Hey, Charlie- the trifle was a major hit and looked beautiful too. Thanks for another winner!

Can we continue the thread with other hits for Thanksgiving? This pumpkin cheesecake went over

verrry well at our house.

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Caramel Swirl

Crust
1 1/2 cups ground gingersnap cookies
1 1/2 cups toasted pecans (about 6 ounces)
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 2/3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin
9 tablespoons whipping cream
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon (about) purchased caramel sauce
1 cup sour cream

For Crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. Finely grind ground cookies, pecans and sugar in processor. Add melted butter and blend until combined. Press crust mixture onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides.

For Filling: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until light. Transfer 3/4 cup mixture to small bowl; cover tightly and refrigerate to use for topping. Add pumpkin, 4 tablespoons whipping cream, ground cinnamon and ground allspice to mixture in large bowl and beat until well combined. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until combined.
Pour filling into crust (filling will almost fill pan). Bake until cheesecake puffs, top browns and center moves only slightly when pan is shaken, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Transfer cheesecake to rack and cool 10 minutes. Run small sharp knife around cake pan sides to loosen cheesecake. Cool. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.

Bring remaining 3/4 cup cream cheese mixture to room temperature. Add remaining 5 tablespoons whipping cream to cream cheese mixture and stir to combine. Press down firmly on edges of cheesecake to even thickness. Pour cream cheese mixture over cheesecake, spreading evenly. Spoon caramel sauce in lines over cream cheese mixture. Using tip of knife, swirl caramel sauce into cream cheese mixture. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Release pan sides from cheesecake. Spoon sour cream into pastry bag fitted with small star tip (do not stir before using). Pipe decorative border around cheesecake and serve.

Serves 10.

Source: 11/93 Bon Appetit

Pat's notes: Fairly easy to make and so good. Was glad I set the springform pan on a cookie sheet as some butter oozed out during baking.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/2635

 
I loved this Pumpkin Spice Pie, not too sweet, nicely spiced and I can actually taste the pumpkin.

Our Thanksgiving menus is very traditional, things I've made for years. I do like to try different pie recipes. I used Grade B maple syrup, a little harder to find but worth it.
I only used the filling from this recipe, am making the whipped cream for leftovers.

PUMPKIN SPICE PIE

Pie
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup whipping cream
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt

1 Flaky Pie Crust

Whipped cream
1 cup chilled whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


For pie: Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk pumpkin, maple syrup, whipping cream, eggs, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt in large bowl to blend well.

Pour pumpkin mixture into prepared pie crust. Bake until filling is just set in center and crust is golden, about 1 hour. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely. Cover pie and refrigerate until cold. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

For whipped cream: Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup chilled whipping cream, 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in large bowl until soft peaks form.

Serve pie cold or at room temperature with whipped cream.

Makes 8 servings.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/102549

 
The big hit turned out to be the turkey itself--a fesh killed bird from a local farmer--Cyn, did you

follow Gourmet's turkey recipe? We did and it turned out fantastically well. It cooked in about 2 hours (17 pound bird) and I took it out when the breast read 155 degrees. It melted in your mouth.

 
Here is an excellent Pumpkin - Chocolate tart I made from Martha Stewart

1 15 oz can pumpkin puree
3/4 C packed light - brown sugar
8 oz creme fraiche (I made my own with 1/2 & 1/2 and plain yogurt that sat overnight)
3 large eggs
1 t cinnamon
1 t ground ginger
1/4 t nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1/8 t cloves (I omitted)
Chocolate crust (recipe follows) (I made a chocolate, graham cracker crust instead but next time will try this crust)
2 oz best quality semisweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 with rack in center. Whisk all ingredients except the chocolate in a large bowl and pass through a sieve or food mill. Pour filling into prepared crust and bake until set, about 40 min. cool at least 30 min.Melt chocolate over simmering water and drizzle on tart.

Chocolate Crust for 10" tart shell
1 C flour
1/4 C plus 1 T sugar
1/4 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t cloves
1/2 stick chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg
4 oz semisweet chocolate chopped

In bowl of electric mixer with paddle attachment, combine flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, cinnamon and cloves. Add butter; mix on low speed until butter is the size of small peas. Add egg, mix until it comes together.

