Recipe: Pumpkin Hummus

Pumpkin Hummus

Ingredients

1 (15 oz) can Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)

3/4 c. Pumpkin Puree

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. ground Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Cumin

1/4 tsp. ground Ancho Chili Pepper

1 tsp. (or one large clove) minced Garlic

2 tbsp. Lemon Juice (or juice from one lemon)

1/4 c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 c. Water

** 1/4 c. Smoky Pumpkin Seeds, ground

So why pumpkin hummus? WHY NOT PUMPKIN HUMMUS?!

1) Jenn loves everything pumpkin.

2) Jenn wants autumn to be ALL THE TIME

3) Jenn's been dying to make her own hummus from scratch!

So how did I make it?

Throw all of the above into a blender and cross your fingers. 

Okay... So I started with this recipe here from "Cooking with Trader Joe's." As it happened, I had just gotten back from a trip to TJ's! So when I realized that I didn't have any lemons or tahini paste... I said, Fuck it! And made it anyway.

While I found sesame seeds in my cupboard to make tahini from scratch with, I knew I had some Smokey Pumpkin Seeds handy from NatureBox. (Which is healthy snack food service that's totally worth it! Click here to check it out.) So, I used a makeshift mortar and pestle--terrible idea--and ground them down as fine as my patience would last. Into the blender the went!

For my first batch o' hummus, it's pretty damn good! Next time, (or tomorrow...), I will absolutely be amping up the spices. But for now, it's a super healthy dip where the pumpkin flavor totally shines through! I'll call it a success.

Yield: about 2 1/2 cups 

NUTRITION: Serving size: 1oz (2 tbs); Calories: 57; Total Fat: 3.7g; Saturated Fat: 0.5g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 130.8mg; Potassium: 1.8mg; Total Carbs: 4.9g; Fiber: 1.5g; Sugars: 0.3g; Protein: 1.6g; Vitamin A: 22.6%; Vitamin C: 0.3%; Calcium: 0.8%; Iron: 1.1%

% based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Pumpkin Banana Nut Bread

Here in the U.S., it's Thanksgiving Week! Which means lots and lots of shopping.

For food, of course! Making Jenn a very hungry girl for her favorite fall flavors. So today I decided to cook up a recipe I came across on Pinterest. But like always, I was out of many ingredients--some I expected and some I did not--and I tend to improvise to my own tastes anyway.

Below, you'll find my version of the recipe. (Hint: it turned out fantastic!)

Pumpkin Banana Nut Bread

Based on this recipe from Vegan Yack Attack

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup Pumpkin Puree
•    3/4 cup mashed Banana (about 2 small bananas worth)
•    3/4 cup Sugar
• 2 tablespoons Ground Flax Seed
• 6 tablespoons warm Water
• 3 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
• 1 tablespoon (Blackstrap) Molasses 
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/2 cup White Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
   
• 1/4 cup Quick Oats
• About 2 tablespoons (20g) chopped Walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
    
2. Begin by adding the ground flax seed to the warm water. Mix and let sit. (This will act as your egg substitute. Or so I'm told.)
    
3. In a large bowl, combine your wet ingredients: pumpkin puree, banana, sugar, oil, molasses and vanilla. Add in your goopy flax seed concoction and mix thoroughly.
    
4. In a separate bowl, combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. If you're like me, you'll realize at this point that you only have 3/4 cup worth of wheat flour left and have to fulfill the remaining 3/4 cup of flour with white. No biggie. Carry on!
    
5. Add the dry mixture to the wet. Stir until you have a nice chunky, even brownish/orangish bowl of deliciousness. I highly endorse licking the bowl clean after this next step.
    
6. Divide the batter between two loaf pans. Personally, I could only find one... So I used two small oval cake pans instead.
    
7. In a small bowl, combine the oats and walnuts. Divide into two and sprinkle over the batter.
    
8. Bake for about 50 minutes.
    
9. Remove pans from oven and cool on rack. Once the pans are cool to touch, remove the bread. Enjoy!

You won't end up with a traditional loaf using this recipe; it will be on the flatter side. But it's healthy! Per 16 servings (at about 58g per serving) the nutrition facts are as follows:

PER SERVING: 140 Calories; Total Fat: 4.2g (Saturated: .5g, Polyunsaturated: 2.3g, Monounsaturated: .7g, Trans: 0); Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 117.6mg; Potassium: 131.4mg; Total Carbs: 24.6g (Dietary Fiber: 3.4g, Sugars: 12.4g); Protein: 2.6g.

