Creative recipes including the almighty fall favorite: pumpkin

Pumpkin Treat #1: Pumpkin Spice Trail Mix

Looking for a grab-and-go snack to give you energy through a full day of classes? This pumpkin spice trail mix is a blend of protein, carbohydrate and fats to help you power through your day! It’s also great to eat as cereal or to sprinkle on top of yogurt.

Ingredients:

¼ cup whole cane sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup unsalted whole almonds
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup pecan halves
1 cup roasted salted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
1 cup walnut halves
¼ cup pumpkin puree
2 Tablespoons all natural apple juice
⅔ cup dried cranberries
⅔ cup raisins

Directions

Preheat oven to 250° F. Mix sugar, cinnamon, paprika and pumpkin pie spice in small bowl. Set aside.
Place almonds, oats, pecans, pepitas and walnuts in large bowl. Mix together pumpkin puree and apple juice; pour over nut mixture and toss until nuts are evenly coated. Sprinkle with spice mixture, tossing to coat well. Spread evenly on two baking pans.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes, stirring halfway through cook time. Cool completely. Stir in cranberries and raisins. Store in airtight container.

This recipe was adapted from the blog Eating Bird Food by Brittany Mullins. 

Pumpkin Treat #2: Healthy Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

Sick and tired of spending  $4 a day on the season’s most popular Starbuck’s drink? Prepare this delicious creation at home for a fraction of the price! This option is much kinder to your body as well, as it contains natural ingredients and no added sugar (compare to the smallest size PSL at Starbuck’s: 200 cal and 37 g of sugar)

Prep time: 5 min         Cook time: 5 min        Total time: 10 min

Serves: 1

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces brewed coffee (or 1-2 shots of espresso)
  • ½ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 3 Tablespoons pumpkin puree
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 2-3 drops of liquid stevia (or sweetener of choice)
  • sprinkle of cinnamon

Instructions

  1. In a cup or sauce pan, mix together almond milk and pumpkin. Cook on medium heat on the stove top or microwave for 30-45 seconds.
  2. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla, spices and sweetener, place in a cup and use a frother to foam the milk. You can also use a blender – just process for 30 seconds or until foamy.
  3. Pour coffee into a large mug, add the foamy milk mixture on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from the blog Eating Bird Food by Brittany Mullins.

Pumpkin Treat #3: Roasted Pumpkin and Pomegranate Salad with Pumpkin Seed Oil Vinaigrette

Tired of the same old salad? Try adding an autumnal twist! Toss in some roasted pumpkin, which is low calorie and full of Vitamin C. The pomegranate adds some sweetness to this savory salad that will make your taste buds beg for more.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes

3 cups pumpkin, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
6 cups mixed winter salad greens
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
8 tsp lightly toasted pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

Vinaigrette: (makes 1/2 cup)
3 Tbsp pure pumpkin-seed oil (available in health-food stores and specialty markets)
2 Tbsp champagne vinegar
3 Tbsp orange juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 small chopped shallot (1 Tbsp)
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss pumpkin with olive oil, salt, and pepper and arrange in one layer on a lipped baking sheet. Roast until pumpkin is tender-firm and edges are caramelized, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

2. Combine all vinaigrette ingredients in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake until dressing emulsifies and has a creamy appearance.

3. Divide the greens evenly among 4 salad plates. Scatter 1/2 cup roasted pumpkin, 1 tablespoon pomegranate seeds, 2 teaspoons pumpkin seeds, and 1 tablespoon goat cheese on top of each plate of greens. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons vinaigrette.

Makes 4 Servings.

Per serving: 300 cal, 21 g fat (7 g sat), 23 g carbs, 410 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, 9 g protein

This recipe was adapted from womenshealthmag.com by Adeena Sussman.

Pumpkin Treat #4: Homemade Pumpkin Butter (crockpot method)

Ingredients:

  • 2 lb. “pie” or “sugar” pumpkin (makes ~1 lb. of pumpkin butter)
  • 1/4 cup apple cider
  • 4 Tbs. pure maple syrup
  • 1 Tbs. ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
  • 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt

Directions:

1. Cut the pumpkin in half with a large, sharp knife. Scoop out the inside seeds and strings with a spoon and discard.

2. Cover the bottom of the crockpot bowl with water. Cut the cleaned pumpkin into quarters and place in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for approximately 4 hours, or until fork tender. Remove from the crockpot and set aside to cool.

3. Once cooled enough to handle, cut the meat from the rind of the pumpkin and return to the crockpot (emptied of any remaining water). Pureé with a stick blender or using a large food processor. Add other listed ingredients and and stir. Keeping the crockpot on low, continue to cook until the desired consistency is reached: if the pureé is too thin, cook with the lid off, stirring occasionally; if it is too thick, thin by adding more apple cider by the tablespoon and cover with the lid.

4. Allow to fully cool before spooning into jars and refrigerating.

This recipe was adapted from the Jules Speaks Gluten Free blog by Jules Shepard.

Pumpkin Treat #5: Crust-less Pumpkin Pie

What would a pumpkin-themed article be without finishing with some pumpkin pie?! The great thing about this recipe is that you could eat the entire eight servings of this recipe and still be consuming less fat and less calories than many of the traditional pumpkin pie recipes!

  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/3 cup flour (Almost any will work, but not coconut flour)
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 2 nunaturals stevia packs, or 2 extra tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 (15-oz) can pumpkin puree
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp milk of choice
  • 2 tbsp oil, or omit and increase milk to 1 cup
  • 1 tablespoon ground flax
  • 2 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 400 F, and grease a 10-inch round pan.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine first 7 ingredients, and stir very well.

3. In a separate bowl, combine all liquid ingredients with flax, and whisk.

4. Pour wet into dry, stir to combine, then pour into the pan and bake 35 minutes. (It’ll still be gooey after baking, but that’s OK.)

5. Allow to cool completely before transferring uncovered to the fridge to “set” for at least 6 hours before trying to slice.

This recipe was adapted from the Chocolate Covered Katie Healthy Desert blog.

 

Photo | Andrea Henk, Staff Photographer

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