Lesson #179: Pumpkin 5-Spice Ice Cream

We are in LOVE with this ice cream! Rich pumpkin puree is combined with honey and Chinese five spice in this sweet cream ice cream. Chinese five spice contain warm spices such as cloves and cinnamon with a touch of pepper. I think it tastes very similar to a chai flavor. Since chai lattes are one of my favorite things, this ice cream is pretty darn DELICIOUS!

LESSON LEARNED: You can roast your own pumpkin for this recipe. I was running short on time, so I used the canned variety. It was still delicious!

Recipe for Pumpkin 5-Spice Ice Cream

Lesson #174: Pumpkin Toffee Cookies

These cookies SCREAM fall! This dessert is a soft & cake-y spiced pumpkin cookie with bits of English toffee scattered throughout.  I made a big batch for my classes last week. I thought I would have enough to share with at least two of my general psychology classes, but they went over so well that my first class ate them all! I've learned that I have to rotate which classes I give treats to. :)

LESSON LEARNED: Around the holidays you can find bags of English toffee bits. If they are not available, break up a bar of toffee.

Recipe for Pumpkin Toffee Cookies

Lesson #172: Pumpkin Pancakes

I had a bit of leftover pumpkin from making these pumpkin cream cheese muffins, so I decided to incorporate it into a pancake.

Every weekend I try to make a different breakfast instead of our usual cereal, toast, and fruit we have during the weekdays. I usually do a sweeter breakfast one day and a savory breakfast the next. My sweet breakfast options are usually some form of waffles (I have an awesome recipe I should share on the blog!) or pancakes.

These pancakes are have traditional "warm" Fall spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Pureed pumpkin is mixed in to create a wonderful orange hue. Drizzled with maple syrup these are a great addition to your pancake repertoire.

LESSON LEARNED: This recipe makes a lot of pancakes. I divided them into stacks of 3 or 4, wrapped them with plastic wrap, and froze for later. That way, you can grab a pack out of the freezer, microwave for 1-2 minutes, and you are ready to eat.

Recipe for Pumpkin Pancakes

Lesson #171: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

These pumpkins scream "welcome to fall". That is, along with all the fall leaves, wind, and lower temperatures here in Ohio. :)

These muffins are similar to the ones you can find at your favorite coffee house this time of year. They are a moist pumpkin muffin with a dab of cream cheese baked right into the middle and topped with a sugary cinnamon crumble.

I brought a couple dozen of these to one of my classes last week. Almost everybody in my first class took a muffin so I would consider these a success!

LESSON LEARNED: These muffins require a little prep time. The filling is a combination of cream cheese and powdered sugar. This has to chill in the freezer for a few hours before you assemble and bake the muffins.

Recipe for Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Lesson #46: Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon & Sugar Doughnuts

Last weekend, my mom bought me a doughnut pan (kinda like a cupcake pan, but it's in the shape of doughnuts). I'm a sucker for new baking gadgets, so I had to try it out right away. I didn't have any recipe bookmarked for doughnuts, so I decided to use the recipe off the back of the packaging for the pan. Plus, since these are baked doughnuts, not fried, I thought they are a touch healthier. It turns out that it's a pretty good recipe and a fun baking pan!

The doughnuts are light & fluffy - not at all like the super dense cake doughnuts you buy in the store. The key to the lightness is cake flour, which contains less gluten than regular all-purpose flour. Then, I added pumpkin spice to give these doughnuts a little extra "fall" flavor. They are also made with buttermilk which makes them a bit tangy.  Finally, I dipped the finished doughnuts in butter and rolled them in cinnamon/sugar. DELICIOUS! My afternoon class DEVOURED them in 5 minutes :)

 

LESSON LEARNED: Homemade doughnuts are amazing!

Recipe for Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts

Lesson #36: Pumpkin Roll Cake

Have you ever walked by the roll cakes in the grocery store and wondered if you could make one? I have, so I decided to try! This post documents my first attempt. The cake wasn't as pretty as it could be, but it tasted FANTASTIC! Taste trumps presentation (for me at least) any day. Here's what I learned so far:

1) Making the cake was easy. The cake is very light in texture (it contains no butter!) because of whipped eggs whites which are folded into the batter.

