Waste not: A pumpkin love story

For those of you who know me, there is no wrong season for pumpkin. There is no occasion for which pumpkin is not an appropriate ingredient. Nonetheless, I usually get all fired up with everyone else around the early fall for the return of all things pumpkin. Today, it is the third day of June. Appropriate time to blog about pumpkin recipes? Yes.
I have a really awesome recipe for Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal Parfaits (I could have sworn I'd shared that recipe on here before, but alas no. You'll have to wait for another day.) The downside is that even though I make a double batch, it still leaves about a cup of leftover pumpkin puree from a 15 oz. can. Not enough to use in the average recipe that calls for pumpkin, yet far too much for all those recipes that call for 3 Tbs. (seriously, who has only 3 Tbs. of pumpkin just lying around?) So, what to do with 1 cup of pumpkin puree (in June)? I found a great resource on this website for small amounts of pumpkin (1/2 cup or less) and decided to venture making a double batch of one, and I had just enough left to make one more recipe! I decided to try Pumpkin Biscotti because I've never made biscotti, but have always wanted to try. Plus, it looked easy if a bit time consuming. My house smells amazing right now! I'm also going to whip up Pumpkin Hummus (see recipe below) this afternoon after I clean up the mountain of dishes left over from dinner last night (busted-my mother would be so horrified that I shared this) and the pumpkin biscotti adventure. That reminds me, I should really post about the dinner I made last night. It is a seriously decked out chicken sandwich that I love so much I've made it four times in the past month. Next time.

Pumpkin Biscotti:
Makes 10-12 cookies.
Ingredients

·         1 large egg

·         ½ cup sugar

·         ½ teaspoon baking powder

·         ¼ cup pumpkin puree

·         ½ teaspoon cinnamon

·         ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

·         pinch of ginger

·         pinch of cloves

·         ⅛ teaspoon salt

·         ½ teaspoon vanilla

·         1¼ cups flour

·         3 tablespoons pepitas, lightly toasted (Pepitas are shelled roasted pumpkin seeds, which I did not have. I was NOT going to the store for this, so I subbed a handful of sunflower seeds and a handful of Craisins)

·         4 ounces real white chocolate, chopped

Instructions

1.     Preheat the oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

2.     In a medium bowl, beat together with a whisk the egg, sugar and baking powder. Beat vigorously until the mixture turns pale yellow and falls back in ribbons on itself when you lift out the whisk.

3.     Next, add the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, salt and vanilla. Continue whisking, aerating the mixture.

4.     Finally, sprinkle the flour on top and fold it in with a spatula. Fold in the pepitas last.

5.     Shape the dough into a flat log about 3″ wide by 8″ long using wet fingertips (the wet fingertips are important because the dough is very sticky). Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

6.     Remove from the oven, turn the oven down to 300 and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice into ½” slices, place them back on the baking sheet, sliced side down, and bake another 30 minutes, flipping them half-way through.

7.     Let cool completely on a wire rack. When ready to serve, melt the white chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave. Dip half of each biscotti into the white chocolate and let set before serving.

Notes (from original baker)

When making biscotti, the order of ingredients is important: be sure to beat the egg, sugar and baking powder alone before moving on to the next step.

Spicy Pumpkin Hummus:
Makes about 2 ½ cups of hummus

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons tahini (I subbed 2 Tbs. sesame seeds and 1 Tbs. sesame oil)
1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 teaspoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

Place chickpeas, garlic cloves, lemon juice, water, and tahini in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add pumpkin and seasonings and blend until well incorporated. With the motor running, drizzle in olive oil until blended.

Taste, and adjust any seasonings to your taste (I added a bit more lemon juice, salt, and cayenne).

 

I hope you enjoy (even if you logically decide to wait until September) and that this finds you all well!

Kelli