Vitamin A: 65.8%  Vitamin C: 2.1%  Calcium: 2.3%  Iron: 6.5%

I'm thinking this pretty little thing is good enough to gift!

Long Trail Pumpkin Ales: a long trip and a short sip later...

Two weeks ago, I visited my beautiful cousin in Rutland, VT for her wedding. Instead of taking the awfully boring ride back on the train, I met up with boyfriend and we made a mini road trip out of the return home.

Our first stop--hardly half an hour from where I had stayed--was Long Trail Brewery.

Similar to Iron Hill Brewery, which is local to me, Long Trail is both a brewing company and a restaurant. So we stayed for lunch--and it was probably the best decision of the whole trip.

The food was OUTSTANDING! I started with their signature Long Trail Cheddar Ale Soup followed by the Long Trail Bratwurst. (No, not everything on the menu starts with "Long Trail.") I've had PA Dutch sleeved meat--I've even had my share in Germany--but this was the best. To be completely fair, my taste palate has greatly expanded since my previous sleeved meat tastings... Nonetheless, the "cooked onions & maple mustard" are surely what set it over the top.

To accompany my meal, I ordered a pint of Long Trail's Imperial Pumpkin from their Brewmaster Series of ales.

Click here to learn more about Imperial Pumpkin

The Imperial Pumpkin is an English Strong Ale with an ABV of 8%. While not strong on pumpkin flavor, I really enjoyed this beer! It had all the right spices and tipped more towards the malty end rather than hoppy. According to Long Trail's site, Imperial Pumpkin was brewed with 2-Row, Wheat, Caramel 80L, and Caramunich malts with Nugget, Mt. Hood and Willamette hops. (I feel like I'm in Pineapple Express...) Their description:

Long Trail Imperial Pumpkin Ale is the latest introduction  to the Long Trail Brewmaster Series. This limited release seasonal treat is small batch brewed with pumpkins, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves with increased malts and a touch of bitterness for the perfect balance.

Well balanced, indeed. Nice job, Long Trail!

After our meal, we wondered around a bit and headed up to the indoor viewing balcony to see the vats. It was nice, but certainly not worthy of the term "tour" they throw around on the website, even if prefaced with "self-guided." They did have a pretty sweet (giant) graphic hanging in the restaurant, though, that talked about their brewing process:

A few days later, while at home, I remembered that I picked up a bottle of Long Trail's Pumpkin Ale prior to my trip and had it sitting in my fridge! Cracked it open. Poured in my branded Long Trail glass that I purchased at the brewery. Took a sip. Took another sip. One more. Dumped it. Maybe it had just been sitting too long... Ultimately, not my thang. It drank more like a light beer, which I am not at all fond of. I decided it wasn't worth the calorie intake. Ah, well. Their Imperial Pumpkin was certainly winner in my book, if that helps.

Single Serve Pumpkin Oatmeal

Listen, I'm not a big oatmeal girl. But I'm willing to get into it for the sake of my health. It gets hard, though, finding a recipe without loosing the healthy aspect of the meal.

This recipe, originally from About.com, fed a family of four. Which not only doesn't exist in this house, but I cook just for this girl. So I took this Pinterest find and adapted it for one.

Pumpkin Oatmeal
adapted from a recipe by Fiona Haynes, About.com 

Yields: 1 serving

Ingredients

1/2 c. Oats

3/4 c. Low fat or Nonfat Milk (I used 1%)

2 tbsp. Pumpkin Puree

10 g. Raisins Don't hate me because I weigh my food.

1 pinch Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 smidgeon Ground Cinnamon

Or do what I did: just sprinkle that shit on top until you're satisfied.

*Also, brown sugar OR sugar-free syrup if needed. I needed a little towards the end.

Directions

Place oatmeal in a microwave safe bowl and stir in milk. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes. KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE BOWL! I'm not kidding. My oats erupted all over my microwave plate. Which reminds me... I forgot to clean that up. Oops!

After you scrape your oats and milk back into your bowl, stir in the pumpkin puree and spices. Nuke it again for another 40 seconds. (It's totally safe this time.) Once done, stir in the raisons. Add sweetener if you'd like, and EAT THAT SHIT UP. Or struggle through the foreign texture that is oatmeal as I did.

About halfway thru, I added a tiny bit of sugar-free syrup. Made it better without adding nearly any calories, but it's really the mush part that gets me. Perhaps next time I'll add a little bit of chopped pecans on top. Mmm...

