Vegetarian recipes with pumpkin - Cookie and Kate

Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

Kathryne Taylor — Wed, 11 Oct 2023 18:18:51 +0000

This creamy pumpkin mac and cheese recipe comes together in one pot. It’s really quite easy to make. You don’t even drain the pasta cooking water.

Thanks to the pumpkin, this dish is extra creamy, golden and flavorful. Naturally, it’s lighter than your typical homemade mac and cheese. On cool fall evenings, this mac and cheese will warm you up without putting you to sleep.

This easy autumnal pasta recipe will delight the whole family. Leftovers reheat well for the next few days, and even freeze well enough for our toddler’s future meals.

This recipe is a derivative of my Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese recipe, which has been a big hit. While that recipe relies on roasted butternut squash for depth of flavor, this recipe calls for canned pumpkin purée.

To make up for the roasted flavor, this recipe benefits from deeply toasting spices in butter—pumpkin spice blend, garlic powder and onion powder. Then, we cook a can of pumpkin purée in the flavored butter for a minute before adding pasta and water. Later on, we’ll stir in some cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese and Parmesan. The end result is magical.

Pumpkin Mac and Cheese Ingredients

You’ll find the full recipe below. Here’s what you should know about the key ingredients before you head to the store.

Canned Pumpkin Puree

This recipe conveniently uses up one entire can of pumpkin purée. Be sure to buy plain pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling, which contains sugar and spices.

Not all canned pumpkin purée is created equal. I’ve enjoyed this recipe with Whole Foods 365 brand, and Libby’s is reliably good as well.

Short-Cut Pasta

You have quite a few options here. For best results, choose a noodle that cooks in about 8 minutes or less, according to the package directions. We used casarecce for these photos, or you could use macaroni noodles for a more traditional mac and cheese look. Other options include cavatelli, fusilli, pipe rigate, etc. To make this recipe gluten free, we successfully used Jovial brand’s brown rice-based fusilli.

Tip: “Short-cut” pasta refers to compact noodle shapes, as opposed to long strands like spaghetti or fettuccine.

Cream Cheese

We’ll stir cream cheese directly into the pot. The cream cheese makes this pasta ultra creamy, lightly tangy, and luxurious. You’ll use half of a standard block of cream cheese for this recipe. Spread the extra on tomorrow morning’s toast!

Cheddar Cheese and Parmesan

Use a high quality, sharp cheddar cheese so you can really taste the cheddar in the end result. Parmesan cheese further amps up the flavor. Dust your individual servings with a little more Parmesan, if you’d like.

Tip: Grate your own cheese rather than buying pre-shredded cheese. Pre-shredded cheese is coated in powder that can cause the cheese to clump when it melts (plus it’s more expensive, per ounce).

Butter and Spices

You’ll also need butter, pumpkin spice blend, garlic and onion powder, water and salt. Pumpkin spice blend is absolutely key in this recipe because pumpkin alone doesn’t offer much flavor.

Tip: See the note below the recipe to make your own pumpkin spice blend from ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove or allspice. You can make exactly as much as you need for this recipe by following the note, or follow my pumpkin spice blend recipe to make extra spice blend for your pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins.

Watch How to Make Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

Serving Suggestions

Serve a green salad on the side. Try my Super Simple Arugula Salad, Favorite Green Salad with Apples, Cranberries and Pepitas, or any improvised salad with a classic vinaigrette.

This recipe yields a lot of pasta (eight servings). It reheats well for packed lunches and leftover dinners. I’ve even frozen the leftovers in this large silicone ice cube tray—once reheated in the microwave, the texture isn’t quite the same, but it’s still nice enough for our toddler to enjoy.

Love this pumpkin mac and cheese?

Here are more savory squash recipes to try. For pumpkin treats, check out my pumpkin recipe roundup.

Please let me know how your pumpkin mac and cheese turns out in the comments! I love hearing from you.

Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
Diet: Vegetarian

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 21 reviews

Creamy pumpkin mac and cheese will warm you up on cool fall evenings. This easy autumnal pasta recipe comes together in one pot and tastes incredible. Recipe yields 8 servings (quite a lot!) and leftovers are great.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice blend*
1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 pound short-cut pasta (pipe regate, macaroni noodles, casarecce, cavatelli, fusilli)
5 cups water
1 teaspoon fine salt, to taste
4 ounces cream cheese, cubed
8 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese
½ cup (2 ounces) finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

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Instructions

Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the pumpkin spice, garlic and onion powders and cook for 2 to 4 minutes, stirring often, until the butter is very fragrant and you see many little brown flecks in the pan. Stir in the pumpkin and let it cook for a minute, while stirring.
Pour in the pasta, water and salt. Cover the pot and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, remove the lid and set the timer for 8 minutes.
Cook, stirring often (more often as the time goes on), until the timer goes off. Turn down the heat as necessary to avoid scorching but maintain a steady simmer. When the time goes off, do not drain the water. Stir in the cream cheese. Continue simmering until the cream cheese has melted and the pasta is al dente (careful when you taste, it’s quite hot), about 4 to 5 more minutes.
Reduce the heat to low. Add the cheddar and Parmesan, and stir until the mixture is melted and creamy. Remove the pot from the heat.
Season with salt, to taste (I usually add ¼ teaspoon or more). Serve the pasta in bowls with extra Parmesan grated on top, if desired. Leftovers keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 5 days (or freezes relatively well for up to 3 months).

Notes

Recipe adapted from my Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese.

*Pumpkin spice amounts: To make just enough pumpkin spice for this recipe, use ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and a little pinch of allspice or cloves.

Make it gluten free: Gluten-free pastas vary widely. Choose a spiral-shaped gluten-free brown rice pasta, such as fusilli, over other pasta types (my tester was pleased with Jovial brand). Stir gently and don’t cook the pasta any longer than necessary or it may start to lose its shape.

Nutrition

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.

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Perfect Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Kathryne Taylor — Fri, 23 Oct 2020 17:30:08 +0000

Have you carved your pumpkin yet? Let’s roast some pumpkin seeds to make a night of it! When I was growing up, we carved our jack o’lanterns every year before Halloween, and my mom always roasted the seeds for a tasty snack. Pumpkin seeds are nutritious, too—they’re a great source of magnesium and plant-based protein.

