White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

            Happy late Thanksgiving! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday and got to spend it with your family and friends.

            I did a whole lot of baking for the holiday, even though I also had to work on Wednesday, Black Friday, Saturday and Sunday (oh, the joys of retail). We celebrated Thanksgiving with my boyfriend’s family and my dad’s side of the family on Thanksgiving and my mom’s side on Sunday. Lucky for you, I made a million pies for the big days, two of which you have already seen on my blog, the White Chocolate Banana Cream and the Creamy Apple Crumb. Now, I have two variations of pumpkin pie to share with you.

            The first is White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake. I have really been on a pumpkin kick this fall, and I am always willing to try a cheesecake. I thought these two married perfectly. I found the original recipe here.

·         Easiness---9---For a cheesecake, this is as easy as it gets (unless you use a box mix, of course).

·         Yumminess---8---It needs more spice in my opinion, but that could just be me.

·         Repeat---10---Next year!!!

INGREDIENTS

·         Make the crust I used in this recipe, bake at the same time as the cheesecake

·         2 (8 oz.) packages of cream cheese

·         1 cup sugar

·         3 eggs, beaten

·         1 tsp vanilla extract

·         5 ounces white chocolate, melted

·         ¾ cup canned pumpkin

·         1 tsp ground cinnamon (could use 2)

·         ¼ tsp ground nutmeg (could use ½)

DIRECTIONS

·         Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla, beat on low until combined

·         Add in pumpkin, spices and melted white chocolate. Beat on low until combined.

·         Pour filling into the crust. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes, or until center is set.

·         Cool for at least an hour before serving.

Creamy Apple Crumb Pie

          When you think of fall, what comes to mind? For me, it is colorful leaves, Starbucks coffee, pumpkin, and pie. When I say pie, I mean ANY pie. My first pie of the season is a creamy apple, and it is one of my favorites to make. My first taste of a creamy apple pie was at a Birthday party at my boyfriend’s aunt’s house. It was literally the best pie I had ever eaten. This isn’t the exact recipe, but it is pretty darn good. I hope you like it as much as I do! Here is the original recipe if you are interested, although I changed it a little bit.

I'm pretty proud of this pie :)

·         Yumminess---10---This is so incredibly good. It would be perfect for Thanksgiving…if you can wait that long!

·         Easiness---6---The only problem with pies is that they are quite difficult to make, especially the crust. This pie is totally worth the trouble though!

·         Repeat---10---I have made this twice already, so yes, I would repeat it.

INGREDIENTS

Crust

·         1 ½ cups All Purpose Flour

·         1 tsp Salt

·         2 Tbs Sugar

·         ½ cup Veg. Oil

·         2 Tbs cold milk

Pie filling

·         1/3 cup sugar

·         3 Tbs cornstarch

·         1 tsp cinnamon

·         ¼ tsp allspice

·         6 cups diced peeled tart apples (about 6 medium Granny Smith)

·         1 cup (8 oz) reduced-fat sour cream

·         1 tsp vanilla extract

Crumb topping

·         ½ cup all-purpose flour

·         ¼ cup brown sugar

·         ½ tsp cinnamon

·         2 Tbs melted butter

DIRECTIONS

·         Spray pie pan with Pam or other non-stick oil.

·         For the crust, sift flour, salt and sugar in a 9” pie pan. Combine oil and milk in measuring cup and whip with a fork and pour over the flour mixture. Mix with fork until flour is completely dampened. Press evenly and firmly into the pie pan. Then press dough up to line sides and partly cover the rim. (no need to roll this dough)

·         For the filling, combine the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and all spice. Fold in the apples. Combine sour cream and vanilla; stir into the apple mixture. Spoon into the pastry shell.

·         For topping, compbine the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl; cut in the melted butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over filling

·         Bake at 400° for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°; bake for 25-30 minutes longer or until filling is bubbly and topping is golden. Cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate leftovers.

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

         Ok, so it comes as no surprise that I love fall. I mean, I LOVE it. I love the colors, tastes and smells that come with it. So, I am no exception to the pumpkin craze that seems to be going on this season. I decided to try my hand at a new recipe (created by yours truly) to feed my pumpkin craving. I actually made this recipe for my own birthday celebration (along with an apple pie and regular gooey butter cake).  PUMPKIN GOOEY BUTTER CAKE.

          I know that gooey butter cake originated in St. Louis, but that doesn’t mean the rest of the world shouldn’t get to enjoy it! This pumpkin recipe is basically just an adaptation to the gooey butter cake recipe I posted a few posts ago.

·         Yumminess---10---This is AMAZING. I honestly have no other words to describe it.

·         Easiness---10---So simple to make. It is just as easy as the last gooey butter recipe.

·         Repeat---10---Absolutely! Next fall…ok maybe next week ;)

INGREDIENTS

·         1 box yellow cake mix

·         3 large eggs

·         1 stick butter (1/2 cup)

·         2 cups powdered sugar

·         8 oz. cream cheese (softened)

·         6 Tbs pumpkin puree

·         1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

DIRECTIONS

·         Preheat oven to 325°

·         Combine, Cake mix, 1 egg, 4 Tbs pumpkin puree, 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice, and melted butter.

·         Press into a greased 9×13 pan with your fingers

·         Blend, cream cheese, 2 beaten eggs, remaining 2 Tbs pumpkin puree, ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice, and powdered sugar until smooth.

·         Spread over first batter.

·         Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until edges are brown.

·         Dust with powdered sugar on top after cake has cooled