My nutrition calculations:

Per recipe/serving : Calories: 275.8, Total Fat: 5g (Sat: 1.6g, Trans: 0g), Cholesterol: 7.5mg, Sodium: 101.3mg, Potassium: 379mg, Total Carbs: 47g (Fiber: 6g, Sugars: 18.3g), Protein: 11.8g

Vitamin A: 82.5%, Vitamin C: 3.6%, Calcium: 24%, Iron: 12.1%

Have any good, healthy oatmeal recipes? Let me know!

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat

I generally prefer my brews to be darker in color and stronger in taste. I'd choose a stout over an ale any day. But as I am the self-proclaimed Halloween Queen, how could my autumn be complete without pushing my pumpkin intake to the max? Pumpkin ales are therefore unavoidable. So here I am, on my quest to taste as many of them as I can!

You'll have to bear with me as I fine tune my tasting-and-telling-about-it skills. Here I go!

Copyright: Jenn D./The Halloween Spot

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat
"Belgium style wheat ale brewed with pumpkin and spices"

Brewer: Anheuser-Busch | St. Louis, MO

Style: Pumpkin Ale

ABV: 5.20%


When it comes to Shock Top, the only previous run-ins I've had with the brand have been at the ball park. (The Phillies homebase, Citizens Bank Park, carries the beer.)

After cracking open the bottle, I took a few strong sniffs of the beverage. It was a light scent, very fresh with hints of orange citrus and a blend of spices underneath.

I poured the ale into a glass to see the color: vibrantly amber! Not completely transparent, the Pumpkin Wheat was like an opaque field of grains during an autumn sunset... Okay I'm done.

What little head there was disappeared almost immediately, so I jumped into the tasting. First sip didn't impress, but as I continued to drink the ale, the flavors developed across my taste buds and I liked it more and more! My plan to ditch half the bottle to be healthier ultimately failed.

At it's core, the Shock Top Pumpkin Ale remains close to its wheat beer roots. It's the nice, light spices in the beer that really sets it apart.

I gave it 2/5 pumpkins on scent and 3/5 pumpkins on flavor. I'm going to be a hard judge through and through on this ride! The pumpkins will denote how pumpkin-y the brew actually comes off. Overall, though, this was a very enjoyable drink. I wouldn't go and by a case (simply because it's generally not my thang,) but I wouldn't pass on an offer either.

What is wheat beer?
According to my quick search, many wheat beers are actually witbiers. (Other wheat beers include wiessbiers, hefeweizens, lambics and goses.) According to BeerAdvocate, a witbier is:

A Belgian Style ale that's very pale and cloudy in appearance due to it being unfiltered and the high level of wheat, and sometimes oats, that's used in the mash. Always spiced, generally with coriander, orange peel and other oddball spices or herbs in the back ground. The crispness and slight twang comes from the wheat and the lively level of carbonation. This is one style that many brewers in the US have taken a liking to and have done a very good job of staying to style. Sometimes served with a lemon, but if you truly want to enjoy the untainted subtleties of this style you'll ask for yours without one. Often referred to as "white beers" (witbieren) due to the cloudiness / yeast in suspension.

Mmm....

Like Pumpkin Ales? Let me know what you think!

How I spent September 1st: the unofficial start to autumn!

September 1st is normally an exciting day, but this year I did it right! I binged on pumpkin.

I started off my morning the only way a proper Halloween gal should: with a batch of tasty & delicious Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes. Addicting, they're so good.

Filled with energy and excitement, I took a trip to my local Wegmans to check out their stock of pumpkin ales. (If you don't know this, Wegmans has one of the best beer gardens. EVER.) And I wasn't disappointed this time, either!


I took notes of all the pumpkin brews they had available then selected my custom 6-pick to take home to taste. Look for blog posts covering each one!

Next stop? A quick coffee date with the boyfriend. While Sept. 4th is the official release date for the Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks, many will serve them starting the first of the month.

I was THRILLED to snag one yesterday--my first of the season! Since I'm livin' life a bit healthier these days, I opted for a Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino Light. If you want the hot version of the beverage, ask for non-fat, no whip. There is no "skinny" version of the drink.

Very little of this was actually planned yesterday; it all revolved around a day full of errands.  I happened to have left over pumpkin pancake batter. I happened to have needed to make a trip to King of Prussia mall yesterday, which just happens to be near the new Wegmans. We made a coffee run prior to getting me some new running shoes, and that particular Starbucks happened to be serving PSLs already.

To complete my day of errand-running, I had to visit our local supermarket, a GIANT Food Store. As we pulled up in the lot to park, a bright patch of orange caught my eye. Rows and rows of pumpkins for sale! SWEET. Any size, just $5. Obviously I had to buy one.

