Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Maple Bourbon Brown Sugar Sauce

'Tis the season ....

No, not THAT season yet. (Soon. Frighteningly soon. But not just yet.)

'Tis the season for pumpkin. And for warming, comforting foods as we watch the leaves fall and the winds blow them around. And for starting to consider holiday meals, which absolutely must include dessert.

Because even though we've stuffed ourselves more fully than the Thanksgiving turkey, dessert is mandatory, right? Just one more bite ... and then another, and another.

We can't resist. We are weak. We are helpless creatures, caught in the tractor beam that draws us to all the fat, all the sugar, all the temptation, all the deliciousness.

And I'm here to play matchmaker, introducing you to the new love of your life. You'll dream about the creaminess, the hint of spiciness, the light crunchiness of the sugary topping. Your heart will start fluttering ... or is that just the cholesterol clogging up your arteries?

You can thank me once you wake up from your food coma ... :)


Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Maple Bourbon Brown Sugar Sauce

Pudding:
3 eggs
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups 2% milk
1 teaspoon + 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup pumpkin puree
4 large day-old croissants, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup brown sugar

Sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon bourbon
1 tablespoon corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup half-and-half

Make pudding: Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9-by-13 inch baking dish.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, powdered sugar, sugar, vanilla, milk, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and pumpkin puree. Stir in croissant cubes and mix well; let rest 5 minutes. Pour mixture into prepared pan.

Combine remaining 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon with brown sugar; sprinkle over pudding.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until pudding is puffy and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Make sauce: Place butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, bourbon, corn syrup, and vanilla into a small saucepan and melt together over medium-high heat. Whisk in half-and-half and bring to a boil. Cook, undisturbed, for 1 minute. Let cool 10 minutes; sauce will thicken.

Cut pudding into squares and serve with ice cream or whipped cream, along with the sauce.

Yield: 8 generous or 12 moderate servings.

Pumpkin Polenta with Sausage, Peppers, and Greens

After indulging in a lot of junk and convenience food lately, I was feeling the need to eat better, to get back to the way I prefer to eat.

Craig would eat burritos or pizza every night of the week; throw in some chicken fried rice for variety, and also his daily bagel, and you've pretty much got his eating regimen. He also likes burgers. He eats like a college kid, which I can personally vouch for 'cause I've got one of them, too. Even though they're both capable of branching out and are both, truth be told, willing to try new things, Jeremy and Craig would happily eat only three foods for the rest of their lives.

I'm not like that. I have a very low boredom quotient, so I almost never want to see the same thing again. Even if I go to a favorite restaurant, I try new dishes. And as much as I like sweets and chips and other stuff I shouldn't eat - and I completely take responsibility for baking and for buying the naughty items at the grocery store! - I also really love simple but sophisticated dishes with spices, vegetables, and other nice things.

And so, for an evening when I was eating and working alone, I had a vision of what I wanted for dinner. It started with the notion of pumpkin, which is ubiquitous now; but I wanted to go beyond pumpkin muffins and such. So I thought of stirring it into polenta, a.k.a. cornmeal mush. (Everything sounds better in Italian!)

To top this warm comfort food, I wanted lots of vegetables - the stuff that Jeremy and Craig are none too keen on. Neither will eat peppers, one will eat only white mushrooms, neither is keen on greens, one can't eat spicy food or have alcohol ... groan. But they weren't having dinner with me and imposing their little quirks! I threw it all into the mix!!!

I'd looked forward to this meal all day long while I was at work. I turned on the tunes and danced a bit as I chopped and stirred, since I had the house to myself. The kitchen smelled amazing as everything bubbled and simmered, and then it was ready. I tasted the dish and it was everything I'd hoped for - comforting, warm, and elegant. Full of nutrition and color and flavor.

A perfect dinner for fall!


Pumpkin Polenta with Sausage, Peppers, and Greens

Sausage:
2 links hot Italian sausage
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, cut into 1" pieces
1 small red pepper, seeded, cored, cut into 1" pieces
8 ounces Baby Bella mushrooms, thickly sliced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
generous pinch red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon garlic paste
1/2 cup white wine
3 cups chopped kale
1 cup baby spinach leaves
freshly grated Parmesan, for serving

Polenta:
1-1/2 cups water
1/2 cup white wine
generous pinch of kosher salt
2/3 cup finely ground yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup pumpkin purée

In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage on all sides; set aside.

Add the oil to the skillet, then add the onion and red pepper; sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softening and starting to caramelize. Add the mushrooms and the salt; sauté for 2 minutes. Add the garlic paste and stir to coat the vegetables. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add the kale and the spinach, cooking for 5 minutes until most of the liquid has cooked off.

