Category: Recipes

You don’t have to have pumpkin pie for the holidays. There are numerous ways to enjoy pumpkin! Here is a pumpkin mousse that is both gluten-free and refined-sugar-free… but I like to eat it with gingersnaps!

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Creamy Pumpkin Mousse with Maple Whipped Cream

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword mousse, pumpkin

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Equipment

• Hand Mixer

Ingredients

• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• 6 Tbsp real maple syrup, divided
• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened, cubed
• 2 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp real vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup half and half

Optional Ingredients

• 12 pecan halves
• Cinnamon, for dusting
• 12 Gingersnap cookies

Instructions

• In a large bowl, beat the heavy whipping cream with a hand mixer until it doubles in size.
• Add 2 Tablespoons of the maple syrup and continue beating until light and fluffy. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
• In another large bowl, beat the pumpkin purée, cream cheese, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, half&half, and remaining maple syrup with a hand mixer until thoroughly blended.
• Taste and adjust seasonings, as desired, and transfer to individual dessert bowls. Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 1 hour.
• To serve, remove from refrigerator and top with maple whipped cream, pecans, gingersnaps, and a sprinkle of ground cinnamon, as desired.

There are several ways you can customize this pumpkin mousse to be your own. But first, some notes about the ingredients.

• Maple Syrup: Don’t use imitation maple syrup. It doesn’t have the complexity of flavor to do this dessert justice.
• Pumpkin purée: You can either use canned (I recommend Libby’s), but you can also make your own (recipe below).
• Pumpkin pie spice: You can purchase pre-mixed pumpkin pie spice or make your own (recipe below). The beauty of making your own is that you can play with the flavor profile by changing the ratios of the various ingredients.
• Ginger Snap cookies: Store-purchased or home-made work equally well.

And now for customization ideas:

• Don’t like maple syrup? Try making cinnamon whipped cream or just plain whipped cream.
• Turn this into another type of mousse. Substitute yam or butternut squash purée for the pumpkin purée. If you want to get really creative, you could experiment with kidney bean purée, carrot purée, or even beet purée for a shocking color change.
• Change out the cheese. You can use any type of soft, firm cheese for this recipe. Perhaps goat cheese would work? Or even a vegan cream cheese.
• Try a different spice mix. You can play around with the flavor profile of your pumpkin pie spice using the recipe below as your starting point, or even experiment with other spices such as cardamom, anise, or culinary lavender.
• You can also experiment with the extract. You don’t have to use vanilla all the time. There are plenty of other extracts that might go well, such as lemon, maple, or cinnamon.

How to make pumpkin purée

Making your own pumpkin purée gives your recipes, such as this Pumpkin Mousse, a fresher flavor.

Ingredients:

• 1 4-pound pumpkin
• 1/3 cup water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a roasting pan.
2. Using a large knife, remove the stem and cut the pumpkin into quarters.
3. Scoop out the stringy fibers and seeds.
4. Cut quarters into 2- to 3-inch pieces.
5. Place the pumpkin pieces into the prepared roasting pan skin side down.
6. Add water and cover lightly with aluminum foil.
7. Bake until tender, about 1 1/4 hours.
8. Uncover and cool.
9. Remove pumpkin skin and purée the pumpkin in a food processor. Make sure it doesn’t have any chunks. You want it to be silky smooth for a recipe like Pumpkin Mousse.
10. Place the pumpkin purée in a cheesecloth-lined wire sieve set over a bowl. Fold up the edges of the cheesecloth to cover the purée. Place a saucer on the purée and weigh it down with a 1 pound can to force out the excess liquid.
11. Let stand until the purée is the consistency of canned pumpkin, about 1 hour.
12. The pumpkin purée can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

How to make pumpkin pie spice

Ingredients:

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice or cloves

Directions:

1. In a ramekin or very small bowl, combine the ingredients.
2. This mixture makes one teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice.
3. If you want to have pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can scale the recipe up by multiplying each ingredient’s amount by 4. Store in an airtight container.

Looking for something a little fancier to serve your guests than cheese and crackers? Warm appetizers, such as these Turkey Stuffed Mushrooms are a great way to level up. And there are several ways you can give them your creative flair.

This recipe can be doubled up for larger parties.

