5 tasty pumpkin recipes to help you savor the season

It's that time of year when the smell of pumpkin spice permeates every kitchen. But you don’t have to limit your fall cooking creativity to pie and bread! Try out some of these unique and tasty pumpkin dishes, great for dinner, dessert, or just a snack.

Pie Crust

- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 6 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons very cold vegetable shortening
- 5–8 tablespoons ice water

Pie Filling

- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 (15 oz.) can pureed pumpkin (without pumpkin pie spices)
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 3 cups peeled, diced apples (about 4 medium apples, Gala is my preference)

Topping

- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup very finely chopped pecans
- 2 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter

Start with the crust. Place flour, salt, and sugar in large bowl and mix well. Dice cold butter and shortening and place in flour mixture. Cut in with pastry cutter until flour and fats are pea-sized lumps. Add 2–3 tablespoons of ice water to dough and stir with spoon until it starts to stick together. Add 2–3 more tablespoons of ice water until most of dough roughly forms into ball. You may need to add 2–3 more tablespoons of ice water until you get a mostly-formed ball of dough; don’t add more than 8 tablespoons. Dump dough out onto floured surface and knead 4–5 times until dough comes together. Flatten into disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 20–30 minutes.

While dough is in the refrigerator, prepare pie filling. Combine first six ingredients (flour through cloves) in medium bowl and set aside.

Whisk eggs, pumpkin, and Greek yogurt together. Add flour spice mix and stir until fully combined. Mixture should be a thin pudding consistency. Gently stir in diced apples and set aside.

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Roll out pie dough on well-floured surface, rotating and turning over to make crust even. Add flour as needed to prevent sticking. Dough should be about ¼-inch thick and 2 inches wider than pie pan. Gently fold dough in half, then in half again so it looks like a triangle. Place the corner of the triangle in the center of pie pan. Open dough and gently fit into bottom and sides of pan. Leave about 1½ inches of dough overhanging perimeter of pan; trim any excess. Gently roll overhang dough under itself and crimp in desired style.

Pour filling into prepared pie shell. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes. Then reduce temperature to 350° and bake for another 30 minutes.

While the pie is baking, prepare topping. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and chopped pecans. Cut in butter until pea-sized lumps form, similar to pie dough.

After 30-minute bake, pull pie out of oven. Increase oven temperature back to 400°. Sprinkle pecan streusel topping evenly over top of pie and bake for another 10–15 minutes until golden brown on top.

- 2 cups diced pumpkin
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/3 cup dry milk powder
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 cup grated Gouda cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat oven to 350° F.

Coat large skillet with olive oil and set to medium heat. Add diced pumpkin and onion. Sauté, adding salt and pepper to taste, until pumpkin has a bit of color. Add 1 cup water and let pumpkin cook until just softened, not mushy. Put in large bowl and mash. (Don’t puree, as you want some texture.)

Add ginger, garlic, melted butter, beaten eggs, and dry milk powder to mashed pumpkin. Mix well and pour into greased 9-inch baking dish.

Mix breadcrumbs and Gouda cheese in medium bowl and drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Stir until well combined and spoon over pumpkin mixture.

Bake 20–30 minutes until topping is golden brown and cheese is melted.

- 2 cups diced pumpkin
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons half-and-half
- 3/4 cup shredded Asiago cheese
- 1 (14 oz.) can marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
- 4 medium green onions, chopped (about ¼ cup)
- Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Heat oven to 350° F.

Coat large skillet with olive oil and heat to medium or medium-high. Pan roast diced pumpkin until golden brown, adding salt and pepper to taste. Turn off heat and set aside.

In large bowl, combine cream cheese, Greek yogurt, half-and-half, and salt and pepper to taste. Beat with hand mixer until well combined and creamy.

Add cheese, artichoke hearts, green onions, and pan-roasted pumpkin. Gently fold together and pour into greased 9-inch baking dish.

Bake uncovered 10–15 minutes until top is golden and bubbly. Sprinkle with parsley.

Cilantro Orange Quinoa

- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2–3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2–1 whole jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs removed, finely diced
- 1 cup rainbow or red quinoa, rinsed
- Orange stock (juice from zested orange mixed with water to equal 2¼ cups total)
- 1 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

Burgers

- 4 cups pumpkin, diced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 6 cups cooked cilantro orange quinoa
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs, beaten (vegan alternative: 2 tablespoons ground flax seed mixed with 4 tablespoons water)

Coat bottom of medium pot with olive oil and heat to medium. Sauté onion, garlic, and jalapeño until onion is soft and translucent. Add quinoa and sauté until dry and slightly toasty. Add orange stock, zest, and cilantro. Let come to a boil before turning heat to low and covering pot. Let simmer for 15–20 minutes until stock has been absorbed and quinoa is cooked through (seed will be semi-translucent). Turn off heat, add black beans and stir. Cover and let rest.

Coat large skillet with olive oil and heat over medium to medium-high heat. Add diced pumpkin and salt and pepper. Sauté until pumpkin is golden and toasty.

Prepare cookie sheet with parchment paper to place burgers on while waiting to be cooked.

Add cilantro orange quinoa mixture, breadcrumbs, and eggs in large bowl and stir until well combined. Scoop quinoa pumpkin mixture (I use a #6 scoop) into tight balls and gently flatten on cookie sheet. Put in refrigerator for a few minutes if not firm enough.

Coat large skillet with olive oil (you can use same skillet used to pan-roast diced pumpkin) and heat over medium heat. Cook 4 burgers at a time, browning each side, about 5–7 minutes total. Serve with toasted hamburger buns and favorite burger toppings.

- 1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup Arborio rice
- 2 cups Cinderella pumpkin, diced
- 6–8 cups vegetable stock
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, julienned, plus 2–3 more leaves (also julienned) for garnishing
- 1 cup grated Parmesan or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 1/4 cup roasted, salted pumpkin seeds

Coat bottom of large pot with olive oil and sauté onion on medium heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. When onion is translucent, turn heat to low and add rice and pumpkin. Sauté 5–10 more minutes.

Add 2–3 cups of vegetable stock until rice is just covered and ¼ cup of julienned basil. Allow to come to a boil and let cook until nearly all stock is gone. Add another 1–2 cups of stock and let cook and reduce. Repeat for the next 30–40 minutes, adding stock one cup at a time and reducing until rice is creamy and soft. For final cup of stock, reduce just until it is a thin, pudding-like mixture.

Turn off heat and stir in cheese. To serve, garnish with fresh julienned basil and roasted, salted pumpkin seeds.

For more delicious recipes from Michal Coombs, check out meatlessmain.com.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on LDSLiving.com in October 2018.