Pumpkin Desserts

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When Summer ends and the cool Fall breeze returns, it is a wonderful time at our house! We immediately start gathering pumpkins. From local pumpkin stands or the grocery, you are sure to accomulate a lot of pumpkins in the Fall. Why not eat them too? There is something magical about carving into a pumpkin and showing the kids all of the edible parts of a pumpkin. Letting their hands explore in the seeds and their muscle being used to scoop out the gooey parts. Letting them practice cutting the flesh. Watching them learn to follow a recipe to turn their pumpkin into something delicious! Practical life skills, mathematics, listening, patience, it is all learnt during a baking session with pumpkins. Below I have listed some of our favorite recipes that use pumpkin. Of course you can use organic canned pumpkin in the recipes if you are unable to process a whole pumpkin. I hope you enjoy these, and please comment with your favorite pumpkin dessert!

Pumpkin Caramel Swirl Muffins

Last year my daughter (3 years old at the time) asked for Halloween cupcakes. I immediately thought pumpkin and went on a search to find a muffin that could easily pass for a cupcake. Sure enough, I found the perfect one. These are beautiful and smell amazing! I am not a fan of cupcake liners for the added waste and since it was just for our family, I used our silicone muffin pan. This pan, purchased on a whem from Target’s Valentine’s Day discounted shelf, has been perfect. Nothing sticks to it! I highly recommend finding a silicone muffin pan and skipping the liners whenever possible. Back to the muffins! I’ll admit I was a little nervous about the swirl. Last time I put a swirl in anything I was making brownies from a box many many years ago. A swirl from scratch- “OK. I can do this”. And I did. Not hard at all. These were so tasty and will become a tradition for Halloween cupcakes in our house for years to come. Click here for recipe link. Don’t worry the link is correct- just scroll down and find the muffin version. There you will also find instructions for making the caramel swirl.

Pumpkin Pie

This pumpkin pie is not technically challenging or time consuming. I love to make this pie for the Fall season. It’s so delicious that my family always asks for more. And because Brandi Doming does such a great job at keep the recipe simple, I don’t hesitate in making it! Check out this link for the recipe. You will not be disappointed!

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Pumpkin Fluff

This is a tasty treat! It is so much fun for the little ones to make. Have fun with the presentation as well. You could easily serve this in a pumpkin at a get together. It goes perfectly with Vegan Vanilla Wafers, recipe by Elavegan. However, you can also find store bought vegan wafers at Health Stores or Trader Joes. Ginger snaps are another delicious pairing option. Just dip the wafer or cookie in and enjoy!

Recipe

Ingredients:

One 15 oz can of pumpkin

1 Instant white chocolate pudding mix

One 8 oz container of Cocowhip by So Delicious

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp of all spice

Directions:

In a medium size bowl mix all ingredients well. Chill for at least 2 hours. Serve cold.

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Pumpkin Bread

So if you’ve already checked out the pumpkin caramel swirl muffins, you may have already found a pumpkin bread recipe to enjoy. But if you are still looking for one or maybe you aren’t interested in the gluten-free option above. Here is a very delicious pumpkin bread! It is simple to make and turned out great. We all devoured it! Be sure to check the ingredients, as you may not have spelt flour on hand, but otherwise, it is straight forward. I look forward to reading your comments! Recipe link below.

Click this link for the recipe.

Raising Vegan Tip- After using pumpkins for decoration or food, but sure to compost them. You can easily chop them up and add to an existing compost bin or you can bury them. By burying them in a garden bed or side yard, you will replenish the soil and by next Fall you will find your own pumpkin vines growing!

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Kid approved Buckwheat Pancakes (or Waffles)

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Whether you are feeding adults or baby-lead weaning, these pancakes will be well received! Not a fan of pancakes? No problem. Use this same batter in a waffle maker and you have yourself some delicious and healthy waffles. I love this recipe because it is oil-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and refined sugar free. They are easy, quick and fun!

No time to stand at a stove or at a waffle maker? Pour them out on a cookie sheet (with parchment paper) and bake them for 15-20 minutes. I tend to do this most often when I am making these for an afternoon snack. Between my 2-year-old and 4-year-old, they can eat an entire batch. The good news, I actually feel confident that they are getting a healthy snack.

Buckwheat is a whole grain and packed full of healthy calories, protein, and fiber. Studies have shown that eating buckwheat regularly as part of a healthy diet, can lower cholesterol levels and prevent chronic diseases, such as Diabetes Mellitus and hypertension. Just one cup of buckwheat flour contains: 48% daily value (DV) of Fiber (12 g), 30% DV of Protein (15 g), 85 mg of Omega-3 fatty acid, 1052 mg of Omega-6 fatty acid, 11% DV of Vitamin K (8.4 mcg), 33% DV of Thiamin (0.5 mg), 13% DV of Riboflavin (0.2 mg), 37% DV of Niacin (7.4 mg), 35% DV of Vitamin B6 (0.7 mg), and 16% DV of Folate (64.8 mcg). Estimated Glycemic load is 44.

Making these for an event, playdate, or holiday? Grab the cookie cutters and let the kids get creative stamping out all the different shapes.

We first found this recipe at Detoxinista, but needed to modify it a bit as we were interested in an oil-free option. We also like a thinner batter.

Modified Recipe:

If baking, preheat over to 375F

Mash 2-3 ripe bananas in large bowl.

Add 1 cup buckwehat flour, 4 tablespoons water, 2 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, 1 cup unsweetened almondmilk or soymilk.

Stir and combine well.

Pour onto hot pan or waffle maker. Serve immediately or allow to cool and store. If baking, bake for 15-18 minutes and allow to cool for 5 minutes on pan.

Raising Vegan Tip- I like to use compostable parchment paper to line the baking sheet. Once they are cooked evenly and have cooled, the pancakes peel off nicely. I can quickly throw the compostable parchment paper into our compost and clean up is complete!

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Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

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If you arrived here from my other post- 1st Birthday: Cakes. You are in the right place! Here you will find all the details on these AMAZING vegan cupcakes. If not, go ahead and check out my post, where I discuss all the delicious deserts we served at our daughter’s 1st birthday party.

These chocolate cupcakes pack a bit of a punch. Luckily, you decide just how big of a kick you want. I modified a vegan Hot Chocolate Cupcake recipe by adding a couple of spices. This transformed them and made them extra special. I still use the frosting in the original recipe, however, there are so many fantastic vegan vanilla frosting recipes out there. I recommend trying a different one from time to time until you find a few basic frostings to have in your baking arsenal.


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What I love about the marshmellow frosting, is the lightness. It is extra fluffy and doesn’t overwhelm. It has a sweetness which compliments the spice of the cupcake. The frosting will settle after several hours, so I recommend making it the morning of or as close to the event as possible.

Raising Vegan Tip- When you drain a can or tetrapak of chickpeas, be sure to save the liquid. This is called aquafaba. It is magic! It is the perfect egg white replacer. Best way to save aquafaba is by freezing it in an ice cube tray. Portion it out by need- 2 tablespoons of aquafaba = 1 eggwhite and 3 tablespoons of aquafaba = 1 whole egg. This way when you are baking ang suddenly need the egg replacer you will have it stashed away in your freezer.

Ready to try this amazing recipe? Head on over to Wallflower Kitchen for the hot chocolate cupcake and frosting recipe. Remember to add the spice- Add 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper and 1/8 tsp of cinnamon to the dry ingredients. You can adjust the heat based on flavor preference, but note the spice becomes more intense after they cook. I can’t wait to hear how you like them!

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