Pumpkin Rolls a Fall Favorite

 Pumpkin rolls are a fall treat that captures the essence of autumn. Fran makes these sweet, spiced pumpkin rolls every year for Thanksgiving. This is one treat that everybody in the family waits for every year.

Fran's pumpkin rolls and pumpkin squares are in the photo. These two treats grace our Thanksgiving table every year.

You can probably find pumpkin rolls in your local grocery store bakery, but I can assure you there is nothing better than making them homemade. Pumpkin rolls are made in two parts, the cake, and the sweet creamy filling.

Ingredients for the Cake:

• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2/3 cup of pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• Powdered sugar for dusting

For the Filling:

• 8 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 15x10-inch cookie sheet. We use Baker's Joy to grease our cookie sheet.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice until it becomes thick. Then mix in the pumpkin puree.
3. Gradually fold in the dry ingredients until all are combined.
4. Spread the batter evenly on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.
5. Layout a clean kitchen towel and dust with powdered sugar.
6. While the cake is still warm, carefully turn on the towel. Roll the towel with the cake, set aside, and let it cool completely. We place ours in the refrigerator.
7. Make the Filling, Beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla until it's smooth.
8. Assemble the Roll, Carefully unroll the cooled cake. Spread the filling evenly over the surface. Re-roll the cake without the towel. Wrap the roll tightly with plastic wrap. Chill for at least one hour before serving. Dust with more powdered sugar before slicing.

This is our cake right out of the oven before it's turned onto the kitchen towel. Since we make our pumpkin rolls a few days ahead of Thanksgiving we place them in the freezer after wrapping them in tin foil, and then plastic wrap.

Whether you are a seasoned baker or trying your hand at pumpkin roll for the first time, this dessert is sure to impress your family and friends. 

Cake Mix Pumpkin Squares

These cake mix pumpkin squares are another one of our Holiday favorites. You really don't have to wait for a Holiday to make this bite-size dessert.

Fran makes these a few times a year mostly for Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year I wanted to post and share the pumpkin squares dessert with you. So, I made them under Fran's direction using the recipe that she has been using for years.

I have to tell you, these are so easy to make and so delicious. Bobby just can't get enough of them when we make them.

Cake Mix Pumpkin Squares are made in 3 easy steps

Step 1: Make the Bottom Layer

Step 2: Make the filling

 Step 3: Make the Topping

Bottom Layer Ingredients:

1 Box Lemon Cake mix (Remove 1-1/2 cups for topping)
1 stick melted butter (I used salted but you can use unsalted)
1 egg beaten

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together using a fork. Then press and spread into a 9-inch x 13-inch greased glass baking dish. Bake the bottom layer for 10 minutes at 350 degrees, then let cool.

Ingredients for the Filing:

1 can pumpkin (29oz.)
3 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2/3 cup milk
3 tablespoons cinnamon

I mixed all of this together using our hand mixer. Then spread this over the top of the cooled bottom layer.

Ingredients for the Topping:

1-1/2 cup Lemon cake mix
1/2 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional) I didn't use chopped nuts

Mix together with a fork until it is crumbly. Then spread the topping over the pumpkin filling. Bake this at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes or until a knife comes out of the center clean.

Here are your cake mix pumpkin squares right out of the oven. Set this on a rack and let cool completely before placing in the refrigerator.

We cut these into 1-1/2 inch across the 9-inch width and 2-inches by the length of the baking dish, yielding 36 pumpkin squares.

As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy

Pyrex 1107101 Basics Clear Oblong Glass Baking Dishes, 2 Piece Value Plus Pack SetKitchenAid KHM512ER 5-Speed Ultra Power Hand Mixer, Empire RedLibby's, 100% Pure Pumpkin, 15oz Can (Pack of 6)

Italian Easter Ricotta Rice Pie

This Italian Easter Ricotta Rice Pie is my Mother's recipe. She made these every year for Easter and as you can see these are a little different than your traditional pie.