It's such a gorgeous one, isn't it? I'm so excited to dig into it tomorrow and roast up a batch of seeds. My favorite snack! 

Oh, yeah. The reason I went to GIANT in the first place? To stock up on pumpkin puree, of course ;)

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes

(source: Mother Thyme)

1 ½ c. white whole wheat flour

3 tsp. baking powder

2 tbsp. sugar

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 ½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 c. milk (I used 1%)

1 c. pumpin puree

1 large egg, lightly beaten (I totally forgot to beat it lightly... Don't think it mattered much.)

2 tbsp. butter, melted

I threw all the above into a quart-sized measuring cup--easy to pour from and store leftover batter in with less clean up!

Since I'm on a healthy kick now, I measured out all of the ingredients and decided the recipe would make 4 Jenn-sized servings.

Using a 3/4 cup of batter for a serving, scoop two spoonfuls per pancake onto a griddle pan over medium heat. Since the batter is on the thicker side, use the spoon to spread out the pancake a bit. Mine were probably about 6 inces in diameter. 

Unlike your run-of-the-mill flapjack, these pancakes will not bubble all over producing your usual tell-tale tiny batter wholes. Instead, you may see one or two little guys. Use your best judgement and flip when you think they're good and ready. Does not take long!

I ate mine with a bit of buttery spread and sugar-free syrup, which only added on an extra 40 calories to my pancake serving!

Here is the nutritional information for the pancakes:

Pumpkin Seed Brittle

I've had a stash of hulled pumpkin seeds in my house that I've been looking for something to do with. After googling around, I found a few recipes for Pumpkin Seed Brittle; I chose one by Alton Brown since I know brittle to be a technical process.

To make the brittle, I needed:

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil, plus additional for coating 
• 7 ounces hulled pumpkin seeds (these are the green ones) 
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
• 1 pound 6 ounces granulated sugar 
• 12 ounces water 

Plus:

• 10-inch saute pan
• Silpat mat
• Half sheet pan
• 3-quart saucier and large cast iron skillet

Directions:

"Place the oil and seeds into a 10-inch saute pan and set over medium-high heat. Toast the seeds while constantly moving the pan. You will smell their aroma and hear some of them begin to crackle when they are toasted, 4 to 5 minutes." 

You really do smell them. It's fantastic!

"Transfer the seeds to a small mixing bowl, add the cayenne, cinnamon and salt and stir to combine."

I only used half the cayenne and sprinkled some clove on top too!

"Line a half sheet pan with a silicone baking mat.

Place a 3-quart saucier inside a large cast iron skillet."

Obviously, I improvised this step...

"Add the sugar and water to the saucepan, and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until it comes to a boil. Stop stirring, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover, reduce heat to medium, and cook until the sugar is a light amber color, approximately 25 minutes.

"Remove from the heat and stir in the pumpkin seed mixture. This will greatly reduce the temperature of the sugar, so work quickly. Once evenly mixed, pour the mixture onto the prepared half sheet pan. Using an oiled spatula, spread thin. You will have to work quickly when pouring out and spreading the mixture in the pan."

Dammit! It crystalized. I knew I shouldn't have made a point to scrape out the bottom of the pan to get ever seed... If you try this recipe, make sure you avoid doing just that. You really do need to work fast!

"Cool completely, approximately 30 minutes, and then break into pieces. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks."

Overall, it didn't turn out too bad! I got a nice flavor on the seeds, however, I just don't think I'm a brittle girl after all. 

Next time, I think I'd use the same steps to toast and season (my way,) but turn it into a snack mix instead.

If you're a brittle whore (ha ha...), let me know what you usually make and what tricks you use to make it amazing!

Also find this post on my other blog, A Taste of My Brain

Day 2: A look back at a pre-October Halloween-filled day!

I just watched the Philadelphia Eagles lose.  Miserably.  So now I'm going to look back at this past Thursday - a very good day, indeed!

We began the day with a trip to Linvilla Orchards to scout out our first carving pumpkins of the season.

(photo credit: linvilla.com)

This is always a process.  I have to circle all of the barrels of pumpkins at least twice, and if whoever I'm with points out a good one?  I can't have that pumpkin now.  My hunt.  My kill.

During my search, though, I came across this interesting type of squash.  Obviously, I needed to pose the squash for a photo op as soon as I realized the squash had nipples.

Meanwhile, boyfriend giggled but pretended to not know me.

After I made my kill, we delivered our respective pumpkins to my car then grabbed a quick lunch there before heading home.

