Hello there! As I was laying in bed last night, I started feeling guilty. Guilty because I had leftovers from THREE delicious pumpkin recipes sitting in my fridge and I hadn't shared a single one with you yet. How selfish of me!
So I knew I had to get these out this morning. Like many of you, I have been hit by the Pumpkin Bug. I finally bought a couple of cans of pumpkin at the store last week and have been coming up with recipes to use it ever since.
I am giving you the abridged version of these recipes because I have a big test tonight and hours of studying ahead of me, but hopefully these give you an idea of how to recreate. Just use them as inspiration, if anything!
First up… Pumpkin Pancakes:
I used this recipe (I love Emily's recipes. They are some of my favorite. Vegetarian -- sometimes vegan-- but really hearty and wholesome) and made a few changes.
Instead of flax, I used a real egg, I left out the apple cider vinegar and halved the entire recipe. I also used wheat germ instead of flour for 25% of the flour it called for (so half the recipe called for 1 cup WW flour. I used 3/4 cup flour and 1/4 cup wheat germ for a nutritional kick). It made 6 pancakes, and I saved half of them in my freezer for another day (probably today ;) ). Also, I added chopped Walnuts for some healthy fats. I sprinkled them onto the pancakes while they were cooking. Delicious!
Next up… Baked Pumpkin Pasta with Roasted Veggies
This has been great because I made a big batch of it and have had it all week. Rough recipe:
1) Roast Veggies. I used Eggplant, Brussels Sprouts, and a head of Cauliflower. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar, EVOO, S&P. Roast in 450 oven for about 30 minutes.
2) Cook pasta according to directions
3) Make the Sauce: I used about a half cup of tomato sauce, plus about half a can of pumpkin. I added a couple tablespoons of butter and about a spoonful of ricotta. You can get creative here.
4) Combine everything once the veggies/sauce/pasta are done into one large baking pan. Add some grated parmesan (handful) and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. I used about 3 cups of roasted veggies, a cup of sauce, and a whole package of pasta. This made about 6 or 7 servings… good for the whole week.
This turned out better than I had expected and was super easy. I love how the pumpkin really helps create a pretty healthy but creamy sauce.
And finally… obbvviouusslly Pumpkin Cookies with Raisinets
I randomly bought Raisinets the other day and needed to do something with them. What else other than a Pumpkin cookie!? I used Whole Wheat Pastry Flour instead of flour, which made these super light and fluffy. They really came out well!
I followed this recipe but halved it (I do not need 60 cookies sitting in my kitchen!). I also cut the sugar in half, so only used 1/2 cup instead of 1 cup for half the recipe. Like I said, I used WW pastry flour instead of flour, and of course Raisinets instead of Chocolate Chips.
I hope these recipes inspire you to add some fall flavored pumpkin to your meals. It's a fun vegetable with a lot of health benefits (low calorie, tons of Vitamin A which is good for your eyes and your immune system, loaded with fiber), and is very very versatile. Go crazy!
You are bad at sharing with your neighbors who LOVE PUMPKIN!
I didn't know you guys were so into pumpkin! I promise to share next time.
I'm obsessed with pumpkin! I've made 3 batches of this pumpkin granola (http://paleomg.com/pumpkin-granola/)... it's so good! Now I'm going to have to try those pancakes, they look delicious. Hope all is well, miss you!
Wow all of the recipes on that blog look SO good. Are you doing Paleo? Miss you too!!
I've sort of been trying...haven't gone 100% paleo yet. We'll see if I ever get that far!
Oh wow good for you. Let me know how it goes!
YUM. Me love pumpkin :)
I was hoping you'd like these Leah! ;)