They are really little hand pies made with sweet dough, ricotta cheese, and rice filling. Anybody who knows me knows that I have a passion for preserving these old family recipes.

I found my mother's recipe for these last year and gave them a try but I failed. You see, my mother's handwritten recipes are short the instructions all she had written down was the ingredients. So I had to figure out the rest on my own. And, this year I did.

Italian Easter Ricotta Rice Pie: Ingredients:

For the Dough:

5 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
3 eggs beaten
1 cup Crisco
1 cup warm water

The Filling:

2 lbs. ricotta cheese
1/4 lb. cooked rice (You'll need 1/2 cup uncooked to get 1/4 lb. cooked)
3/4 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 eggs beaten (You'll need these later to seal the pies and brush before baking)

I first made the rice according to the package instructions. I used Jasmine Rice because it is a long grain and sticky rice. This helps hold the filling together.

While the rice was cooling I mixed the dough. I used my KitchenAid Stand Mixer with the dough hook.

 I added all the ingredients for the dough except the flour into my mixing bowl. I added the flour last turned it on low speed and mixed until the dough was formed.

If you don't have a stand mixer use a large bowl and mix by hand. Next, I set the dough aside and started to make the filling.

Again, using my stand mixer I added the ricotta cheese, sugar, eggs, and rice into the mixing bowl. Using the flat bar I mixed this on low speed until everything was mixed together. I put the filling in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

I rolled the dough into about a 14-inch long x 2/12-inch high log

I cut the dough into 3/4-inch slices and rolled them out on a floured surface into a circle about 1/8-inch thick.

I filled the center with 1/4 cup of the filling. Then, I brushed the edges of the dough with the beaten egg. I carefully folded the edges together and then pinched along the seams with a fork.

I placed my little pies on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper four pies on a cookie sheet. Then, brush on the beaten egg over the whole surface of each pie.

 I baked them at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Then place them on a rack to cool. These Italian Easter Ricotta Rice Pies brought back many fond memories for me. With the sweet dough and the sweet ricotta cheese and rice filling, they make a perfect Easter treat.

Italian Easter Ricotta Rice Pie: Traditional Pie

I also made your traditional Italian Ricotta Rice Pie by doubling the filling recipe. I used a 9-inch pie crust and a 9-inch pie plate.

I baked this pie at 350 degrees for 60 minutes let it cool and then placed it in the refrigerator. So, you can make this either way or as I did both of them.

As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy.

Norpro Wood Pastry/Pizza Roller 4.25in/10.5cmKitchenAid KP26M1XER 6 Qt. Professional 600 Series Bowl-Lift Stand Mixer - Empire Red

 

Easter Sausage Pie

Italian Easter Sausage Pie

This week I seem to be on a roll with our traditional Easter holiday recipes. Ever since I was a little guy, and that was a long time ago, this Easter sausage pie has been a family favorite. 

We make it every year on Good Friday without fail. This recipe calls for basket cheese, and here in Western New York, we can only find it at certain times of the year, usually around Holidays.

Here is what we use Easter Sausage Pie:

3 lb. Italian sausage links (we used sweet, not hot)

2-1/2 lb. Basket Cheese

2 slices ham (1/4-inch-thick) ham from your deli counter is fine

16 large eggs

½ cup grated Romano cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

The Crust:

2-1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening, well chilled
2 tablespoons of butter or margarine, again well chilled
5 to 6 tablespoons of cold water

If you need instructions to make the crust you can find them here. Or you can cheat and just buy the pie crust already made.

Okay here is how we make this Italian Sausage Pie:

First, make your sausage, we bake ours at 350 degrees for about one hour, you can also broil or fry the sausage however you prefer to make it.

 While the sausage is baking dice up the basket cheese and ham and place it in a large mixing bowl. 
After the sausage is cooked cut it into small pieces and add it to the bowl.

Now in another bowl beat the eggs and the Romano cheese. Pour the eggs into the large bowl and mix this well with a spoon.

