Tag Archives: Dessert

Fall Favorite: Butternut Squash Pie

Butternut Squash Pie

Mixing Butternut Squash Ingredients

Butternut Squash Pie

Butternut squash are plentiful this time of year, so why not make pie? I’ve been stockpiling a few butternut squash from the CSA I’m a part of, so I decided to make pie tonight. I made two pies, so I doubled the below recipe from About.com for Butternut Squash Pie:

  • 1 unbaked and chilled 9-inch pie shell (I used frozen pie crusts)
  • 1 large butternut squash, cooked and pureed, about 1 1/2 cups pureed squash
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup evaporated milk or half-and-half
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup (my addition to the recipe)

Preparation:

To cook squash:
Cut the squash in half lengthwise; remove stem and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash, cut side down, on a foil-lined oiled baking pan; add about 1/2 cup of water to the pan. Cover loosely with foil and bake at 400° for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the squash is tender and can be easily pierced with a fork. Let cool completely then peel and mash or puree the squash or put it through a food mill. Measure 1 1/2 cups of the squash and set aside.

Reduce oven to 350° F and position an oven rack in the center of the oven. In a mixing bowl with electric mixer, beat the squash with the brown sugar. Add eggs, evaporated milk, spices salt, flour, butter, and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Pour the filling into the chilled pie and place on the center oven rack. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until set. Check after about 35 minutes and loosely set a ring of foil or a pie crust protector over the browned crust so it won’t get too dark. When the filling is set, transfer the pie to a rack to cool. Serve just warm or at room temperature with a dollop of whipped topping or whipped cream.

The pie was delicious and had a milder taste than pumpkin pie. My younger brother liked the pie a lot too and couldn’t even tell it was squash. I made a maple-cinnamon whipped cream to add to the top of the pie, which I’ll use when I have some more later. :)  I will definitely be making this pie again!

Now I have lots of extra butternut squash purée…what should I make with it?

Guilt-free Apple Bake

Apple Bake
Apple Bake This is an easy recipe that’s perfect as a healthy dessert or as a side dish to accompany dinner. Here’s what I use in this apple bake:

- Apples (your favorite kind), peeled and sliced thinly
- Raisins (or currants, cranberries, etc.) You can also soak the raisins in rum for a kick.
- Cinnamon stick
- Ground cinnamon (or cloves, nutmeg, etc.)
- Apple juice (enough to cover the bottom of the pan)

All you need to do is combine all the ingredients in a baking pan and bake in a 350º oven until the apples are soft. You can add orange or lemon juice for a more complex flavor or add sugar if you want the apples sweeter.

If you want to make more of a cobbler you can add oatmeal, butter (or margarine) and extra sweetener.

You could also use pears in this recipe instead of apples or do a combination. This is an easy, delicious and very flexible recipe.

How do you like to use up left over apples or fruit? Do you have any easy recipes?

Vegan Blueberry Crisp!

Blueberry Crisp Before Baking

Blueberry Crisp

Blueberry Crisp

Oooh! I’m so excited! I’m having some friends over tomorrow night for board games and fun. So, I made a lovely blueberry crisp for us! The recipe is from one of my favorite vegan websites: Happy Herbivore. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 12 ounces frozen blueberries, rinsed
  • 5 tbsp agave nectar
  • ⅔ cup rolled oats
  • ⅓ cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 tbsp raw sugar

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place blueberries into 10″ glass dish and sprinkle with sugar. In another bowl, mix oats, agave and flour together until it crumbles. Place crumbs over blueberries and sprinkle cinnamon over top. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until the top is crisp.

It’s very quick and easy to make—I’ll put it to the test tomorrow with my friends! I can’t wait to try it!

Do you have a favorite fruit crisp you like to make? Share below.

Vegan Black Bean Brownies!

Black Bean Brownies

OK—I was a skeptic, too when I first heard the words “black bean” and “brownie” in the same sentence, but when you taste them you’ll be a believer, too! These brownies are really good and you’ll never taste the beans in this recipe from Happy Herbivore. Give them a try if you’re looking for a sweet treat that’s low-fat and about as healthy as a dessert can be!

Pasta & Bean Soup & Oatmeal Apple Crisp

Tomorrow starts the first episode of The Bachelor and its been tradition for the past two seasons that my friends and I get together, enjoy delicious food and watch horrible reality television. It’s actually quite fun! This week, I decided to do a potluck since my apartment is a bit in shambles because I’m moving this month. I decided to make a simple Pasta & Bean Soup and Oatmeal Apple Crisp. For the Pasta & Bean Soup, I made this recipe from Eating Well. My apartment smelled so good when the rosemary and garlic were cooking in the broth. For the recipe, I had to make a few substitutions: I added elbow macaroni (the store didn’t have whole wheat pasta in the small shells), used vegetable broth, and added a few more spices to give the soup more flavor. Here’s the results:

Pasta & Bean Soup

For the Apple Crisp, I made this recipe from All Recipes. I made a few substitutions, including using steel cut oatmeal, pure cane sugar and added some flax seed meal and almonds to the top. Here’s the results:

Oatmeal Apple Crisp

What I loved about these recipes, is they were so simple to make, didn’t require a lot of chopping and I was able to use a lot of ingredients I already had on hand. Now, the real test is tomorrow—let’s hope my friends enjoy the food!

What are some of your favorite recipes that are easy to make?