Pumpkin carving night is still one of my favorite nights of the year, and now I carry on the tradition with my husband and a glass of wine. While I’m only a mediocre pumpkin carver, I’ve perfected my roasted pumpkin seed technique over the years. I’m sharing all of my tips with you today.

Roasting pumpkin seeds is really fun and easy when you know how to do it. When you don’t, you can make a big mess and end up with seeds that are either burnt, or never golden.

This foolproof recipe yields perfectly golden pumpkin seeds, every time! Keep reading to learn the easiest way to clean those slippery seeds.

Roasted Pumpkin Seed Tips & Tricks

These simple tips will yield delicious roasted pumpkin seeds with minimal fuss.

How to Remove Pumpkin Seeds

Use a sturdy, sharp knife to carefully remove the stem and surrounding area from the top of the pumpkin. Be careful and pay attention here! Then, use a large serving spoon or ice cream scooper to transfer the pumpkin seeds to a colander. Discard any large pieces of pumpkin.

If you have dry, sensitive skin, you may want to wear disposable gloves to protect your hands during this process. Pumpkin contains some naturally-occurring acids that can cause irritation (speaking from experience here!). That’s why you’ll find pumpkin in some natural exfoliating face masks.

How to Clean Your Pumpkin Seeds

I’ve tried several techniques, and here’s the easiest way. Run water over the seeds and swish them around, removing any obvious bits of pumpkin flesh along the way. Drain off the excess water.

Create a double layer of large paper grocery bags by placing one inside the other (if you don’t have bags, you could probably use a large bowl with a secure lid). Add the seeds and a clean, lint-free tea towel or several paper towels. Fold the bag to close and shake it all around! They should be dry enough at this point.

How to Roast Pumpkin Seeds

Spread the seeds onto a large, rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper for easy cleanup (it will also prevent the seeds from sticking to the pan if you choose to add any sweetener). Pour the seeds onto the pan and shake off any seeds stuck to the towels.

Toss the seeds with a few basic ingredients: Olive oil or butter, maple syrup or honey (optional, for some sweetness), and salt. We’ll wait to add any spices because they tend to burn in the oven.

Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit, which is high enough to yield toasty results in just 12 to 16 minutes. Stir every 5 minutes to prevent burning. You’ll know the seeds are done when they’re fragrant and lightly golden, as you see in the photos below. Then, stir in spices if you’d like.

Pumpkin Seed Flavor Variations

Choose your ingredients carefully to yield your own fun flavor variation. Here are your options:

Olive oil or butter: Olive oil provides a more neutral backdrop, while butter makes the seeds taste more like popcorn.
Maple syrup or honey: Add a bit of either one for some optional sweetness. Delicious!
Freshly ground black pepper: Pepper is an easy way to add an irresistible, savory note. I think my favorite variation is maple syrup with black pepper.
Ground spices: For even more flavor, stir in some warming spices once the seeds are out of the oven. I like pumpkin spice blend or ground cinnamon, or golden curry powder (just beware that curry powder will tint your fingers yellow).

Watch How to Roast Pumpkin Seeds

More Pumpkin Recipes to Enjoy

On a pumpkin kick? Let’s do it! Here are more than a few options, or you can view all pumpkin recipes here.

Pancakes and Waffles: Pumpkin Oat Pancakes (gluten free) or Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes or Pumpkin Spice Waffles
Quick Breads: Healthy Pumpkin Bread or Pumpkin Muffins
Savory: Creamy Pumpkin Marinara or Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Soup
Sweet Treats: Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups or Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Maple Glaze

Please let me know how your pumpkin seeds turn out in the comments. I hope this recipe yields a tasty snack and fun memories.

Perfect Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups
Diet: Gluten Free

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.5 from 24 reviews

This fun recipe yields perfect roasted pumpkin seeds, every time. You’ll also find tips on how to clean the seeds, plus flavor variations! Recipe yields about one medium pumpkin’s worth of seeds (1 ½ cups).*

Ingredients

1 ½ cups fresh pumpkin seeds
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil or melted butter
Optional sweetener: 2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey
¼ teaspoon fine salt, to taste
Optional flavorings: Freshly ground black pepper, to taste, or 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice blend or ground cinnamon or curry powder

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Instructions

To clean your pumpkin seeds: Place the pumpkin seeds in a colander. Run water over the seeds and swish them around, removing any obvious bits of pumpkin flesh along the way. Drain off the excess water. Create a double layer of paper grocery bags (one inside the other). Place the seeds inside with a clean, lint-free tea towel or several paper towels. Fold the bag to close and shake it all around! They should be dry enough at this point.
To toast your pumpkin seeds: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy clean-up.
Place your rinsed and dried pumpkin seeds on the prepared baking sheet. Add the oil, sweetener (if using) and salt. Stir until all of the seeds are coated, then spread them in an even layer across the baking sheet.
Bake for 12 to 16 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until the seeds are fragrant and turning golden. Season them with additional salt, to taste. If desired, season with black pepper, to taste, or stir in the pumpkin spice blend or curry powder. Enjoy.
Cooled, leftover pumpkin seeds will keep well in a bag at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Notes

*Pumpkin seed quantity notes: If your pumpkin yields a bit over or under 1 ½ cups, you should be fine following these ingredients and instructions as written. If it yields significantly less, know that your seeds may finish baking a few minutes earlier, so keep an eye on them. I’m able to fit a maximum of 2 cups on my baking sheet at one time—don’t overcrowd them or they won’t get toasty.

Make it dairy free/vegan: For dairy-free pumpkin seeds, simply use olive oil instead of butter. For vegan seeds, use olive oil and don’t use honey (maple syrup is a great alternative, or skip the sweetener altogether).

Change it up: You can use this technique to roast other winter squash seeds, including butternut, acorn, delicata and spaghetti squash. Since these seeds are typically smaller than pumpkin seeds, they may roast more quickly, so keep an eye on them.