In a medium saucepan, bring the water and the wine to a boil with the salt. Turn heat down to medium-low, then slowly whisk in the cornmeal; cook for 1 minute, until thick. Whisk in the pumpkin.

To serve, place a generous dollop of polenta onto a plate, then top with the sausage mixture; sprinkle with Parmesan.

Serves 2 generously.

Boo! It's Almost Hallowe'en!

Tomorrow is Hallowe'en, a feast and festival of candy. Whatever its pagan origins, it has evolved into merely a sugar rush and a chance to play dress-up. Have some fun with your food, even if - like me - you have no little ones to take Trick or Treating or even many kids in the neighborhood anymore to ring your doorbell. It's still a holiday, and you know we always celebrate holidays - religious, secular, literary, whatever! - here ... :)


Candy Corn Cake

Jack-o'-Lantern Pizza

Hallowe'en Dipped Marshmallows

Sweet 'n' Salty Caramel Corn Mix

Perfect Pumpkin Bread

Butterscotch Pumpkin Pudding

Jack-o'-Lantern Cheeseburgers

National Cake Day + A Whole Foods Giveaway

It's National Cake Day - gotta love it!

You've also gotta love today's giveaway! Many thanks to Whole Foods Market for its generous offer of a $25 gift card, so that one lucky reader can try some of their new products!!!

"This month, Whole Foods Market is debuting more than 30 NEW frozen foods under our Whole Foods Market™ line (appetizers, entrees and desserts – oh my!). With gourmet flavors at value prices, these items offer easy dinner and entertaining solutions -- just in time for the holiday madness ....

Be prepared to change the way you think about frozen foods. Taking cues from cuisines around the world, Whole Foods Market’s offerings include everything from Tandoori Chicken Samosas and Vegetable Egg Rolls to Wood-Fired Buffalo Mozzarella Pizza with Cherry Tomatoes and Gnocchi alla Sorrentina. We have decadent dessert options, too, like Chocolate Lava Cakes and Caramelized Panna Cotta for a sweet finish to every meal.

While we all love to cook and prep homemade meals, it’s nice to have tasty alternatives for those nights when you just want to kick back and relax without the greasy takeout or the restaurant check. Plus, as with all Whole Foods Market products, you’ll find absolutely no artificial flavors, bleached flours, hydrogenated fats or high-fructose corn syrup in these new products. In short -- your personal chef has arrived!"

So, who's ready to win???

Here are the terms:

- Leave a comment below telling me what your favorite kind of cake is and how you intend to celebrate today's holiday. Only one comment, please; extras won't count.

- Be sure to provide your email address in the comment, so I can let you know if you're the winner.

- The giveaway begins as soon as this post goes up, and will end on Monday, December 3 at 9 a.m. EST. I'll use Random.org to pick a winner, then send an email to let you know you've won.

- If I don't hear from the winner by 9 a.m. EST on Tuesday, December 4, I'll go back to Random.org to pick a new winner.

- Once the winner has been established, I'll need to get a mailing address to send you the gift card. Then you can shop your little heart out!

I think that's it - I don't have either the time or the inclination to see if folks are sacrificing their firstborn on Twitter or Facebook, so giveaways are always simple here.

Whether you use your gift card to buy the new frozen items or to buy the ingredients to make this lovely cake (which was a huge hit at my Thanksgiving dinner), free food is always welcome!

Pumpkin Streusel Cake
(adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe)

Remember what Julia Child once said: "A party without cake is really just a meeting."

Cake:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2-1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9"-square baking pan.

In a large bowl, combine butter, sugar, and brown sugar; stir in eggs and pumpkin. Mix in baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and flour. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Streusel:
1 packet Maple & Brown Sugar instant oatmeal
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, melted

Combine oatmeal, flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon; pour butter over everything and stir to mix thoroughly. Sprinkle streusel evenly over cake batter.

Bake cake for 45 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely.

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons apple cider

Whisk together confectioners' sugar and cider; drizzle glaze over cooled cake and let set.

Makes 9 generous servings or 12 more reasonably sized ones.

Orange-Glazed Pumpkin Loaf Cake

Winter has arrived in Ann Arbor, both officially and weather-wise.  That means it's prime season for cocoa or tea, something to help us all stay warm.  And who wouldn't want a piece of cake to go along with that?

This pumpkin loaf cake is so easy to make, and offers a great way to disguise the health benefits of whole wheat flour.  A sweet treat with some redeeming nutritional value - how fabulous is that?  And the orange glaze is so vividly flavorful - a perfect complement to the cake.

You could easily add some dates and/or some walnuts to the batter, if you'd like.  Sometimes I want a bread or a cookie or ice cream with lots of goodies stirred in, but sometimes simplicity rules the day.  The day I baked this cake, I was in more of a minimalist mood.

