Pumpkin Brown Sugar Biscuits

With the holiday season quickly approaching, I wanted to share a quick and simple way to add some autumnal flare to your table. The simplicity of these buttermilk biscuits combined with the sweet spice of pumpkin and brown sugar make these biscuits the perfect accompaniment to turkey dinner (although I think you can totally get away with eating these for breakfast too!)

The key to having tender and flakey biscuits is to be gentle and careful to not overwork the dough. Also, taking the time to roll and fold the dough like a business letter creates layered and flakey biscuits. Lightly sweet and a little spicy, these biscuits are perfect served warm with butter.

 

Pumpkin Brown Sugar Biscuits

Makes 10 to 12 Servings

¼ cup dark brown sugar

1 ¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

2 tablespoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

5 Tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into ½ -inch cubes

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, divided

¼ cup pumpkin puree

2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk brown sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, ground ginger and ground cloves. Add the butter and gently toss to coat in the flour mixture. Press each cube of butter between your fingers to flatten. In a small bowl, whisk together buttermilk and pumpkin puree. Add buttermilk and puree mixture to brown sugar and flour bowl, gently mix with your hands until the dough comes together, do not over mix.

Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll into a large rectangle approximately 1-inch thick. Fold the dough into thirds, like a business letter and gently roll into a large rectangle about ¾ inch thick.

Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter cut biscuits from the dough and arrange on baking sheet. Gather scraps of dough and gently roll another rectangle to cut additional biscuits. Lightly brush the tops of the biscuits and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake until deep golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

Serve slightly warm with butter at breakfast or as an accompaniment to your Thanksgiving dinner.

Simple Quince Jelly

Quinces are one of the most delightfully fragrant fruits, especially at the peak of their season. Often described as a cross between an apple and a pear, quince season runs from August to December. Oftentimes quinces get overlooked in the market because people are intimidated by their round, fuzzy appearance and don’t know quite what to do with them. (Don’t worry with a gentle rub the fuzz washes right off) When ripe, a quince turns yellow, but frequently appear green in the markets in which case they will easily ripen at home.

Quince is a dense fruit that is very high in tannins, causing them to be a little unpleasant when raw. The best way to enjoy quinces are to bake them in a pie or tart, poach them or turn them into jam or jelly. It is easy to make quince jams and jellies from scratch because of their high pectin content, a natural thickener used in baking. In quinces, the pectin is especially prevalent in the skins and core, so when making jelly (something we have to strain anyways) it is best use the whole fruit in the first cooking stage. The pectin makes quince jelly easy to make at home and with few ingredients. One of the best things about cooking quinces, aside from their sweet smell, is the beautiful rosy hue they turn once cooked.

Simple Quince Jelly

Makes 3 cups of Jelly

8 quinces, washed well and cut into pieces

5 cups water

1 ½ cups sugar

Juice of 1 lemon

Place cut up quinces in a large saucepan. Add water, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and cover, continue to cook until dark pink and very soft, about 1 hour.

Strain the quince and liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.  Using a rubber spatula press out all liquid, discard all seeds and skins in the sieve. Transfer the strained quince puree to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add sugar and lemon juice, and stir until fully dissolved. Continue to cook until the jelly has thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and conduct a plate test to ensure doneness. If the jelly is set, transfer to a heatproof container and let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the jelly overnight.

Serve quince jelly with warm toast and butter, alongside your favorite cheese plate or straight from the jar.

Jelly can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

The Jelly Plate Test

Remove jelly from heat while doing the test. Chill a plate in the refrigerator. Pour a small amount of boiling jelly onto the chilled plate, and put it in the refrigerator for 3 minutes. If the mixture gels, and doesn’t run down the plate when tilted the jelly is done. If not, continue cooking your jelly and repeat test every few minutes.

Pumpkin Pie Spiced Walnut Macaroons

If you don’t have any pumpkin on hand, but are craving classic pie spices, these Pumpkin Pie Spiced Walnut Macaroons will do the trick. The recipe is adapted from a deliciously written food blog I recently stumbled upon: Lemon Tree Dwelling. 

I swapped the pecans for walnuts and toasted them in the oven until fragrant. I loved the way their toasty aroma complimented the flavors of the spices, white chocolate, and coconut. This recipe is definitely a keeper.