Nutrition

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Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

Kathryne Taylor — Thu, 28 Nov 2019 15:51:51 +0000

We’re coming in hot with a very last-minute Thanksgiving dessert recipe! The idea came to me when I was exasperated by yet another failed attempt to make maple-sweetened pumpkin pie. I opened the refrigerator and spied some leftover pumpkin purée next to a block of cream cheese.

Here we are, with no-bake treats that taste like pumpkin pie and cheesecake had a baby. They work because we serve them in individual cups, so they don’t have to retain a sliceable shape.

These pumpkin treats feature a mousse-like blend of pumpkin purée, Greek yogurt, and pumpkin spice. We top the pumpkin base with a creamy, tangy blend of cream cheese and Greek yogurt. Each layer is naturally sweetened with maple syrup.

Both mixtures will thicken up if you have time to chill these for an hour or more in the fridge. Top your cups off with a simple blend of toasted pecans and graham cracker crumbles, and you’re ready to go.

Happy Thanksgiving from Cookie and Kate! If you’re looking for more last-minute Thanksgiving recipes or the perfect gift, we have you covered.

Ingredient Recommendations

This recipe is best made with thick pumpkin purée (plain purée, not pumpkin pie blend). I recommend Whole Foods 365 or Libby’s brand of pumpkin purée. Don’t buy the Farmer’s Market brand, which is significantly more watery.

You’ll also want to use the thickest plain yogurt you can find. Siggi’s yogurt is my favorite for this purpose, since it’s even more thick than standard Greek yogurt (to the point that it could almost pass as labneh).

Serving Suggestions

You’ll need 8 very small cups, or shooters, for this recipe. Glass cups are fun because they show the layers. Ramekins will work, too. To yield 8 desserts, each cup will contain just over 3 ounces.

Here are options available at major retailers (these are affiliate links):

Crate and Barrel’s Bitty Bite Short Glasses (shown here)
3.25-ounce Duralex Picardie Glass Tumblers, available at Williams-Sonoma, Sur la Table or Amazon (you could use up to the 7.75-ounce glasses if you just don’t fill them to the top)

Please let me know how you like this simple dessert in the comments! I love hearing from you.

Looking for more Thanksgiving-worthy treats?

You can find more Thanksgiving recipes here, from vegetarian main dishes to healthy sides and more.

Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 8 cups

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 14 reviews

This easy no-bake pumpkin dessert recipe will be a hit at your Thanksgiving table! It’s made with real pumpkin, Greek yogurt, cream cheese (1 block total), and maple syrup. Recipe yields 8 small desserts, and you will need 8 small glasses to contain them.

Ingredients

Pecan & Graham Cracker Topping

⅓ cup pecan halves
2 graham crackers (1 sheet), broken into 1″ pieces*
¼ teaspoon pumpkin spice blend

Cheesecake Mousse

6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature, cut into 1” cubes
½ cup thick, plain whole-milk yogurt (either Siggi’s brand or Greek yogurt)
¼ cup maple syrup or honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pumpkin Mousse

1 can (15 ounces or 1 ⅞ cups) pumpkin purée (I recommend Libby’s or Whole Foods 365 brand)
½ cup thick, plain whole-milk yogurt (either Siggi’s brand or Greek yogurt)
2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
¼ cup maple syrup or honey
1 tablespoon pumpkin spice blend
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

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Instructions

First, make the pecan and graham cracker topping: Toast the pecans in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 3 to 6 minutes. Transfer the pecans to a food processor and add the broken graham crackers and pumpkin spice blend.
Process the mixture for about 10 seconds, until the pecans and grahams are broken into tiny pieces (you may need to break up a few persistent pieces between your fingers, to avoid turning the mixture into nut butter). Transfer the mixture to a bowl and wipe out the food processor with a clean tea towel for the next step.
To make the cheesecake mousse: In the food processor, combine the cream cheese (6 ounces of it), yogurt, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Blend until the mixture is completely smooth, scraping down the sides and bottom as necessary. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. It’s ok if a bit of it remains in the food processor for the next step.
To make the pumpkin mousse: In the food processor, combine the pumpkin purée, yogurt, the remaining 2 ounces of cream cheese, maple syrup, pumpkin spice blend, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Blend until the mixture is completely smooth, scraping down the sides and bottom as necessary.
To assemble, transfer about 2 ounces (¼ cup) of the pumpkin purée to each of your 8 cups. Top each with about 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of the cream cheese mixture—you might have a bit leftover; just divide it between the cups. Top each with about 1 tablespoon of the pecan and graham cracker topping.
Serve immediately, or better yet, cover and refrigerate for later (they’ll thicken up somewhat over time, which I like—they’ll keep for up to 2 days in the fridge).

Notes

If you don’t have a food processor: No problem. Just chop up the pecans and graham cracker, transfer to a bowl, and stir in the pumpkin spice blend. You can whip together the cream cheese and pumpkin mixtures with a hand mixer or a whisk.

*Make it gluten free: Buy certified gluten-free graham crackers, or use ½ cup pecans and omit the graham crackers entirely. (This is also a good trick if you don’t want to buy a box of graham crackers just to use 1 sheet.)

Make it nut free: I think toasted pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) would be nice in place of the pecans. Or, omit the nuts and use 4 sheets of graham crackers instead.

Nutrition

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Pumpkin Spice Blend

Kathryne Taylor — Fri, 27 Sep 2019 16:53:22 +0000

Would you believe that most of the “pumpkin” flavor in pumpkin spice comes from the spice? It’s true. Pumpkin on its own can be a little ho-hum. It needs some warming spices to meet its true potential.

I’m sharing my go-to pumpkin spice blend recipe in the hopes that it saves you a trip to the grocery store this fall. It’s super quick and easy.

You don’t need a store-bought pumpkin spice blend if you have these basic spices in your drawer: ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice or cloves. Simply stir them together, and you’re ready to bake up all your pumpkin spice treats.

The only trick is knowing the proper ratio, which you’ll find in the recipe below. This recipe intentionally yields a small amount (two tablespoons), in case you just need enough pumpkin spice to bake, say, a pie. You can easily multiply the recipe to yield a full spice jar, if you’re planning to bake up a storm this season.