Preheat oven to 350. Roll out dough and transfer to tart pan/ Press into bottom and up sides. trim excess flush with edge. Lightly prick bottom all over. Chill for 30 min. Bake until firm, about 15 min. Immediately sprinkle chocolate over bottom of shell and smooth with spatula.

 
For those at our table that would actually eat a brussel sprout - they loved REC: Carmelized B.S.

Carmelized Brussel Sprouts with Bacon and Onions.

No recipe here - but this is how I make them:

Brussel Sprouts - halved
Onions, cut it half, then cut into small wedges
Bacon - diced (1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces)

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Put the brussel sprouts and onions in a baggie and add some olive oil (a T. or 2). Squish around and then dump on a greased rimmed cookie sheet. Place all the brussel sprounts cut side down. Scatter bacon pieces over sprouts and onions. Bake for 15-20 minutes depending on size of sprouts. Remove from oven and turn sprouts over - they should be beautifully carmelized. (If not - put back in oven cut side down still). Put back in oven another 10 - 15 minutes until everything is cooked through with the onions lightly browned. Salt and serve. (Delicious made day before - holds well).

Deb

 
REC: Cherry Crumble Pie (with major tweeks)

Extensive comments below. Lots went wrong with the recipe, but it ended up delicious. It was a nice alternative to pumpkin. I would've made apple pie but couldn't resist using the home-grown cherries.

CHERRY CRUMBLE PIE

Crust:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons chilled vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons (or more) ice water
1 large egg yolk

Filling:
6 cups fresh cherries, pitted, or 2 pounds frozen pitted sweet cherries, thawed, juices reserved
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
1 tablespoon kirsch (clear cherry brandy) or brandy
Pinch of salt

Topping:
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

For crust: Blend flour, sugar and salt in processor 5 seconds. Add butter and shortening. Using on/off turns, process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Beat 2 tablespoons ice water and yolk in bowl to blend. Add to dough. Using on/off turns, blend until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic; chill at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.

For filling: Mix cherries and juices, sugar, tapioca, kirsch and salt in bowl. Let stand until tapioca looks translucent, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour.

For topping: Blend oats, flour, sugar, almonds, cinnamon and salt in large bowl. Add butter. Rub in with fingertips, pressing mixture together until moist clumps form; chill until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 425°F. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 13- to 14-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter deep-dish glass pie dish. Trim overhang to 3/4 inch; fold under. Crimp edge decoratively. Spoon filling into dough-lined dish. Sprinkle with topping. Bake pie 30 minutes. Reduce temperature to 400°F. Continue to bake until filling is bubbling thickly and topping is brown and crisp, covering edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 25 minutes longer. Cool at least 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Bon Appétit
June 2000

My remarks: The crust dough was really sticky, so I prebaked the shell (edges protected with foil, bottom weighted with dried beans) at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Then I removed the beans, pricked the bottom, and put it back in the oven for about 5 minutes until the bottom started to brown a little. Then I brushed the bottom and sides with a mixture of 1 beaten egg yolk and 1/4 teaspoon salt and put the crust back in the oven for about 1 minute.

I used frozen Bing cherries plus 1/2 cup dried cherries (both homegrown). I was dubious about saving the juice, and sure enough, after thawing and sitting there with the sugar for an hour, the filling was just too juicy. So I loaded the pie crust using a slotted spoon, and most of the juice stayed behind. Next time I might take some of the Bing juice and heat it to plump the dried cherries. I also substituted 3/4 teaspoon almond extract for the kirsch.

Didn't have sliced almonds, so I roughly chopped whole, lightly roasted almonds. I think sliced ones would have burned. Also, I couldn't fit all the topping mix on the pie, so next time I'll halve the amount.

Since the crust was prebaked, I didn't start cooking at the higher temperature. It took about 45 minutes at 400 degrees before the filling was done. I covered the edges with foil the whole time and covered the topping for the last 15 minutes.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/103537

 
My girlfriend made the chocolate pumpkin cake from last month's BH&G...

It was WONDERFUL with dark chocolate, moist, layers and a pumpkin/cream cheese filling, topped off with ganache!

 
REC: No-bake Pumpkin Pie Tassies; everyone loved them...