Ingredients

1 recipe (14 ounces) Coconut Macaroon cookie dough (makes 12 macaroons)

1 cup (6 ounces) white chocolate chips

3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/3 cup toasted chopped walnuts

12 toasted walnut halves

Directions

1. Bake cookies according to instructions. Cool completely.

2. Melt white chocolate over a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring between 15-20 second intervals. Add pumpkin pie spice and stir to combine.

3. Dip bases of cooled macaroons into spiced white chocolate approx. halfway, then dip in ground walnuts.

4. Top each cookie with a dollop of the white chocolate mixture and a walnut half.

Thanks to Lemon Tree Dwelling for the inspiration!

Spicy Pumpkin Seed Brittle

I'm using a lot of fresh pumpkin in my baking this time of year, and am finding myself with an abundance of pumpkin seeds. Instead of just throwing these little gems away, I like to quickly roast them in the oven and swap them for the peanuts in my favorite sweet and spicy brittle recipe.

When stored in an airtight jar, Spicy Pumpkin Seed Brittle makes a thoughtful and seasonal gift.

Makes about 16 pieces

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups roasted pumpkin seeds

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon honey

¼ cup water

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne

Directions:

1. Line a baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil. Lightly coat a heatproof spatula with non-stick cooking spray and set on aluminum foil lined tray.

2. In a medium saucepot, cook butter, sugar, honey, water, spices, and salt until a deep amber caramel color or 330°F, gently swirling caramel in pan every few minutes. As soon as caramel reaches temperature, immediately remove from heat, add pumpkin seeds and quickly stir once or twice to coat with caramel. Pour brittle over prepared baking sheet and, using greased spatula, spread into a thin even layer. Let cool to room temperature and break into small shards. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

Pumpkin Pound Cake with a Maple-Pecan Glaze

This month I’ll be featuring all sorts of pumpkin desserts to help celebrate the season! To kick it off, I baked my favorite pumpkin pound cake with a maple-pecan glaze.

I like to combine equal parts roasted sugar pumpkin and kabocha squash puree for my pumpkin recipes. The kabocha squash is a bit more starch than sugar pumpkin and has a gorgeous bright orange flesh. Once pureed, kabocha makes a thicker puree and has an extra intense squash flavor that pumpkin lovers will really enjoy. And roasting gives the squash and pumpkin, a yummy caramel flavor that add to the warm spices used in the batter.

If y’all love pumpkin as much as I do, don’t forget: There’s much more to come this month!

Pumpkin Pound Cake with a Maple-Pecan Glaze

Makes 12-16 servings

Ingredients:

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

5 large eggs

2 cups Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash Puree  (recipe follows)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1.     Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F. Lightly coat a 12-cup Bundt cake pan with non-stick cooking spray. Sift the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices and set aside.

2.     In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and dark brown sugar until light and fluffy. Slowly add the eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Slowly add the sifted dry ingredients and mix until just smooth. Evenly spoon the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick or cake tester comes out clean when inserted in center.

3.     Cool for 15 minutes in the pan on a rack; invert onto a cooling rack and let cool until room temperature. Glaze with the Maple-Pecan Glaze just before serving.

Maple-Pecan Glaze

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/4 to 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

Directions:

1.     In a small saucepan, bring the butter, maple syrup, and cream to a boil and let cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the confectioner’s sugar and salt into the hot mixture until smooth. Let cool for about 15 to 20 minutes, until slightly thickened. Stir in the pecans, and pour over the cooled cake.

To make your own pumpkin-kabocha squash puree at home:

Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash Puree

Makes about 8 cups

Ingredients:

1 4-pound sugar pumpkin

1 4-pound kabocha squash

Directions:

1.     Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

2.     Cut pumpkin and squash into eighths. Place in large baking dish, fill with about 1/4-inch of water, and cover with foil. Roast for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until flesh is fork tender. Remove foil and continue to bake until just caramelized, 15 to 30 minutes.

3.     Remove from oven and once cooled enough to handle, use a large spoon to scrape flesh from skin. Puree the pumpkin and squash flesh in a food processor until smooth. Let cool to room temperature before refrigerating or using.