Pumpkin Spice Uses

You can use this homemade pumpkin spice blend in any recipe that calls for pumpkin spice. You can also add some “pumpkin spice” flavor to any recipe by simply adding a teaspoon or two of this blend. Any recipe that already calls for cinnamon (or could benefit from it) is fair game for a pumpkin spice spin.

If you’d like to simplify a recipe that calls for multiple spices (including cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg or similar), replace the sum total of spice with the same amount of pumpkin spice blend.

Baked treats: Pumpkin Pecan Polvorones (Mexican Wedding Cookies) and Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Maple Glaze
Pancakes and waffles: Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pancakes, Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes, and Gluten-Free Pumpkin Spice Waffles
Quick breads: Healthy Pumpkin Muffins and Healthy Pumpkin Bread
Warm drinks: Homemade Pumpkin Chai Latte

Please let me know how this recipe works for you in the comments! Tell me, what pumpkin treats are you craving this fall?

Pumpkin Spice Blend

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2 tablespoons

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 10 reviews

This pumpkin spice blend recipe is so easy to make. Combine ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice or cloves. Stir them together and make your favorite pumpkin recipe! Recipe yields 2 tablespoons. You can easily double or triple the recipe (3 teaspoons is equivalent to 1 tablespoon).

Ingredients

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground allspice or cloves

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Instructions

In a small bowl or jar, combine all of the spices. Stir to combine.
Pumpkin spice will keep well in an airtight container for up to 1 year. Fresh spices are generally more potent, however.

Nutrition

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Healthy Pumpkin Muffins

Kathryne Taylor — Wed, 25 Sep 2019 09:13:02 +0000

We caught our first cool fall breeze this week. Do you know what that means? It’s pumpkin muffin time.

I snapped some new photos of my favorite pumpkin muffin recipe as I satisfied my pumpkin craving. These pumpkin muffins are perfect for chilly fall mornings and afternoon snacks.

They’re healthier than most, since they’re made with whole wheat flour and oats, sweetened with real maple syrup or honey, and call for coconut oil or olive oil instead of butter. Believe it or not, this healthy pumpkin muffin recipe yields light and fluffy muffins.

These pumpkin muffins wouldn’t be complete without plenty of warming spices, including cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Most “pumpkin spice” flavor comes from the spice, not the pumpkin!

I love these muffins with a spread of almond butter, peanut butter or pecan butter on top. Nut butter adds some extra protein, which means that I’m not hungry before lunchtime. If you’re going pumpkin-crazy this time of year, enjoy your muffin with a homemade pumpkin chai latte.

These pumpkin treats have the magical power to convert “healthy muffin” skeptics into fans. Let’s make some!

The Best Pumpkin Muffins

Five reasons to love this pumpkin muffin recipe:

These muffins are easy to make with basic ingredients. Only one bowl required!
They’re made with 100% whole grains, yet they’re fluffy and delicious. No one will know the difference.
They’re also naturally sweetened with maple syrup or honey, rather than loaded with refined sugar. The maple syrup (or honey) offers a touch of extra flavor, which I love.
These muffins feature a few of your favorite warming spices so they taste like your favorite pumpkin latte.
They freeze well for later, too. Just defrost individual muffins in the microwave for 30 to 60 seconds, or until gently warmed through. You don’t want to overdo it.

Healthy Pumpkin Muffin Notes & Tips

Change it up. Add nuts, chocolate chips or chopped fruit cranberries or crystallized ginger. See recipe notes for details.

Simplify the recipe. Substitute 2 teaspoons store-bought pumpkin spice blend for the individual spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice). Or, if your spice drawer is empty, simply use 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon and call it good.

Craving a sweet topping? Liz topped these muffins with my maple glaze from my pumpkin scones recipe, which sounds marvelous.

This muffin recipe is special diet-friendly. You can easily adjust this recipe to make it vegan, dairy free, egg free and/or gluten free. See the recipe notes for details.

Watch How to Make Healthy Pumpkin Muffins

Baking Tips for Success

How to Measure Flour

How you measure your flour is important. Why? If you measure incorrectly, you could end up with up to 50 percent extra flour, which will make your muffins dense, dry and flavorless. Use the spoon and swoop method:

Gently stir your flour to loosen any clumps.
Spoon your flour into the measuring cup with a big spoon or a flour scoop. Do not scoop up the flour directly into the measuring cup.
Level off the top of the cup with a knife. Repeat as necessary.

Use Baking Soda, Not Baking Powder

They are not the same thing. Both are leaveners that help your baked goods rise (baking powder contains some baking soda, but that’s a long story). For ideal results, always follow the recipe and measure carefully.

How to Stir Your Batter

This muffin batter is super simple to stir together by hand, and that’s how I recommend making these muffins. Why? Whipping your batter will make the flour’s gluten protein too strong, yielding tough muffins.

I know it can be tempting to use a stand mixer or hand mixer when it’s within reach. Please don’t! Follow the instructions below and you’ll end up with light, fluffy muffins.

More Pumpkin Treats & Fall Muffins

Craving more? You’re going to love these recipes:

Healthy Pumpkin Bread (like these muffins, but in bread form)
Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Maple Glaze
Pumpkin Pancakes
Perfect Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Healthy Banana Muffins
Healthy Apple Muffins

Please let me know how these pumpkin muffins turn out for you in the comments. I love hearing from you, and hope these pumpkin muffins become your new favorite.

P.s. That beautiful mug in the photos above and below? That’s handmade by my friend Margaret.

Healthy Pumpkin Muffins

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 23 mins
Total Time: 33 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 859 reviews

Easy, one bowl, healthier pumpkin muffins made with whole wheat grains and naturally sweetened! These pumpkin muffins are as light, fluffy and delicious as their coffee shop counterparts. Recipe yields 12 muffins.

