Mmm, pumpkin

[pegkerr]

peacockharpy was just posting about pumpkin pie (no, not that Pumpkin Pie, all you H/Hr fans). And I posted this recipe for her, and thought I'd post it here, too, since it's just such a favorite of mine. I got hooked on the delights of pumpkin when I was pregnant and discovered how good it was for fulfilling vitamin A requirments. Here is the recipe, which I got from the What to Eat When You're Expecting cookbook:

Harvest Pudding Serves 8

2 cups canned unsweetened solid-pack pumpin
1 1/3 cups apple juice concentrate (I have used orange juice concentrate instead myself and it's very good)
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, or to taste
3 egg whites
½ cup raisins, chopped
1 medium apple, cored, peeled, and coarsely chopped
1 medium pear, cored, peeled, and coarsely chopped
½ cup fresh cranberries (optional) (not optional for me; I always put 'em. Frozen cranberries work just fine. I cut them in half.)
1 2/3 cups rolled oats
6 TB wheat germ
1 TB margerine or butter
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans.

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Place the pumpkin, 3/4 cup of the juice concentrate, ½ tsp of the cinnamon, and the egg whites in a bowl; beat together until well blended. Stir in the raisins, apple, pear and cranberries.
3. Combine the remaining juice concentrate and cinnamon, the rolled oats, wheat germ, margerine and nuts in another bowl; blend until crumbly. Stir half the oat mixture into the pumpkin mixture.
4. Transfer the pumpkin mixture into a 9-inch nonstick baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining oat mixture over the top.
5. Bake until the crumbs are light brown and the pumpkin is set, 30 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or cold with unsweetened whipped cream, ice cream or evaporated skim milk, if desired (personally, I heat a serving in the microwave, and put a dollop of unsweetened yogurt on top).

This recipe is terrific for a delicious, hot, virtuous, and very fast breakfast. The recipe makes enough to make a week's worth of breakfasts (or at least it does for me). Just put some spoonfuls into a dish, heat it in the microwave, and put a spoonful of unsweetened yogurt on top. And there you go, eating, three minutes later. One of the best breakfast disccoveries I ever made, and guilt-free, too. The people who wrote the cookbook indicate that each serving gives you "2 Yellow Vegetable serving, 1 Other Fruit Serving, 1 Whole Grain Serving." (I'm not sure if these are the same as Weight Watcher exchanges??)

If you try it, let me know what you think.

Comments

[fileg.livejournal.com]

my husband is a pumpkin fiend, so I will have to give this a try.

[gamps-garret.livejournal.com]

*adds to next Saturday's recipe list*

I'll let you know how it turns out. :-)

[tinymich.livejournal.com]

I don't ever have time to cook, but maybe I'll see if I can't make this one happen sometime next weekend. I love pumpkin, and the whole dish sounds very very yummy.....
will be sure to let you know if it turns out good!

[tinymich.livejournal.com]

Oh, and -- any preferred brand for the canned pumpkin? It's not an ingredient I've ever used before.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

In my experience, canned pumpkin is canned pumpkin is canned pumpkin. I really have never detected any discernable differences between brands.

[liadan-m.livejournal.com]

I'm going to try this with fresh pumpkin. Something about using canned this time of year seems wrong..

[kk1raven.livejournal.com]

This sounds delicious.

[loup_noir]

Re: the oats...quick cooking or regular? Or, does it make a difference? Have you tried making this without the chopped fruit? *eyes husband who won't eat cranberries*

This sounds incredibly good. I love squash in all of its forms and pumpkin is just so warming. Pumpkin soup, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread...yum!

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

I use quick oats because that's what I always have on hand. Haven't tried regular, so I can't say.

I haven't tried it without the chopped fruit because I adore cranberries.

[jbru.livejournal.com]

Sounds yummy! My favorite pumpkin discovery was the pumpkin-filled ravioli that, who else, jonsinger introduced us to. We ended up ordering some flown in from the San Francisco outfit that made them; they were that yummy.

[alfreda89.livejournal.com]

Sounds wonderful! I would think regular oatmeal would do well in this (since it counts as one multi-grain exchange. Unless the wheat germ kicks it up there.) I don't remember if we can have dried fruit yet. BUt I will print this out for a change of pace.

We found a pumpkin creme brulee that is well worth the effort! And if you want the fiber, too, you just don't strain it...

[birds-sing.livejournal.com]

That sounds lovely, I'll have to try it!

[coalboy.livejournal.com]

My grandmother's recipe for pumpkin pie had frozen OJ concentrate in it, specifically 5-Alive. Don't think that one is still available. very tangy.