pumpkin |

Pumpkin cream cheese pie bars

I know that posting a thanksgiving-y recipe on the very same day isn’t nice. But I’ve got a good excuse: I don’t celebrate Thanksgiving! Because in Mexico we have turkey for Christmas, as is proper. With pears and potatoes and lasagna. As is right. And of course by that I mean as we’ve always done chez moi. : )
But back to the thanksgiving issue. I actually made this for a themed dinner, and since it’s pumpkin season regardless of the holiday and the puree was homemade, I was left with about 1 lt. extra of the stuff. And the stuff is so yummy! You can make all sorts of pumpkin dishes, apparently something I’d never been aware of because we just don’t have that tradition. But now I am, and the inevitable pinterest search for pumpkin recipes did not disappoint. (Which probably means that I will disappoint and keep posting pumpkin truffles and pumpkin bread and pumpkin soup way past the appropriate date. I’m not even sorry). So, to begin with! Pumpkin cream cheese pie bars. This recipe, which I found originally at Taste of Home, is actually a bit complicated. But definitely worth it…pumpkin meringue over creamy cheesecake? Definitely worth it. And besides, the layers are so decorative you might want to make them just because of that. And you can cut them into decent-sized bars, or just make one large cheesecake! Sounds good right? Read more for the recipe. Continue reading →

This time I’ll rant to you about something that’s happened to all of us. (I hope, unless I actually am crazy, as my family repeatedly likes to remind me). I walked into the supermarket about a week ago and dia de muertos/halloween euphoria had begun. And my supermarket mounted right on the entrance a huge display with the best looking, bright orange, smooth, with-appropiate-stem, shiny pumpkins they could find. And I knew the prettiest ones were carving pumpkins, but I could not resist. Yes, its true. I brought home an ingredient solely based on its looks. I know, I’m shallow. I could have gone for its uglier, paler, bumpier sister, the squash. But I didn’t, even though it’s flesh is softer and tastier. (Because what really matters is on the inside! *cough*men*cough) And my reward was 20 minutes of hand-pain after trying to get its lovely shell off. (Does this happen to men that only go out with models?) But in spite of its hard, not-as-strong-tasting flesh, the result was great. The resulting chutney is tangy, spicy and sweet, and very strong flavored. Great to combine with meats. AND you can actually serve it on halloween, on a dish made from itself. (But trust me, you should bribe your grocer into peeling it for you, as my hands will tell you). I’ll probably come back with the recipe for the meat to serve it with, but meanwhile, on to the recipe.

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