Ingredients

⅓ cup melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil*
½ cup maple syrup or honey
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 cup pumpkin purée
¼ cup milk of choice (I used almond milk)
2 teaspoons pumpkin spice blend (or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon ground allspice or cloves)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour**
⅓ cup old-fashioned oats, plus more for sprinkling on top
Optional: 2 teaspoons turbinado (raw) sugar for a sweet crunch

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius). If necessary, grease all 12 cups of your muffin tin with butter or non-stick cooking spray (my pan is non-stick and didn’t require any grease).
In a large bowl, beat the oil and maple syrup or honey together with a whisk. Add the eggs, and beat well. Add the pumpkin purée, milk, pumpkin spice blend, baking soda, vanilla extract and salt.
Add the flour and oats to the bowl and mix with a large spoon, just until combined (a few lumps are ok). If you’d like to add any additional mix-ins***, like nuts, chocolate or dried fruit, fold them in now.
Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with about a tablespoon of oats, followed by a light sprinkle of raw sugar and/or pumpkin spice blend if you’d like. Bake muffins for 22 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.
Place the muffin tin on a cooling rack to cool. These muffins are delicate until they cool down. You might need to run a butter knife along the outer edge of the muffins to loosen them from the pan.
These muffins taste even better after they have rested for a couple of hours! They’ll keep at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. They keep well in the freezer in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months (just defrost individual muffins as needed).

Notes

Recipe adapted from my honey-sweetened pumpkin bread.

*Oil options: I love coconut oil here. I used unrefined coconut oil and can hardly taste it in the final product. Olive oil might lend an herbal note to the muffins, if you’re into that (I tested with California Olive Ranch’s “Everyday” variety and couldn’t even taste it). Vegetable oil has a neutral flavor but the average vegetable/canola oil is highly processed, so I recommend using cold-pressed sunflower oil or grapeseed oil if possible.

**Flour alternatives: White whole wheat flour works great, if you can find it. Whole wheat pastry flour yields extra light and fluffy muffins that are delicate until cooled. All-purpose flour and gluten-free all-purpose flour blends work as well.

**Change it up: You could really go crazy with add-ins here. After stirring in the flour and oats, gently fold in up to ¾ cup chocolate chips, chopped nuts like pecans or walnuts, and/or some chopped dried cranberries or crystallized ginger.

Serving suggestions: These muffins are great on their own, with a pat of butter, or spread with almond butter. They would also be fantastic with homemade pecan butter or coconut butter.

Make it egg free: Readers report that these muffins turn out well with flax eggs!

Make it vegan: Use maple syrup, flax eggs and non-dairy milk.

Make it dairy free: Simply use your non-dairy milk of choice.

Make it gluten free: Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose blend works well instead of the whole wheat flour. Or, use 2 ½ cups certified gluten-free oat flour instead.

Make it oat free: Simply omit the oats. No other changes necessary.

Make it lower in fat: I would argue that this bread contains a healthy amount of fat, but you can replace the oil with applesauce if you’re following a low-fat diet. Choosing olive oil instead of coconut oil will reduce the saturated fat content; total fat content will remain the same.

Update September 24, 2019: I removed white whole wheat flour as an option simply because I can’t find it in stores any more. I also upped the amount of spice from 1 ½ teaspoons to 2 teaspoons.

Nutrition

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Pumpkin Pancakes

Kathryne Taylor — Sun, 05 Nov 2017 19:58:33 +0000

Happy Sunday! I’m sharing these fluffy whole wheat pumpkin pancakes too late for breakfast this morning, but the recipe has actually been available here since 2010. It’s actually one of my oldest recipes, and one of my favorites for fall.

These pumpkin pancakes taught me that whole grain pancakes can be every bit as tasty and fluffy as pancakes made with regular flour. Bonus? These babies don’t send my blood sugar spiraling out of control like the regular kind.

This recipe taught me a lot about making pancakes from scratch. It inspired my fluffy vegan pancakes, gingerbread pancakes, and the pancake recipes in my cookbook. I’ve made these pancakes for my family on Thanksgiving morning and they were a big hit.

I never felt like the old photos did these pancakes justice, so I’m sharing the recipe again today. I updated the recipe notes and added nutrition information while I was at it. Pumpkin pancakes for dinner, anyone?

Watch How to Make Pumpkin Pancakes

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 2 servings

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 143 reviews

These healthy pumpkin pancakes are so fluffy, you won’t believe they’re 100% whole grain. This pumpkin pancake recipe is sure to become your favorite. It’s naturally sweetened with maple syrup, too! Recipe yields 6 to 8 medium pancakes, enough to serve two to three people. Double the recipe for a larger crowd, or if you would like leftovers.

Ingredients

1 cup white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon (for stronger pumpkin “spice” flavor, use 1 teaspoon or substitute 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice blend)
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk of choice
⅓ cup pumpkin purée
1 egg
2 tablespoons maple syrup or brown sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil

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Instructions

If you’ll be using an electric skillet, preheat it to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir until blended.
In a separate bowl, combine the milk, pumpkin purée, egg, maple syrup, vanilla extract and melted butter. Whisk until thoroughly blended. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and stir until no big lumps remain. (If your butter or oil solidifies on contact with cold ingredients, just warm the mixture in the microwave for 15 to 30 seconds until it melts again, or let the mixture rest for a few minutes in a warm place).
If you’re not using an electric griddle, heat a heavy cast iron skillet or nonstick griddle over medium-low heat. You’re ready to start cooking your pancakes once the surface of the pan is hot enough that a drop of water sizzles on contact.
If necessary, lightly oil the cooking surface with additional oil or cooking spray (I don’t oil the surface of my non-stick griddle and my pancakes turned out great).
Using a ⅓-cup measure, scoop the batter onto the warm skillet. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until small bubbles form on the surface of the pancakes. It’s ready to flip when about ½-inch of the perimeter is matte instead of glossy. Flip each pancake and cook on the opposite sides for 1 to 2 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
Repeat the process with the remaining batter, greasing the skillet as needed. If necessary, dial the heat down to prevent burning the pancakes. Serve the pancakes immediately, or stack them and cover the plate with a tea towel to keep them warm.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Big Girls, Small Kitchen.

Leftover pancakes? Pancakes make great leftovers! Store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze them for months. To warm, wrap a short stack of pancakes loosely in a paper towel and gently reheat in the microwave until warmed through, flipping and re-wrapping the stack halfway through.

