Cool completely in pan, about 30 minutes. Chill at least two hours to fully set.
Note: If you would like more of an Italian-style cheesecake, replace half of the cream cheese with ricotta. If they sink in the middle, use that crevice to add some cranberry sauce (the bitter cranberries cut all the creaminess nicely) or pipe a dollop of whipped cream on top.
Lakota Plum Cake!
Want more of a conversation piece? These cakes are based on a Lakota Indian recipe. Use canned plums right now or buy them fresh in the summer. They are super high in fiber, so Thanksgiving Dinner will move right along… you’ll be ready for turkey sandwiches in an hour or so!
I have to be honest, these get a wee bit dry, but I love love love the fun hazelnut crunch and earthy maple/honey sweetener. So, serve them warm with some vanilla ice cream on top and they will ‘self sauce.’ They are also quite delicious with a little rum poured on top and then you can ‘self sauce.’ Yields about 16 muffins.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup hot water or juice from the plums
- 1 (16 ounce) can plums, pitted
- 1 cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 4 cups sifted all purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup honey
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- Instructions:
Directions:
BONUS: The “I just need a hostess gift, we will all be in a food coma before dessert”
Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate Mix!
This mix is super easy to put together and something your hosts can lovingly gaze at after the turkey is long gone (you’re not the turkey in this scenario, promise). This is so cute you’ll start sneezing adorably! Honestly, the ingredients are very powdery and you’ll sneeze — aim accordingly.
Use old glass pasta sauce jars. Did you inherit a collection of jars from your crazy Great Uncle H. Hughes? Don’t use those. Just, no. Go get some nice jars at Sur la Table or Michael’s and hand-write the instructions. Pray they don’t analyze your handwriting and stop taking your calls.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups nonfat dry milk powder (Carnation)
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
Directions:
Mix it all together and funnel or scoop into your jars. Top them off with mini marshmallows. Be sure to note on the jar that 1/4 cup of mix per Cup of Hot Chocolate. I like to use Droste cocoa because the packaging makes me feel fancy and it’s pretty great.
Never underestimate the gifting of beautifully packaged food items!