No matter how you serve it, or what you serve it with, just be sure to try this.  It's really lovely!


Orange-Glazed Pumpkin Loaf Cake

Cake:
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup light-flavored oil
1 cup pumpkin puree
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1-1/3 cups whole wheat flour

Glaze:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease an 8"x4" glass loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine butter, oil, pumpkin, brown sugar, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt.  Stir in the flour, and pour batter into the prepared pan.  Bake for 45-50 minutes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.  Let the cake rest for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool completely on a rack.

In a small bowl, combine the glaze ingredients; pour over the cake and spread glaze to the edges, letting it drip down the sides.  Let glaze set before cutting.

Makes 1 cake.

Black Bean 'n' Beer Soup

It's cold out, so hot soup makes a perfect light lunch or dinner.

This version is a different spin on traditional black bean soup. Sure, it contains the usual ingredients like beans and salsa. But it's thickened with pumpkin, adding flavor, color and nutrition. It also benefits from the addition of beer, rather than using just only plain ol' water.

This is vegan, but is substantial enough to satisfy even those who think they'll miss having some meat (i.e.: salt pork or bacon) in their bean soup. Served with some good crusty bread, you've got an ideal comfort food for a chilly day.

Black Bean 'n' Beer Soup

2 tablespoons oil
1 small onion, chopped fine
1/2 small yellow pepper, chopped fine
2/3 cup salsa
1-1/2 cups beer
1 cup water
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained, rinsed
juice of 1 lime
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablepoon sugar
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and pepper; cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened. Add the salsa, beer, water, beans, lime juice and salt; bring to a boil, then cook over low heat for 15 minutes.

Whisk in the sugar and the pumpkin; continue cooking for 15 more minutes. Stir in the cilantro, then serve hot.

Serves 6.

Butterscotch Pumpkin Pudding

After happily eating my way through Ypsilanti a few weeks ago at the Grub Crawl, I wanted to make a pudding of my own that was reminiscent of the spicy, creamy sample offered at the Corner Brewery.

Homemade pudding takes virtually no effort to make, just a few minutes of standing while stirring it on the stovetop. The hardest part of the process is simply waiting for the pudding to chill and set before you can eat it!

This is an exceptionally perfect dessert for Fall, and would make a lovely offering at Thanksgiving, too, if you're thinking that far ahead; simply put the entire batch into a decorative bowl and let it chill completely, then people can help themselves to individual servings.

Butterscotch Pumpkin Pudding

2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup half-and-half
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/3 cup pumpkin puree

In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, sugar and salt; add water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking to remove lumps. When the mixture becomes thick and translucent, turn heat down to medium-low.

Combine half-and-half and egg; add slowly, whisking constantly. Stir in vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg; cook, stirring constantly, for 5-7 minutes until thickened. Stir in butterscotch chips until melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in pumpkin.

Divide pudding among 4 dessert glasses, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 4 hours to set.

Serve chilled, topped with whipped cream.

Makes 4 servings.

Harvest Stew

I love my crockpots! I only have two now - Mama Bear and Baby Bear, as I call them. I gave the enormous Papa Bear one away to someone in need. But the ones I have left are perfect for making dinner and for keeping dips warm, respectively.

It takes almost no effort to put together the ingredients when using a crockpot, and then to let your dinner simmer away - without the need for monitoring - so that it can be ready for your return home after a long day.

This stew is a perfect way to eat something warm and nutritious on a chilly Fall day while also celebrating the bounty of the harvest; it's a stellar example of seasonal cuisine, featuring pumpkin, sweet potato and apple cider.

This hearty dish is vegan - yes, vegan! - if you use the soy chorizo noted in the recipe; carnivores are welcome to substitute a spicier treyf ([TRAYF] = not kosher) pork variety of the sausage, though.

Either way, it's a great meal to come home to. The house smells amazing, and your dinner will warm your soul.

Harvest Stew

2 tablespoons oil
1 12-ounce package Trader Joe's soy chorizo
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 cup corn
1 15-ounce can pureed pumpkin
1 sweet potato, peeled, cut into 3/4" dice
1 15-ounce hot chili beans, undrained
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons coriander
1 tablespoon cumin seed
1 cup Uncle Ben's Whole Grain Brown and Wild Rice Medley
1 32-ounce container Imagine creamy sweet potato soup
1/2 cup apple cider
generous splashes of cayenne pepper sauce

Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat; add the chorizo and saute for 5 minutes; place in a 6-8 quart crockpot.

In the same skillet, saute the onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and seasoned salt until the vegetables are softened; add to the crockpot.

Add the corn to the same skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is lightly toasted and some of the kernels are golden; add to the crockpot.

Add the remaining ingredients to the crockpot. Cook on "low" for at least 8-10 hours, and serve hot.