Make it vegan: Use non-dairy milk (like almond milk), omit the egg and replace the butter with coconut oil.

Make it dairy free: Use non-dairy milk and replace the butter with coconut oil.

Make it egg free: Just omit the egg (really).

Flour options: All-purpose flour should also work fine here.

Make it gluten-free: Bob’s Red Mill’s gluten-free all-purpose flour will work well here. Or, check out my pumpkin oat pancakes!

Nutrition

Here’s the original photo for these pumpkin pancakes.

The post Pumpkin Pancakes appeared first on Cookie and Kate.

Creamy Pumpkin Marinara

Kathryne Taylor — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 16:57:33 +0000

This sauce came to be by pure chance. I simply opened up my refrigerator and saw a jar of leftover pumpkin purée next to leftover diced tomatoes. They reminded me of a pasta sauce I bought at Trader Joe’s last year, called Autumnal Harvest Pasta Sauce.

“Autumnal Harvest Pasta Sauce” might be a more accurate title for this recipe, since it’s not overtly pumpkin-flavored. It’s a mouthful, though!

This sauce tastes like fall, with a hint of spice. The bell pepper’s flavor really shines through, so if you want a more pumpkin-y sauce, omit the pepper. Maybe add some extra cinnamon, too, since pumpkin spice flavor is more about the spice than the pumpkin. While pumpkin doesn’t offer a lot in the flavor department, it does make this blended sauce nice and creamy, without any cream.

This sauce is comforting like mac and cheese, but full of vegetables. It’s the perfect way to warm up on a chilly fall evening. I hope you love it like I do! Please let me now how it turns out in the comments.

Watch How to Make Creamy Pumpkin Marinara

More Pumpkin Recipes to Enjoy

Savory

Sweet

View more pumpkin recipes here.

Creamy Pumpkin Marinara

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4 cups

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 93 reviews

This pumpkin marinara recipe tastes like fall. It’s comforting like mac and cheese, but lighter and full of vegetables! Just add pasta. Recipe yields about 4 cups sauce (enough to generously coat 12 ounces/4 modest servings of pasta).

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
½ teaspoon salt, divided
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon dried tarragon
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 can (15 ounces) diced or crushed tomatoes
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin purée
1 to 2 tablespoons butter
1 to 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
Finely grated Parmesan and chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (both optional)

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Instructions

Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once it’s shimmering, add the onion, bell pepper and ¼ teaspoon of the salt. Cook, stirring often, until the onions and pepper are very tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
Add the garlic, oregano, tarragon, and cinnamon. While stirring, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook for 1 minute, while stirring. Add the pumpkin purée and stir to combine. Continue simmering for 5 minutes, then remove it from the heat.
Carefully transfer the mixture to your blender. Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon vinegar. Blend until very smooth and creamy.
Season generously with freshly ground black pepper and additional salt (I usually add another ¼ teaspoon salt). For a more luxurious sauce, add another tablespoon of butter, or for more tangy complexity, add another teaspoon of vinegar. Blend to combine.
Stir into warm pasta. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan and chopped parsley on top.

Notes

Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the butter or blend in olive oil instead. Use vegan Parmesan or omit it.

Make it gluten free: This sauce is gluten free. Just serve it over gluten-free pasta.

Nutrition

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Healthy Pumpkin Bread!

Kathryne Taylor — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 12:58:56 +0000

Raise your hands if you’re excited about fall! I’m looking forward to pumpkin treats, cooler weather and dusting off my favorite boots. The leaves on the trees outside look tired, so I think we’re in for a show soon.

I’m satisfying my pumpkin cravings with my favorite pumpkin bread while we wait for those magnificent red and orange trees. This recipe is a simplified and perfected version of my old honey-sweetened pumpkin bread.

It’s made with pumpkin purée and spices, of course, plus honey (or maple syrup), white whole wheat flour (which is more neutral-flavored than regular) and coconut oil. Combine all of those in one bowl and you’ll get some seriously amazing pumpkin bread.

If you’re a fan of my banana bread, you’re going to love this recipe, too. This recipe is highly adaptable to special diets, and I’ve added notes for adjustments under the recipe. Pumpkin bread for everyone!

Watch How to Make Healthy Pumpkin Bread

I’ve been making recipe videos with my brother. We’ve gotten into more arguments than I’d like to admit, but we’re in a great rhythm now. Let us know what you think of our pumpkin bread video, will you, please? It’s short and snappy, and I hope you love it.

Please let me know how this bread turns out for you in the comments! I hope you love it as much as I do.

Craving more pumpkin treats and wholesome baking projects? Here are a few of my favorites:

Healthy pumpkin muffins (just like this pumpkin bread, but in muffin form!)
Pumpkin pecan scones with maple glaze
Pumpkin pancakes
Pumpkin waffles
More pumpkin recipes here!

Healthy Pumpkin Bread

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 55 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Yield: 1 loaf

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 333 reviews

This amazing pumpkin bread is naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup, and made with whole wheat flour. It’s so moist and fluffy, no one will ever guess! You can easily make this pumpkin bread vegan and/or gluten free—check the recipe notes for details. Recipe yields 1 loaf.

Ingredients

⅓ cup melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil*
½ cup honey or maple syrup
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin purée
¼ cup milk of choice or water
1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice blend (or ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon allspice or cloves)
1 teaspoon baking soda (NOT baking powder; they aren’t the same!)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¾ cups white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
Totally optional: ½ cup mix-ins like chopped walnuts or pecans, chocolate chips, raisins, chopped dried fruit…
Pinch of ground cinnamon, for sprinkling on top

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius) and grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, beat the oil and honey together together with a whisk. Add the eggs and whisk until blended. (If your coconut oil solidifies on contact with cold ingredients, simply let the bowl rest in a warm place for a few minutes, like on top of your stove, or warm it for about 10 seconds in the microwave.)
Add the pumpkin purée, milk, pumpkin spice, baking soda, vanilla and salt, and whisk to blend. Lastly, switch to a big spoon and stir in the flour, just until combined. Some lumps are ok! If you’re adding any additional mix-ins, gently fold them in now.
Pour the batter into your greased loaf pan and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. If you’d like a pretty swirled effect, run the tip of a knife across the batter in a zig-zag pattern.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (typically, if I haven’t added any mix-ins, my bread is done at 55 minutes; if I have added mix-ins, it needs closer to 60 minutes). Let the bread cool in the loaf pan for 10 minutes, then carefully transfer the bread to a cooling rack to cool for 20 minutes before slicing.