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Turkey Stuffed Mushrooms

Stuffed mushrooms make a great appetizer at a party.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Keyword mushrooms, poultry, warm appetizers

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons extravirgin olive oil, divided
• 1 lb. bulkturkey sausage
• 4 oz. goatcheese, roomtemp, cut into small chunks
• 16 oz. mediumPortobello mushrooms, rinsed,stems removed, and patted dry
• Seasalt and black pepper , to taste (optional)

Instructions

• Preheatoven to 350°F and lightly grease a large roasting pan with one tablespoon oliveoil. Set aside.
• Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
• Cook turkey sausage until no longer pink, approximately 6-8 minutes, breaking up the sausage into small pieces while cooking.
• Add goat cheese to skillet and cover for 1-2 minutes.
• Remove cover and stir until cheese is completely melted and combined with the turkey. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Fill each mushroom cap with some of the turkey mixture.
• Drizzle the mushrooms with remaining olive oil and season with salt and black pepper,as desired.
• Place pan in the pre-heated oven and roast until the mushrooms are slightly browned around the edges, approximately 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Suggested Twists for Turkey Stuffed Mushrooms

The recipe above is pretty basic — and tasty — as is. Why not get a little creative and make this recipe your own?

Spice It Up

• Before you add the turkey to the skillet, cook a seeded and diced Poblano pepper until it softens and develops a bit of color, approximately 3-4 minutes.

Play Meat Matchmaker

• You don’t have to limit yourself to turkey sausage. Any kind of sausage will do. If it doesn’t come in bulk, you can simply remove the casings.
• You don’t have to limit yourself to sausage, either. Any kind of ground meat will work. Just be sure to add in some seasonings for flavor.

Get Cheesy

• Experiment with other types of soft cheeses. Instead of goat cheese, try out cream cheese, mascarpone, or Port wine cheese spread.
• You can even top with cheese. Before you put your stuffed mushrooms in the oven, put a little shredded Parmesan, Romano, or Cheddar on top.

Have Fun with Fungus

• There are a variety of mushrooms, big and small that could work with this recipe. Explore your produce section and experiment with them. Shitake or white button mushrooms are commonly found at most grocery stores.

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Take Charge of Your Health!

Changing your eating habits can be tough. But it doesn’t have to be if you take a little time to think it out and create a plan.

This Healthy Eating Worksheet will walk you through the process of creating a healthy eating plan. All you need to do is print it out, set aside some time to complete it, and then fill it out. Then you can create your plan, knowing that you have addressed potential obstacles and came up with some creative ways to handle them.

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Is your grilling getting boring? Summer barbecues don’t have to stick to the traditional steak, chicken, and corn on the cob. You can get creative as with this recipe for Grilled Steak Fajitas.

This recipe was submitted by BBQGuys’ Grillmaster Randy Watson.

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Grilled Steak Fajitas

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword beef

Servings 4 servings

Author Randy Watson, BBQGuys’ Grillmaster

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 3 limes, juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 deseeded jalapeno, sliced
• ¼ cup cilantro, rough-chopped
• 2 pounds flank steak
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1 yellos bell pepper, sliced
• 1 large yellow onion, sliced
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

