It’s my favorite time of year!  The weather is starting to cool down, the leaves are starting to change, and you can find pumpkin spice at just about any store.  That’s what I’m talking about when I say my favorite time of year…. all things pumpkin spice.  I love the flavor, but I also love that it’s available for a limited time, so it’s something I look forward to enjoying.

I like to create a few new recipes each year that are pumpkin spice themed.  Most are breakfast or dessert themed but that’s OK with me!  Pumpkin spice is a combination of nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and ginger.  It’s sweet, spicy, warm, and cozy.  Yes…cozy.  Think of the feeling you get when you drink a hot cup of apple cider on a cool day.  That’s a feeling I get when enjoying pumpkin spice food.  Even better, the pumpkin spice recipes I’m going to share with you today are hearty and filling, so you can enjoy them on a cool day with that hot cup of apple cider 😊

• Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping
• Mini Pumpkin Scones
• Pumpkin Pie Crisp with Streusel Topping
• Pumpkin Spice Granola

 

First up is Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping.  This is a delicious cake that is perfect for breakfast or brunch!  It’s moist, very dense and filling, and is coated in a lovely streusel topping.  I like to serve it will it’s still a little warm from the oven.  The vanilla glaze is literally the icing on the cake (see what I did there?) and makes this cake SO GOOD!

The recipe can be found here.

This is a 3-part recipe; you make the coffee cake, the streusel, and the glaze.  We’ll start with the streusel.  Add the melted butter, flour, brown sugar, sugar, and cinnamon to a mixing bowl.  Stir until well combined and you have the consistency of wet sand.  Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 9×13 baking dish with vegetable shortening or cooking spray (I like to use Crisco), then lightly flour the dish.  Set aside.

Make the coffee cake.  Add the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine, then set aside.

To the bowl of a stand mixer, add the oil, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin, and sour cream.  Beat until well combined.

The sour cream adds moisture to the cake but doesn’t think out the batter, giving it a richer taste.  The cake won’t be bitter, and you won’t taste the sour cream – it’s just for moisture!

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat until well combined.

Pour into the prepared baking dish and smooth into an even layer.

Crumble the streusel topping all over the top until evenly / completely covered.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the center no longer wobbles and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  I bake on a rack in the center of the oven.  I’ve had to go up to 45 minutes with this recipe before.  You want to make sure the center of the cake is cooked through!

Remove from the oven and let cool completely.

Once the cake has cooled (or is cool enough and you want to dig in), make the glaze.  Whisk together the powdered sugar and heavy cream.  Add additional cream as needed, about 1 tsp at a time, until a drizzle-like consistency is reached.  Pour the glaze into a Ziploc bag and snip off a small part of the corner.  Pipe in a decorative pattern across the top.

Slice and serve.  And enjoy!  Store any leftovers in an airtight container on the counter.

The recipe can be found here.

Second is Mini Pumpkin Scones.  These scream fall treat!  They are buttery, flakey, bitesize, and have the perfect spiced flavor.  Pair them with a vanilla glaze and you are in heaven!  I like to make the scones in a mini scone pan I received as a gift.  This pan is amazing!  The scones are uniform in size and turn out perfectly each time.  It really is a time saver.  If you prefer, you can roll the dough and slice into triangle before baking.  I get it, not everyone owns the pan or will want to buy the pan, but it is handy if you bake a lot of scones!

The Mini Scone Pan can be found here.

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees F.  Generously brush the pan with vegetable shortening.  Set aside.

Add the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt to a large mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine.

Add the COLD cubed butter and use a pastry blender or your hands to blend.  The mixture should resemble coarse crumbs.  I find it easiest to use my hands vs the pastry blender.

Add the egg, pumpkin puree (not pie filling), 3 Tbsp milk, and vanilla extract to a separate mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until the dough is just combined – do not overmix!  I typically use my hands for this step too!  It’s easier to mash everything together and it comes together faster than when using a spoon.

Divide the dough evenly between the wells of the pan.  Gently press down to form the dough into each well.  I find that the wells are roughly 2/3 full of dough.  You want room to rise while baking!

Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let the scones cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack.

Once cooled, make the glaze.  Add the powdered sugar and 2 Tbsp milk to a small bowl.  Stir to combine.  If the glaze is too thick, add an additional Tbsp of milk to thin out the glaze (if needed).  Add the glaze to a Ziploc bag and snip off a small part of the corner.  Pipe in a decorative pattern across the top.  Let sit for about 5 minutes to allow the glaze to set.

Serve immediately and enjoy!  Any leftovers should be cooled completely and stored in an airtight container on the counter.

The Mini Scone Pan can be found here.

The recipe can be found here.

Third is Pumpkin Pie Crisp with Streusel Topping.  This is a super yummy (and easy) fall dessert.  Dare I say, I almost like this better than apple crisp?  Well, depending on my mood and what I’m craving, it’s definitely a toss up!  This dessert is essentially a pumpkin pie topped with a cinnamon streusel topping that’s served warm with ice cream on top.  The vote for favorite ice cream flavor to use is up for debate.  I’m partial to traditional vanilla ice cream but you could substitute cinnamon ice cream or even pumpkin pie ice cream.  Could be too much pumpkin for some but there’s no reason to not try it at least once!

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease a 12-inch cast iron skillet with 1 Tbsp softened butter.  Set aside.

Make the pumpkin pie crisp.  Add the pumpkin, sugar, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl.  Whisk together.

Add the heavy cream and whisk until smooth.

Pour into the prepared skillet and set aside.  It will be jiggly (like a pumpkin pie), but it will set and become semi-cakelike when baked.

Make the streusel topping.  Add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine.

Add the melted butter and stir with a fork to combine until flakey and crumbly.  If you feel you don’t have enough liquid to complete this step, melt another 1-2 Tbsp butter to add to the mix.  I found I didn’t need the extra butter and liked that I had some larger chunks of streusel and some more crumble-like topping.

Spread the streusel evenly over the top of the pumpkin pie crisp.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the center is set.  My oven tends to lead closer to 50 minutes.  If you need to go over 50, that’s OK too.  Simple check the center every 3-5 minutes so you don’t overbake.

Let cool for about 10 minutes.  Then spoon large scoops into bowls and top with ice cream.  Serve immediately while still hot and before the ice cream melts!  Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator – once completely cooled.  Enjoy!

The recipe can be found here.

Last is Pumpkin Spice Granola.  This stuff is super addictive!  It’s crunchy, filled with spice, is slightly sweet, and very customizable.  The base of the granola is rolled oats, sugar, a variety of spices, oil, and pumpkin puree.  You can add in any additional mix-ins of your choice!  I like to use pumpkin seeds and pecan pieces but walnuts, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, chocolate chips, or golden raisins would be perfect to add.  Soak the granola in milk, add on top of yogurt, or enjoy as is….it won’t last long!

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 325 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Set aside.

Add the oats, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice to a large mixing bowl.  Stir to combine and coat the oats.

Add the vanilla, oil, maple syrup, and pumpkin puree to a separate mixing bowl.  Stir until well combined, then add to the dry ingredients and stir until well coated.

Add the pumpkin seeds and pecan pieces.  Stir to combine.

Pour onto the baking sheet and spread in an even layer all the way to the edges.  Bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes, for even toasting.

Let cool completely on the counter than transfer to an airtight container and store at room temperature.  I recommend sampling some right out of the oven while it’s still hot.  Enjoy!

The recipe can be found here.

As you can probably tell, we’ve been eating A LOT of pumpkin spice themed recipes at our house this week 😊

Happy Cooking!  And Happy Pumpkin Spice Season!