Gonna make my vegan chocolate cake. 
Thing is, I’m not a vegan… 
I just wanted the challenge of making a good vegan cake after Ms. Malienation mentioned that a vegan cake ordered for the birthday of someone in her office was absolutely horrible. 
BTW, is this typical? Is it indeed difficult to get a good vegan cake? One thought: vegans lack good taste in…taste. My cake is damn good, though; I really made an effort to perfect it. 
Saturday, when I thought we were having Thanksgiving for eight at my brother’s house, I was planning to bring my sweet potatoes with apples and maple syrup (and now that I’ve read this thread, I’m planning to put walnuts and brown sugar on top) and some kind of vegetarian dish that will complement the turkey but still stand on its own as a main dish. I’m still thinking about that one, although I have many candidates.
Now that my cousins called and we’re having sixteen instead, I’m planning to bring a whole lot of the sweet potatoes, whatever veggie thing I come up with (lentils? I often bring a vegetarian posole, but that means we’d have to have bowls on the table, and we won’t have room for bowls now), at least one extra pie, and probably some other vegetable side dish. And I’m stressing over what the hell we’re going to feed them all for the other three days they’re here, and where the kids are all going to sleep now that they’re too old to chuck in the same room together.
OK, Mom’s famous pumpkin bread. I’ll put my editorial comments in purple.
Combine
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1/3 cup water
Separately, sift together
1 and 2/3 cup sifted flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
I sift the mixture twice just to make it really smoooth.
Beat the dry mixture into the oil/egg/pumpkin mixture. Stir in optional 1/2 cup raisins and/or 1/2 cup chopped nuts, or 1/2 cup chocolate chips (I use the mini size) Pour into greased and floured 9x5x3 loaf pan or 20 cupcakes/muffins.
NOTE: This recipe is for one loaf, but I usually double it and use the 15 ounce Libby’s can of pumpkin. It doesn’t suffer from one fewer ounce and this way you can make on plain and one chocolate chip, or one plain and one with walnuts, etc. I fill the first baking pan between 2/3 and 3/4 full and then add extra goodies to the remaining batter and fill the other pan.
Now, the interesting part. The recipe says to cook at 350 for one hour. I will say that it often takes longer than this and that’s OK. If the edges start getting a little brown, put strips of aluminum foil to protect them. But what you are really keeping an eye on is the top. It will split down the middle and the key is to cook it until the batter in the middle is solid. It make take significantly more than an hour and that’s OK. It’s better than having an undercooked middle part.
Once you’re satisfied, remove it to a cooling rack. When it’s touchable, take it out of the pan and let it cool on the rack. Now, my secret is to let it cool down but not completely. While it is still warm, wrap it in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil. It will make the top super-moist and moisten the outside which may have dried out a little in baking. I make it a day or two or even three ahead so it has time to really become what it was meant to be.
Mom’s Pumpkin Cheesecake Set oven for 350
Crust:
1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter melted
Combine all and press onto bottom and one inch up side of 9" springform pan. Bake at 350 6-8 minutes. (I think I remember this browning pretty quickly.) Cool.
Cheesecake:
3 8-oz packages of cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1-3/4 cups (15 or 16 ounce can) solid pack pumpkin
2 eggs
2/3 cup (5 ounce can) evaporated milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1-1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Beat cream cheese, sugar and brown sugar until fluffy.
Beat in pumpkin, eggs and milk.
Add cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg. Beat well.
Bake at 350 55-60 minutes. (I believe a cheesecake is done when you gently shake it and it wobbles but not too much. If I remember right I got some crevasses but they were easily disguised with topping!)
Topping
2 cups (16 ounce/one pint container) sour cream
1/4 - 1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine all. Spread on warm cheesecake. Return to oven 5 minutes. Cool on rack. Removes sides of pan (run a knife around the edge first). Chill at least several hours but better overnight.
I’ll be visiting my sister in Virginia Beach next week. I was told to bring nothing but I’ll surprise them with a case of Ohio wine and a box of Cuban cigars.