• First off, we’re blending our fajita seasoning for two reasons: it’s just plain fun to do, and the rich aromas will get your anticipation churning. Mix together chili powder, paprika, cumin, kosher salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small bowl. If you’re using the marinade, you should skip the garlic here — your flank steak is already going to spend a lot of time getting to know it, and that’s a strong spice to double down on.
• Keeping our seasoning rub sticking to the meat is our next priority. Coat your flank steak with olive oil, then rub it down generously on all sides with seasoning. When you’re done, sheathe the meat with a gallon sized zip-tight bag and set aside. Don’t you worry — we’re not leaving it alone for long.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine lime juice, garlic cloves, jalapeno, and cilantro and give them a good stir. Afterwards, pour them into the very same bag, seal it up (while pushing out as much air as you can), and shake the bag vigorously for a few short minutes while massaging the meat.
• Time to let the party mingle in the refrigerator. You’ll want those juices chilling with your flank steak and making best friends for at least 4 hours (overnight is preferable, but we understand eagerness getting the better of you). No air gaps in the bag will make them that much closer.
• Ready to grill? Great! Pull your marinated meat from the fridge; while you fire up the cooktop, you’ll want to let the flank steak move towards room temperature. Go ahead and blend your vegetables together; mix them with oil, salt, and pepper. You’ll be looking for a good searing temperature around 400-500 degrees Fahrenheit (Grill master’s note: My preference here? The higher, the better).
• While the grill’s still preheating, set a skillet on the cooking grates. We suggest using a shallow cast iron skillet for this — our grill master is fond of them for their ease in reaching maximum caramelization, especially in this recipe. Meanwhile, now’s the time to let that meat free. Take it out of the bag and remove the jalapeno before grilling.
• Once your grill hits temperature, move the flank steak onto your skillet and listen to that sweet, hissing sizzle (music to our ears)! Grill with the lid up — if you’re aiming for medium rare to medium doneness, we heartily recommend 3-4 minutes on each side. Adjust your timing as needed.
• Using oven mitts, remove the skillet from the hot grill and shift your cooked flank steak to a cutting board or plate. Brush off your skillet; while letting the meat rest for about 10 minutes, you’ll use this time (and your skillet, which should still be piping hot and ready for action) to grill up your vegetables.
• Speaking of those veggies, give them the heat for 5-7 minutes. You’ll want to stir often to avoid charring them. Once they’ve have become translucent, remove your vegetables from the grill (but not the skillet; for now, let them sit tight and soaking up heat).
• Slice your flanked steak against the grain and on a bias. Don’t those vegetables look just plain lonely in that skillet? They miss their new friend! Move your sliced meat to the still-sizzling skillet — you’re done! Serve up with corn or flour tortillas and your favorite toppings.

Earlier this month, I made a birthday cake for my father-in-law. He said he liked chocolate cake and since he is of German descent, I thought I’d make a Black Forest cake. However, due to our recent move to Minnesota and the current job climate, I had to borrow someone’s kitchen and their equipment. Therefore, I created this simple recipe for a Black Forest Sheet Cake.

I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but my research suggested that others had done something similar to what I had in mind. The result was really quite good and the folks celebrating around the table loved it. In fact, everyone had seconds! Give it a try. It is easy to make and quite tasty.

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Black Forest Sheet Cake

If you have limited time and equipment, this is a great way to make a tasty and somewhat "fancy" cake.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, German

Keyword Black Forest cake, sheet cake

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Preparation and assembly 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 15 slices

Equipment

• Electric Mixer
• 13" x 9" cake pan

Ingredients

• 1 box Triple chocolate cake mix
• water, as stated on the box
• oil, as stated on the box
• eggs, as stated on the box
• 2 cans cherry pie filling
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1½ teaspoon vanilla
• 1 jar marichino cherries, drained

Instructions

• Preheat oven to temporature recommended on the cake mix box.
• Follow instructions on the cake mix box to make the cake.
• Remove cake from the oven. Using the handle end of a wooden spoon, poke holes at regular intervals in the cake.
• In a microwave safe bowl, pour both cans of cherry pie mix in. Warm in microwave until the gel in liquid, approximately 2 to 5 minutes. Immediately pour on top of warm cake. Use wooden spoon to spread cherries around evenly and encourage the liquid to seep into the holes you poked.
• Let cool completely, approximately 2 to 3 hours.
• In a large bowl, whip the whipping cream until soft peaks form. Add vanilla. Continue whipping until stiff peaks form.
• Spread on top of cooled cake.
• Drain maraschino cherries. Decorate the top of the cake with three rows of five cherries. The cherries will be at the center of each slice. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Refrigerate left overs -- if you ahve any!

You can easily turn this Black Forest Sheet Cake into a variety of other cakes of your own. Here are some suggestions for different toppings and combinations.

• I used Betty Crocker Super Moist Cake Mix, Triple Chocolate Fudge cake mix, but you could use any brand or variety of cake mix. Devil’s food or even an ordinary chocolate cake could work well.
• You don’t have to start from a cake mix, you could make a chocolate cake from scratch.
• Try a different combination of cake mix and pie filling. Here are some suggestions:
  • Yellow cake with apple pie filling.
  • White cake with peach pie filling.
  • Red velvet cake with raspberry pie filling.
  • Lemon cake with lemon pie filling.
  • Strawberry cake mix with key lime pie filling.
  • Carrot cake mix with cheese cake pie filling.
• Try different toppings. You could easily use Cool Whip or Dream Whip instead of whipped cream. You could layer on pudding to make it extra-moist. If you’re using apple pie filling, why not try a streusel topping?
• Use chocolate covered cherries instead of maraschino cherries for decoration.