I made this pumpkin pie no-bake filling, (made it a day ahead) and used it to fill mini-tartlet "tassies" which I also made a day ahead. Fill the tassies just before serving. Both the filling and the tart shells were very easy to make, and the pumpkin pie filling was delicious. If anyone wants the tassie recipe, let me know. It is very simple to make, and the little mini-bites are a perfect dessert after a big holiday meal. The filling can also be poured into a 9-inch baked pie crust, and chilled until served. The filling recipe is linked here.

Enjoy!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Yummy-Pumpkin-Pie/Detail.aspx

 
Here you are, Pat...also included dynomite lemon curd filling...

These tassies are foolproof and delicious. I use the food processor method (see below) with excellent results. This recipe and the lemon curd are both from Damon Lee Fowler's "New Southern Baking", with baking directions from Paula Deen's "Tassie Cups" recipe.

Fowler's cookbook states: "This rich, delicate pastry is the classic one for pecan tassies but it is also good for any tartlet with a rich, very sweet filling. Try it filled with Lemon Curd"

Makes 24 tassie shells:

One 3-ounce package cream cheese, softened

4 ounces (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter,softened

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1. With a mixer, cream the cheese and butter until light, fluffy and smooth. Whisk together the salt, sugar, and flour, then work it into the cheese and butter until the pastry is smooth. This can be done in a food processor: process the cheese and butter until fluffy and light, then add the salt, sugar, and flour and pulse until the dough is smooth.

2. Scoop the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, form the dough into a ball, fold the wrap over it, and press it into a flat 1-inch-thick disk. Chill until the dough is firm, at least two hours. The dough can be made several hours or a day before you plan to use it.

3. Form the pastry into 24 small balls; press with fingers into the bottom and up the sides of ungreased miniature muffin tins. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes, until lightly browned.

LEMON CURD:

Makes about 2 1/2 cups

4 ounces (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

4 teaspoons grated lemon zest - or more to taste

1 cup sugar

pinch of salt

2 whole large eggs and 4 large egg yolks

1. Prepare a double boiler with boiling water over medium heat and reduce heat to a slow simmer. Place butter in top of double boiler, barely melt it, then stir in the lemon juice, grated zest, sugar and a small pinch of salt, stirring until the sugar and salt are dissolved.

2. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs and yolks until smooth. Slowly stir them into the butter, and cook, stirring constantly, until quite thick, about 8 minutes. The spoon should leave a distinct path in the curd. The custard continues to thicken as it cools, but won't reach the stiff consistency of a bottled lemon curd until it is cold, so don't overcook it. Remove it from the heat.

3. Keep stirring the curd until it has cooled somewhat and then pour it into another container and let it cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled before using. It will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to a month.

 
REC: Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake with Cranberry-Rasberry Compote and Cranberry Caramel Sauce...

Ok, loved the cheesecake but not a huge fan of the compote but then again I had some issues with it so made it twice -never as directed. The first time I went out to my meyer lemon tree to grab a lemon and gassssp... the new gardner stripped all my lemons off the tree. So had to use a couple of oldish ones I I had laying around. Finished taste had way too strong a lemon and vanilla flavor. I tossed it. Back to the store...and lo and behold forgot to buy lemons! This time bought both frozen rasberries and strawberries. I ended up with adding orange zest to the compost instead of lemon and due to the fact that the frozen rasberries just were not up to the best taste added some strawberries plus cut the spices in half and added maybe 1 t of vanilla instead of 1 T.

However, I also made:

CRANBERRY CARAMEL SAUCE
(Warning: this is very sweet)

1 cup picked-over fresh or frozen cranberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water

In a food processor purée cranberries and transfer to a small bowl.
In a dry heavy saucepan cook sugar over moderate heat, stirring with a fork, until melted and cook, without stirring, swirling pan, until a golden caramel. Remove pan from heat and carefully add water and cranberry purée (caramel will steam and harden). Return pan to heat and simmer sauce, stirring, 10 minutes, or until caramel is dissolved. Pour sauce through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl, pressing hard on solids, and cool completely. Sauce may be made 4 days ahead and chilled, covered. Bring sauce to room temperature before serving.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

...this was such a hit I don't think anyone even tried the compote which was ok, but then again that may just be my tastes as I'm more of a traditional cranberry flavor kinda girl. smileys/wink.gif

This sauce is so sweet and good it would stand up very well with a plain cheesecake.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/5742

 
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