So I went to our newly-acquired Trader Joe’s- yay for Trader Joes!- and stocked up on some canned organic pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Now all I need are some recipes. I know there are tons of pumpkin cake recipes, so I’m not really looking for them, unless they are super-special or something. There was a cake recipe that I saw on Facebook a couple of weeks ago that I can’t find now- it was a 9x13 cake that makes itself into 3 layers (there’s also one for a regular, non-pumpkin kind but I can’t even find that right now to see what it’s called) that I’d love to have if you know what I’m talking about. Otherwise, puddings, non-traditional pumpkin pies, soups, whatever you got, I’ll look at it.
PUMPKIN MUFFINS
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 eggs
½ cup oil
1/3 cup water
1-¾ cups flour
1-½ cups granulated sugar
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt
Blend together first four ingredients until smooth. Mix together dry ingredients and stir into the wet mix. Stir in until mix is smooth. Dip muffins in any size, bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until done. They won’t change color hardly at all so keep an eye on them as they near doneness.
Oh, yes, I think I will make some muffins today so that I can eat them for breakfast this week. Thanks!
Thai-ish Pumpkin Soup
1 can (15 oz.) Pumpkin
1 can (11.5 fl. oz.) mango nectar
2 cups vegetable broth OR 2 cups water PLUS 1 1.2 tsp. Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base
3-4 slices galangal root or 1 tsp grated ginger
3-4 2 inch lengths of lemongrass (optional)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Mix all these in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down a bit and add:
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Bring it back up to a boil (about 5 minutes) and then add:
1 small (5ounce) can of coconut milk OR evaporated milk (NOT sweetened condensed milk!)
Turn off the heat remove the galangal and lemongrass 'cause they’re pretty woody and will cut up your mouth. Spoon into bowls and add some more chopped cilantro for garnish, if you like.
It’s also good without the cilantro, if you are a cilantro hater.
I think I used half and half instead of milk or cream because that’s what I had.
I made it gluten free, so it wasn’t leftover or stale bread. I just toasted a loaf of frozen gf bread and used that.
Regarding the soup- I knew I bought lemongrass and coconut milk yesterday for some reason! This looks really good. The country bumpkins I live with might even like it. Mangoes taste like dirty socks to me usually, but I will try them in this.
The bread pudding- you know, bread pudding is one of my specialties and so of course I am going to add this one to my repertoire. Looks delicious.
Yes, fresh mangoes taste like gym socks to me, too, but I like the nectar in stuff. I’ve also made it with apricot nectar I grabbed by mistake, and that’s good, too.
Pumpkin pop tarts
Here’s a basic recipe for making home-made pop tarts. Then just use a standard pumpkin pie filling.
Silken Tofu Pumpkin Pie without dairy, eggs, gluten or sugar is a lot better than it sounds and really healthy.
I use real maple syrup and a walnut crust. And arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch to thicken it. I swear even tofu haters love it.
The flavors were extremely good. If you have any sort of go-to sauce for your bread pudding, I’d suggest using that (if you have a hard sauce or caramel sauce or something you generally like). For some reason, it didn’t taste quite “finished” to me, if that makes sense, without a sauce, even though I’m not generally a fan of frostings/sauces/icings/etc.
Muffins are in the oven (I put a little piece of cream cheese in each one because I’m fattening like that) and I went to the store and got the stuff I lacked for the soup- I’m making that tomorrow with cheese bread and salad.
I’ll have to think about that tofu pie… it could happen. 
I made an awesome pumpkin cheesecake. I used ginger snaps instead of graham crackers for the crust. I could dig up the recipe if your interested.
Oh, pumpkin cheesecake. I had forgotten that.
I used this one: Pumpkin Cheesecake - Joyofbaking.com *Video Recipe*
Yes, I will most likely make a pumpkin cheesecake for Thanksgiving. I made one a few years ago and it flopped- it never did set- but I think sufficient time has passed now that I could attempt it again.
To *greatly *improve your pumpkin pie, don’t use evaporated milk, use half & half. It makes a world of difference.
I mixed up the spices with what I happened to have in the house.
Really really good with fruit, or ginger snaps, or graham crackers or with a spoon. Be careful, it is addictive. I will definitely be making this again.
Oh that looks really good! Thanks for including it, I’m going to have to try it.
I just found out that pumpkin or other related squash can be dehydrated, and reconstitutes to near-fresh consistency. You bake and puree it, and then either use a dehydrator or an oven at 150 degrees until the pumpkin turns to powder, which takes 10 to 15 hours, depending on how much liquid was in it to begin with.
1/2 cup of pumpkin powder reconstitutes to 2 cups of pumpkin puree, and this weekend, I did indeed convert a small butternut squash into concentrate that fit into a yogurt container with a lid. I live in an apartment, so space is a premium. 
Thanks for the tip, needscoffee- I will do that. I’ll probably make that dip, too, it does look good.
WhyNot, I made that soup tonight. I really liked it- lots of different flavors, a mild spiciness, I really thought it was delicious. The bumpkins in my house only had one bowl each, which is unusual, but it worked out well because there’s only one bowl left and I’m planning to eat it before bedtime. I will definitely be making that again, but a double batch.
I’m glad you liked it.