Lightly grease a 15-inch x 10-inch x 2-inch glass baking dish. Roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thick. Cut ½-inch strips of dough and place them along the length and width of the bottom of the baking dish, in a crisscross pattern.

Here are the strips of dough on the bottom of the baking dish

Pour the mixture into the baking dish and spread it level to the top. Now crisscross strips of dough across the top as you did on the bottom.

 Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake this for one hour until the top is golden brown. Then place it on a baking rack to cool before cutting. Once cooled you can cut and serve. This is best served cold the next day right out of the refrigerator. 

There are many variations of this recipe, we have been using this one since 1970 from the St. Vitus Cookbook of New Castle Pa. This is another really easy one to make and is so rich and tasty.

Since I meant comments asking me what is basket cheese? This Wikipedia link will explain Basket Cheese.

As I said before, Basket Chhese is seasonal around the Easter Holiday If you can't find it in your local grocery store. Click this link for a recipe to make it yourself.

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and as always thanks for stopping by.

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Easter Bread

Easter Bread Easy Recipe

We spent the day yesterday making our Easter bread. We don’t have a freezer so we wait until Easter week and do all of the work in one day.

This recipe might seem difficult but it’s really not, most of the time is waiting for the dough to rise. It rises three times and then after that, you make the loaves and you let it rise to the top of the bread pan before putting it in the oven.

This recipe yielded four loaves of Easter bread baked in a 9-inch x 5-inch bread pan and two braided loaves baked on a cookie sheet.  Unless you like Easter bread like I do you may want to cut the recipe down to make less.

Here is what you need:

8 large eggs

2 tablespoons Anise extract

1 tablespoon Lemon extract

2-1/2 cup scalded milk

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

2-1/2 cup sugar

1 cup milk (lukewarm)

4 packages dry yeast

10 to 12 cups flour

Okay now let’s make this easy Easter Bread Recipe:

Using my KitchenAid Stand mixing bowl, I added the eggs, anise, and lemon extract; beat this until it’s fluffy. I used the medium speed setting for this.

 While that is going on, start two saucepans, one with 2-1/2 cups of milk and the butter. Bring this to a boil to scald the milk, then set this aside until it cools to lukewarm. Now in another pan or your microwave heat the cup of milk to lukewarm and add the yeast to dissolve. 

Scaled milk and butter with yeast dissolved in milk

Now back to the mixture it should be fluffy by now. Add the sugar and continue to beat for about 2 minutes. Continue beating and add the two saucepans of milk until you have a batter. Again make sure both are lukewarm.

There are too many cups of flour in this recipe to use my stand mixer so I transferred the batter to a large bowl and began adding the flour one cup at a time.

We used a hand mixer until we got to seven cups of flour. After that, I worked in the remaining flour by hand to a smooth ball of dough.

Tip: If the dough is too sticky while hand kneading, add some flour until the dough forms.

Cover this and let rise 3 time

Cover and let the dough rise three times, about an hour each time. The third you time punch it down make the loaves and place them in a lightly greased and floured bread pan. I used the Pam baking spray for this. Now cover and let these rise to the top of the pan.

After it rises to the top of the bread pan

I baked two loaves at a time at 300 degrees for 10 minutes, and then lowered to 275 degrees and baked for one hour. I bushed them with melted butter right out for the oven and let them cool on a rack.

The braided loaves baked on a cookie sheet at 300 degrees for 50 minutes. We rolled out three equal length logs of dough, set them side by side and rolled one over the other to make the braided loaves.

 We made a simple glaze for the braided loaves with a little bit of water and powdered sugar, then drizzled it over the top and added some colored sugar sprinkles.

A simple glaze of water and powdered sugar

Although this is time-consuming the results are absolutely worth the work and the wait, the bread is soft, moist, and Oh so tasty.  I was eating this Easter bread 10 minutes after it came out of the oven.

I hope you enjoyed this Easter bread recipe, as always thanks for stopping by.

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