Notes

Recipe adapted from my honey whole wheat pumpkin bread and healthy banana bread.
Storage suggestions: This bread is moist, so it will keep for just two or three days at room temperature. Store it in the refrigerator for five to seven days, or in the freezer for up to three months or so. I like to slice the bread before freezing and defrost individual slices, either by letting them rest at room temperature or lightly toasting them.
*Oil options: I love coconut oil here. I used unrefined coconut oil and can hardly taste it in the final product. Olive oil might lend an herbal note to the muffins, if you’re into that (I tested with California Olive Ranch’s “Everyday” variety and couldn’t even taste it). Vegetable oil has a neutral flavor, but the average vegetable/canola oil is highly processed, so I recommend using cold-pressed sunflower oil or grapeseed oil if possible.
Make muffins: Here’s my pumpkin muffin recipe.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey, replace the eggs with flax eggs and choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it dairy free: Choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it egg free: Replace the eggs with flax eggs.
Make it gluten free: Bob’s Red Mill’s all-purpose gluten-free flour blend works well. Or, substitute 2 ½ cups certified gluten-free oat flour instead. Do NOT substitute coconut flour.

Flour alternatives: An equal amount of all-purpose flour can be used in place of the whole wheat flour.
Make it lower in fat: I would argue that this bread contains a healthy amount of fat, but you can replace the oil with applesauce if you’re following a low-fat diet.
Recommended equipment: I love my Fiesta Loaf Pan in Turquoise (affiliate link).

Nutrition

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Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Soup

Kathryne Taylor — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 17:06:43 +0000

Meet my favorite pumpkin soup recipe. It’s super creamy (thanks mostly to the pumpkin, with a little help from coconut milk or cream) yet plenty healthy, too. It’s gently spiced, but I made sure that the pumpkin flavor shines above the rest.

This dairy-free pumpkin soup would be a welcome addition to your holiday table. It would be equally at home with a soup or sandwich from fall through winter.

It’s easy to make and the leftovers taste even better the next day. So, you could certainly make the soup a day in advance. Don’t be intimidated by the ingredient list—this soup only requires basic pantry ingredients!

This soup was inspired by my recent trip to Portland. While I was there, I went to lunch with my baby brother and our friend Bill. I’ve written about Bill over the years—in summary, Bill beat leukemia with the help of my stem cells. He’s the toughest guy I know.

Now we’re friends who share the same immune system and we finally got to meet a few weeks ago. (More about that here and by the way, you can join the registry over here.)

We shared lunch and an afternoon at Multnomah Falls. It was a damp, gray fall day in the Pacific Northwest and it was perfect.

Bill picked The Picnic House for lunch. You really have to go next time you’re in Portland. “Unique” doesn’t begin to describe it—the restaurant feels like an old school theater inside, with different scenes set up in every corner and amazing food everywhere the eye can see.

I was tempted to order every item on the menu, but after much deliberation, I finally settled on a small soup, salad and sandwich. I might just have to recreate all three of them for the blog (so good), but homemade pumpkin soup seemed most timely.

I can’t say that my version is exactly the same, but it is equally satisfying and fresh. It’s utterly delicious in its own right.

Pumpkin Options

This pumpkin soup recipe includes instructions on how to roast fresh pumpkin, for maximum pumpkin flavor. Canned pumpkin purée also works well, if you’re in a time crunch. See the recipe notes for details!

Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments. I’m always so eager for your feedback. If you’re craving more cozy fall soups, don’t miss my butternut soup, lentil soup or minestrone.

Looking for more Thanksgiving recipes? This is for you. Happy holidays!

Watch How to Make Pumpkin Soup

Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Soup

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 70 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 bowls

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 323 reviews

This pumpkin soup recipe is creamy AND healthy! It calls for roasted pumpkin for maximum flavor. This roasted pumpkin soup recipe would look lovely on your holiday dinner table, and leftovers would go great with sandwiches or salads the next day. Recipe yields 4 bowls or 6 cups of soup.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
One 4-pound sugar pie pumpkin
1 large yellow onion, chopped
4 large or 6 medium garlic cloves, pressed or minced
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon cloves
Tiny dash of cayenne pepper (optional, if you like spice)
Freshly ground black pepper
4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
½ cup full fat coconut milk or heavy cream
2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
¼ cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds)

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Carefully halve the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds (you can roast the seeds if you’d like—see note—but you won’t need them for this recipe).
Slice each pumpkin halve in half to make quarters. Brush or rub 1 tablespoon olive oil over the flesh of the pumpkin and place the quarters, cut sides down, onto the baking sheet. Roast for 35 minutes or longer, until the orange flesh is easily pierced through with a fork. Set it aside to cool for a few minutes.
Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add onion, garlic and salt to the skillet. Stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes. In the meantime, peel the pumpkin skin off the pumpkins and discard the skin.
Add the pumpkin flesh, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cayenne pepper (if using), and a few twists of freshly ground black pepper. Use your stirring spoon to break up the pumpkin a bit. Pour in the broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, to give the flavors time to meld.
While the soup is cooking, toast the pepitas in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until fragrant, golden and making little popping noises. You want them to be nice and toasty, but not burnt. Transfer pepitas to a bowl to cool.
Once the pumpkin mixture is done cooking, stir in the coconut milk and maple syrup. Remove the soup from heat and let it cool slightly. You can use an immersion blender to blend this soup in the pot. I prefer to use my stand blender, which yields the creamiest results—working in batches, transfer the contents of the pan to a blender (do not fill your blender past the maximum fill line!). Securely fasten the blender’s lid and use a kitchen towel to protect your hand from steam escaping from the top of the blender as you purée the mixture until smooth. Transfer the puréed soup to a serving bowl and repeat with the remaining batches.
Taste and adjust if necessary (I thought the soup was just right as is, but you might want to add more coconut milk for extra creaminess/milder flavor, or maple syrup to make it a little sweeter).
Ladle the soup into individual bowls. Sprinkle pepitas over the soup and serve. Let leftover soup cool completely before transferring it to a proper storage container and refrigerating it for up to 4 days (leftovers taste even better the next day!). Or, freeze this soup for up to 3 months.