Makes 10-12 servings.

Perfect Pumpkin Bread

Now that Fall has clearly arrived and Hallowe'en is imminent, I was in the mood for pumpkin bread. I had some leftover caramel sauce from Tom's birthday cake, so I thought: "When I make the pumpkin bread, I should make a caramel glaze for it." I found some time this past weekend to do some baking. And there you have it -- Sunday morning serendipity.

Except that I was out of my favorite white whole wheat flour, which doesn't particularly affect the taste of baked goods but does improve the nutrition quotient. But that was not going to deter me -- I was already going to be using butter, sugar and caramel sauce; there was little redeeming health value already, so why worry???

You'll notice, too, that I used Coffee-mate in the glaze. I could buy a gallon of milk every single day of my life, and I still wouldn't have any milk available when I want it. 19-year-old males go through it at a pretty good pace. It is incredibly frustrating, especially when you want a bowl of cereal, to find no milk in the house; but I have learned to adapt when I'm baking, 'cause that's the kinda girl I am.

So here is a lovely, moist, quick bread for a weekend, for a party, to go with coffee, whatever you can think of. Easy to make -- have I ever given such simple instructions before??? -- and delicious to eat. Enjoy!!!

Pumpkin Bread with Caramel Glaze

Bread:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup pumpkin
2 eggs
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped fine
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1-1/2 cups unbleached white flour
3/4 cup sugar

Glaze:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons caramel sauce for ice cream
1 tablespoon vanilla caramel Coffee-mate

Make the bread: Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8"x4" glass loaf pan.

In a large bowl, stir together the wet ingredients; add the dry ingredients, and mix well. Pour batter into the loaf pan.

Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove bread from pan and let cool until lukewarm on a cooling rack.

Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix well. Spoon over the bread, spreading the glaze over the top of the loaf and letting some of the glaze drip down the sides. Let cool completely, then slice and serve.

Music Monday: The Disco Biscuits

Well, it's Music Monday. I haven't participated in this one for awhile, so that's as good a reason as any to do it again ... variety, ye olde spice of life. Okay, that's one tangential food reference; the title of this post -- The Disco Biscuits, which is the name of the group being featured here today -- is another. I think that's about it. It's not much, but it's all I've got!

I've been working extra hours of late, during our busiest season at work; I also went in yesterday, in addition to the standard M-F 9-5, and will work each of the following Sundays for the next few weeks. "Summer vacation" is an illusion, something that other people get to experience.

So I need diversion that isn't particularly taxing to my already increasingly-feeble brain. I need the kind of song that doesn't challenge me too much, but which is just kinda fun for the drive home. Eh, voila! Here it is.

This video isn't family fare, though it isn't exactly sleazy ... well, the tattooed chickie is! The visuals are actually kinda boring. It's the song, though, that keeps dancing (pun intended) in my brain ... this one and, inexplicably, Adam Lambert's "If I Had You." Don't ask -- I have no answers.

I am rather noted for my odd and eclectic musical tastes: techno, New Wave, gospel, French chansons, cheesey songs from the 70s (a particular favorite, and another food reference!), Italian opera, ethereal/New Age, Broadway tunes, old standards ... if it's new and interesting, I'm there; and if it's old and classic I'm there. But of late, the more mindless and purely entertaining a song is, the more likely it is that I'm listening to it.

So, because the group's name involves food and because the song is my current earworm, here is my Monday morning offering: "On Time" by The Disco Biscuits.




And while you're listening to the song, why not bake up a batch of my Spiced Pumpkin Biscuits??? These were a finalist in the "Best Bread in Michigan" contest sponsored by Zehnder's of Frankenmuth, Michigan Living Magazine and the Michigan Sugar Company in 2006. They're easy to make, nutritious, and a gorgeous orange color. What more can I say? Great to accompany a summer salad, perfect for any occasion during Fall, ideal for Thanksgiving ... enjoy!

Spiced Pumpkin Biscuits

3 C whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 T candied ginger, finely minced
12 T Earth Balance butter substitute
1 container (6 oz.) vanilla soy yogurt
2/3 C pumpkin, solid packed
1/4 C brown sugar

1 T vanilla soy milk

Preheat oven to 425F. Grease a cookie sheet; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger. Add Earth Balance and mix flour with your fingers until mixture is well combined and looks mealy. Stir in pumpkin and yogurt, and turn dough onto a well floured countertop. Knead dough a few times, just to combine and to keep it from being sticky.

Roll out to 1/2 inch thick, use a 2-inch biscuit cutter to cut out 15 biscuits (re-roll if necessary). Place biscuits onto cookie sheet in three rows, touching each other. Brush tops of biscuits with soy milk, and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until golden on top and set.

Yield - 15 biscuits.