Before digging in, I prepped the area where the feeding would begin.  (I'm not sure when I decided to run with the lioness metaphor throughout the blog post.)  I spread old newspaper on the floor in front of the TV, placed a bowl in between where the two of us would be working for seeds, then placed two trash bags on either end for us to dispose of the unwanted innards.  Why on the floor, though?  And in front of the TV?  To watch Rocky Horror Picture Show, of course!  (By the time we were all finished, we were halfway into a second showing of it...)

I Can Make You a Man

(watch Sweet Transvestite and Time Warp clips on other Halloween Spot blog posts)

I was going to post their Creature of the Night clip, but clearly there just isn't enough Tim Curry in that one.  Anyway, boyfriend went with a more traditional carving while I tried my hand at a different technique in doing Jack Skellington.  He ended up looking a little apprehensive, maybe indifferent, but I think the character came across.

After admiring the Jack-o'-Lanterns in the dark...

...it was time to attack the seeds!  I look forward to roasted pumpkin seeds all year long - easily one of my favorite snacks.  And these didn't disappoint!  You can find my easy roasting recipe here.  I had to use vegetable oil this time around as we were out of olive oil, but I don't recommend it.  Olive oil, in my opinion, yields the best flavored pumpkin seeds.   Mmm...

Quick Tip - Pumpkin Seeds

I just recently learned my lesson about baking with different colored pans...  I'd always seen before recipes calling for either a "light" or "dark" pan, but I always pretty much ignored it.  But hey, it all worked out fine before.

Well last week, after carving this BAMF, I baked me some pumpkin seeds using this recipe.  I grabbed two deep pans out of the drawer so that I would have the room to spread the seeds out while not having the risk of the seeds falling off like cookie sheets do.  The pans, one light and one dark, were both in the oven for the same amount of time at exactly the same time.  Here's the difference:

Doh!  Shows what lack of attention will bring on.  Oh, well.  The lighter ones are delicious (so you can image with the bag of pumpkin seeds is starting to look like as I pick the good ones out.)  I'll just have to be more careful when I gut the big guy this week!

Halloween 2010: The Cake is designed

I have to put my Wilton classes to use for my most favorite occasion of the year!  So I drew up this guy, which I thought of on the ride home one day last week.  Forgive the quality of the sketch.  I guess I couldn't find a pencil so I had to use a pen for the body of the sketch, and I also couldn't locate my black Prismacolor.  That's why the midsection is kind of grey; I was actually pressing hard with whatever dollar store version of a black colored pencil I could find.

So let me know what you think, please!  I can go into details of what materials I have in mind later.  The only thing I'm debating right now is whether it's going to just be frosted or covered with a fondant/modeling chocolate shell.  Suggestions? Bring 'em on!

:)

(By the way: I don't claim to be any kind of professional, so please judge my artwork kindly ;)

Make Me Something Sundays: Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

I found this recipe on another blog (the name escapes me), which was adapted from a recipe they found on Smitten Kitchen by a David Leite.  The recipe yields about 18 regularly sized cupcakes.  Don't be mistaken by the picture as I was... I used both small cupcake molds and large ones and they all came out delicious!  I did take my own pictures but I can't seem to find them... The picture below is from the site I found the recipe on.

Ingredients:

·       1 stick unsalted butter, room temp.

·       1 c. firmly packed dark-brown sugar

·       
1/3 cup granulated sugar

·       
2 cups cake flour

·       
2 teaspoons baking powder

·       
1 teaspoon baking soda

·       
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon


·       1 teaspoon ground ginger


·       1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

·       
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves


·       1/2 teaspoon salt

·       
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper


·       2 large eggs


·       1/2 cup buttermilk mixed with 1 teaspoon vanilla


·       1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin

Frosting


·       Two (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened


·       1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature


·       2 cups confectioners’ sugar


·       1/4 cup pure maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° (175°C). Line a cupcake pan with 18 liners.

2. In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper into a medium bowl.

3. Add the eggs 1 at a time to the mixer, scraping down the sides after each addition. Alternate adding the flour and milk mixtures, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat in the pumpkin until smooth. Scoop the batter among the cupcake liners — you’re looking to get them 3/4 full. Rap the filled pans once on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool the cupcakes on racks completely.

Make the frosting:
In a stand mixer beat all the ingredients on medium until fluffy.

Now, the recipe doesn't tell you what to sprinkle on top, if anything.  However, I mixed up a combination of white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla.  It came out great, and I received many compliments on that extra crunch!