Notes

Soup inspired by the pumpkin soup at The Picnic House in Portland and roughly adapted from my curried butternut soup.
Make it dairy free: Use coconut milk, not heavy cream.
Make it vegan: Use coconut milk and maple syrup.
Change it up: Kabocha squash works instead of pumpkin, and I bet butternut squash would work well, too.
If you want to use canned pumpkin: Instead of roasting the pumpkin, you can substitute two to three cans of pumpkin purée (15 ounces each). Just skip steps 1 and 2, and add two cans of pumpkin purée in step 4. You’ll still want to blend the soup for the best texture; add more pumpkin purée at that point if you’d like thicker soup.
How to roast pumpkin seeds: Pick off all the flesh bits from the seeds and discard them. I like to do this in a colander under running water. Pat the seeds dry with a tea towel or paper towels. Toss the seeds with a little olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and any other seasonings that sound good (I tossed my pumpkin seeds with 1 teaspoon brown sugar and ½ teaspoon curry powder). Toss to coat. Line a small, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the pumpkin seeds in a single layer. Roast for 13 to 16 minutes, until the seeds are fragrant and toasty.

Nutrition

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Whole Grain Pumpkin Spice Waffles

Kathryne Taylor — Tue, 28 Oct 2014 13:29:42 +0000

It sure looks like fall outside. The trees are lit up in yellow, orange and red and leaves are swirling around in the streets.

This year, like every year, I’m feeling conflicted about the falling leaves—simultaneously sad to see them go, but awe-struck by their blazing glory on the way down. Sweaters, scarves and holiday cheer will be here before we know it.

These gluten-free, oat flour-based pumpkin waffles are a fun breakfast for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas or any weekend from now until then.

These waffles freeze beautifully, too, so you might want to make a big batch and treat yourself to pumpkin waffles are busy weekday mornings. Just pop them in the toaster and you’re good to go!

These whole grain pumpkin waffles are a riff on my basic oat flour waffles recipe. “Basic” doesn’t begin to do them justice—these waffles are crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, light but hearty, and hold me over until lunch time.

In other words, they are basically perfect. I know a few commenters who can back me up on that! It took me a few tries to get the ratio of liquid/fat/pumpkin just right for these waffles, but I finally nailed it with the version below.

Don’t worry if you don’t have oat flour in your pantry. You can easily make your own oat flour in a blender or food processor, like I did for these waffles. See my oat flour tutorial for details.

More Pumpkin Treats to Enjoy

Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pancakes
Healthy Pumpkin Bread or Healthy Pumpkin Muffins (both offer oat flour options, see gluten-free recipe note)
Perfect Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes

View more pumpkin recipes here.

Healthy Pumpkin Spice Waffles

Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4 large waffles

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 111 reviews

These delicious, gluten-free pumpkin waffles are crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. This pumpkin waffle recipe’s secret ingredient is oat flour! You can easily make your own oat flour at home (check the recipe notes for details). This recipe yields 4 round, 7-inch Belgian waffles. Note: when I say “scant,” I mean just a couple teaspoons shy of the measurement listed.

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups (200 grams) oat flour*
1 tablespoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon allspice or cloves
3 large eggs
Scant ⅔ cup milk of choice (I used plain, unsweetened almond milk)
Scant ½ cup melted coconut oil or 7 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
½ cup (122 grams) packed pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Suggested toppings: more maple syrup, nut butter and/or toasted nuts, coconut whipped cream…

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Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the oat flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and all spice or cloves. Whisk to combine.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs. Then add the milk, coconut oil or butter, pumpkin purée, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Whisk until the mixture is thoroughly blended.
Pour the liquid mixture into the oat flour mixture. Stir with a big spoon until just combined (the batter will still be a little lumpy). Let the batter rest for 10 minutes so the oat flour has time to soak up some of the moisture. Plug in your waffle iron to preheat now.
Once 10 minutes is up, give the batter one more, gentle swirl with your spoon. The batter will be pretty thick, but don’t worry! Your waffles will turn out great. Pour batter onto the heated waffle iron, enough to cover the center and most of the central surface area, and close the lid.
Once the waffle is deeply golden and crisp, transfer it to a cooling rack or baking sheet. Don’t stack your waffles on top of each other or they’ll lose crispness. If desired, keep your waffles warm by placing them in a 200 degree oven until you’re ready to serve. Repeat with remaining batter and serve with desired toppings on the side.

Notes

Recipe adapted from my gluten-free oat waffles recipe.
*Make your own oat flour: Simply blend old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats in a food processor or blender until they are ground into a fine flour. You’ll need to blend about 2 ¼ cups oats to make 2 ¼ cups flour.
*A note on gluten free oats: Be sure to buy certified gluten-free oats or certified gluten-free oat flour to ensure your waffles are gluten free.
Freeze it: These waffles freeze beautifully. Just store in freezer-safe plastic bags and pop individual waffles into the toaster until warmed through.
Recommended equipment: This fancy-pants non-stick waffle maker. I love that it has a large cooking surface, which means I can cook an entire batch of waffles with just two presses.

Nutrition

The post Whole Grain Pumpkin Spice Waffles appeared first on Cookie and Kate.

Vegetarian recipes with pumpkin - Cookie and Kate

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Watch How to Make Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

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Roasted Pumpkin Seed Tips & Tricks

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Use Baking Soda, Not Baking Powder

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Watch How to Make Pumpkin Pancakes

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Watch How to Make Creamy Pumpkin Marinara

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Healthy Pumpkin Bread!

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Healthy Pumpkin Bread

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