2) When you flip the cake after you bake it, place a kitchen towel on a sheet pan, lay the towel & pan on top of the cake, and then flip it. You sprinkle powdered sugar on the hot cake before you flip, so I tried to flip it without an extra pan and powdered sugar went everywhere!

3) Be patient! The cake has to cool completely before you try to unroll the cake (you first roll the cake while it's warm). If you don't wait until the cake is cool, it will crack. That's what happened to me :(

Even though the cake was messy looking, this was an AWESOME cake! The cake was light, fluffy, and delightfully pumpkin-y. The cream filling is slightly sweet, has a hint of rum flavor, and contains toffee pieces which provide a bit of crunch.

LESSON LEARNED: Rolled cakes are a little tricky!

Recipe for Pumpkin Roll Cake

Lesson #26: Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

This recipe has been in my baking "queue" for 2 years, so I was super excited that I was finally able to try it. I liked this recipe because it required just a few ingredients that I had in my pantry.

Here's a useful tip: I tried to use a round cookie cutter to portion small pieces for one of my classes. If you decide to try this, it's best to freeze the cheesecake for a little bit so it's not too sticky. I ended up cutting half the cake with cookie cutters and slicing a few pieces for me and my husband. Regardless of how you serve it - this recipe is a keeper!


The cheesecake is not too sweet and has an INCREDIBLY creamy texture. Plain cheesecake is swirled with pumpkin flavored cheesecake to create this perfectly balanced dessert. It looks pretty enough to serve to guests!

LESSON LEARNED: The key to easily cutting cheesecakes is to freeze them first.

Recipe for Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Lesson #23: Pumpkin Caramels

I've been making a ton of pumpkin desserts lately. Caramel and pumpkin seem like a perfect match, so I've decided to combine these two flavors into a DELICIOUS candy.

When you make caramel, you have to be really careful to watch the pot so the sugar doesn't burn. To be honest, the first time I tried this recipe, I got distracted and the sugar started to burn. There's really no way to salvage this (until you like a burnt flavor - yuck!), so I had to start over. After I started paying more attention, the end result was really FANTASTIC!

These candies are soft, chewy, and creamy. They taste exactly like combining a regular caramel candy with pumpkin pie. I individually wrapped each candy and they look like I bought them at a candy store. 

LESSON LEARNED: Watch carefully when making caramel so it doesn't burn!

Recipe for Pumpkin Caramels

Lesson #19: Pumpkin Ice Cream

After making Pumpkin Cookies, I had leftover half a can of pumpkin puree. I quickly decided that my next project should be creating a pumpkin ice cream!

I modified my tried-and-true creamy ice cream base by adding pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice to the cooked custard before blending in cream and whole milk. The result is WONDERFUL! The ice cream is perfectly creamy and tastes exactly like pumpkin pie (except lighter and with no crust!). You could easily transform this into the base for a pumpkin pie milkshake. Imagine blending pumpkin ice cream, cooked pie crust, and milk until smooth. Then top it with a little fresh whipped cream and drizzle with caramel. Hmmm.....maybe I'll try this soon! :)

LESSON LEARNED: Leftover pumpkin has many yummy possibilities!

Recipe for Pumpkin Ice Cream

Lesson #17: Soft Pumpkin Cookies

Fall is my favorite time of year! Every year, I get really excited to start making my favorite fall desserts and pumpkin is one of my essential fall baking ingredients. First up are these AMAZING cookies.  I've made other versions of pumpkin cookies (including one that received a 1st place ribbon at the county fair in Arizona), but I think I've found a new favorite :)

These cookies are incredibly soft & fluffy and are rolled in a sugar/spice mixture. When you bake these, there are two things to keep in mind. First, make sure you leave enough room between these cookies when they bake - unless of course you want a giant cookie! Second, the cookie dough need to be chilled so you can roll them into balls and coat them with the sugar & spice mix. 

LESSON LEARNED: Keep trying different recipes because you might find a new favorite!

Recipe for Soft Pumpkin Cookies