Thank you so much, Gigi.
I’m delighted to see that they both call for actual pumpkin, rather than the pie filling, since what I’ve got is one white pumpkin, sitting on the table, waiting to be turned into something delicious. I’ll have more than enough to make both of these, with some left over to freeze for next year.
I forsee some serious cooking on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Cool.
It works, but if you’ll use this, I’d swap fresh, whole herbs for dried (and you can mix and match, though I’d always include sage and thyme). Plus, to speed cooling, you can dissolve the salt in less than one gallon of broth. The heating just helps the dissolving, so do it with only a quart, and it doesn’t need to boil. Finding a place to store the turkey is the hardest part. Refridgeration may not be necessary, but keeping it cool (~40 F) and cooking it thoroughly (~160-165 F) is.
We’re in Alabama so it’s really good that Mom has an extra refrigerator.
Thanks to **Lute Skywatcher ** and **D_Odds ** for the great tips and brining recipe!
This year, Thanksgiving will travel to me instead of the other way around. My parents are coming down for an uncomfortable weekend in Florida. I will make my potentially divine jambalaya and mom will be cooking most else. It’s been a fair number of years since I was able to enjoy the full leftover experience, so I guess it will be quite nice this time.
We’re bringing sweet potato pecan pie, zuchinni chocolate chip loaf and oven dried tomatoes to my sister-in-law’s house. If my husband can find the large cooler we’re also bringing the free ham we got for buying lots of groceries at Shop-Rite. He’s putting a very yummy ginger cherry glaze on that pig.
We’re going to two Thanksgiving dinners, and my mom and I have cut a deal. For Thanksgiving dinner #1, she will do the cooking. I have no idea what her plans are, but I suspect sweet potato pie. For Thanksgiving dinner #2, I will (partly because my cousins keep joking about how they don’t believe I can cook and I want to shut them up for good). I’ll be making sauteed zucchini with walnuts, brown rice and broccoli gratin, and egg nog pumpkin pie.
I suspect she’ll still make the dressing, though, because her whole family raves over her dressing.
I’ve had good luck with vegan stuff, but this is Ithaca, after all. Notably, there is a food co-op here that makes a fantastic, moist vegan chocolate cake. However, I would love your recipe if you would post it or e-mail it to me. I’m not a vegan either, but my best friend is and he’s coming for New Year’s. Thanks.
My Nana and my mom used to make “Crazy Cake”, a chocolate cake that was good to make in a pinch because it doesn’t require eggs or milk. It involves sifting the dries together in the pan and making separate spaces in it for things like vinegar and water.
It sounds bad but comes out amazingly dark and moist.
Here’s a recipe that sounds basically the same.
thanks for the recipe gigi. My Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe is form Good Housekeeping. It is similar except it is only 2 packages cream cheese and 4 eggs.
I usually turn off the oven shortly before the 'cake is done, leaving the cake in the oven until it (the oven) is room temperature - my theory being slower cooling helps reduce cracking.
Brian
I’ll be taking The Purple Stuff (sort of a sweet and sour red cabbage dish) and pumpkin pies.
I’m bringing all the sides to my dad’s. My sister will get the boid in the oven. She’s bringing one side and the pies as well.
Would you mind sharing your recipe on the glazed carrots & parsnips? I’m always looking for a good recipe for them. (I have my email in my profile if you don’t want to post it here.)
Thanks!
A couple of us poor, college kids are going over to a friend’s apartment and cooking a feast for twelve. The wimmenfolk’ll cook, while the boys go play football. At least, for the most part. Some “couples” are just two friends we put together for the sake of evenness.
I most definitely have boy-parts, but I’ll be cooking candied yams and macaroni and cheese. My platonic life-partner will be sent in my stead. She’s more agressive than I am anyway.
I’ve been invited to a fairly upper-class place for Thanksgiving. I’d like to bring a bottle of wine, but here in the “renovated” South I’m limited to Food Lion for my purchase. They’re be about 12 at the dinner. All drinkers of alcohol.
Suggestions?