RECIPE: LATKE PUMPKIN PIE

today in i'm-going-to-be-sick-of-thanksgivukkah-food-well-before-thanksgivukkah: a latke pumpkin pie!

seriously, by the time thanksgivukkah rolls around, i will already be on, like, cottage cheese, or whatever diet food is it these days.

i yolo'd a shit ton of chocolate today, also scotch eggs and half an apple sticker (bc you know what's worse than finding a whole apple sticker on your apple...). and then when all was photographed and done, i scraped a bunch of pumpkin pie filling out of this pie and then ate the latke crust. (i left out the sugar in the filling so it could be eggboy-friendly. ew, you guys, don't ever do that.) 

i should really get my tookus to the gym one of these days. sometimes egg works out with a kettle bell in the living room and i join him with my yoga mat and foam roller and dumb core workouts, but i usually just end up in shavasana thinking about cookies and puppies. (omg have you seen this puppy?)

also sometimes i buy salad greens and if they sit in my fridge for long enough i can usually convince myself that i've been eating healthy.

i am counting on next week's new york trip being a big walk fest. i'm going to pre walk off all of my holiday meals and pretend that any and all schnitzels eaten while walking don't count in the calorie department. 

in other vaguely exciting news, you have until the end of the day to enter my pretty apron giveaway!

oh but back to this pie. it has a fun sweet/salty thing going on (like dipping your fries in a pumpkin frosty, if pumpkin frosties existed... do they??) and it was inspired by a quiche recipe that i love that has a sweet potato hash brown crust. this recipe is basically a how-to for a latke crust, and then i encourage you to pour in your favorite filling because my filling seriously blew nuts. you don't even have to make it a pumpkin pie, you can make it chocolatey or custardy or bacony or whatever!

latke pumpkin pie 

makes one pie 

ingredients 

a half batch of ex-boyfriend latke mixture (if you get weirded out by weird things, leave out the onions... but i kinda like it with the onions)

canola or vegetable oil, to coat your pan

a batch of your favorite pumpkin pie (or any pie) filling

clues 

preheat oven to broil. 

once you've mixed up the ex-boyfriend latke mixture, coat an oven safe pan with oil and set over medium heat (i use my 9-inch cast iron pan). pour the latke mixture into the pan and use a spatula to firmly press the mixture all over the bottom and around the edges. 

cook until the bottom browns. the crust may start to puff up in the center-- if this happens, poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork. 

once the bottom is brown, stick the pan in the oven and broil for 8-12 minutes, or until the top starts to brown. 

reduce the heat to 375 (or whatever your pie filling recipe advises), pour in the filling, and bake until the pie is set. 

enjoy immediately with a dreidel! 

-yeh! 

RECIPE: CREAMY PUMPKIN RISOTTO WITH BACON AND LEEKS

annnnnnnnd i'm drunk.

in the same way that the calories don't count if your boyfriend orders the fries and you steal them off of his plate, the drunkenness doesn't count if you're cooking with wine and just accidentally pour a bit too much.

that is where i found myself at 11 in the morning: at the stove, standing over a pan of risotto, listening to israeli pop music, with a glass of pinot in one hand, and my book in the other. is this what my life has come to? thought my tipsy self as i poured the fourth cup of chicken broth into the rice. well, helll yeah! just add a chicken coop and i'm never leaving this place! responded my other self to myself. (in my defense, i've been up since 1 am working at the bakery?)

i should really shut up now. 

the bottom line is: risotto season is here. it is cold, it is rainy, and there is snow in my state. i really hope it makes its way over to my town.

i've been on the hunt for a way to make risotto extra creamy without the cheese, so that eggboy can eat it, and it turns out that pumpkin does just the trick! i am shoveling this stuff into my mouth right now, it is so good. it is also quite easy. at least easy enough for a drunk girl to make. 

so put on your sweater, designate a driver, and get cooking. 

creamy pumpkin risotto with bacon and leeks 

makes 2-4 servings 

ingredients 

1/4 c olive oil

1 leek, finely chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

4 slices of bacon, chopped to 1/2-inch pieces

1 c arborio rice

4 c hot chicken broth

1 c white wine, plus more for sipping while you stir

1 c pumpkin puree

black pepper and chili pepper, to taste

 clues

in a large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. add leeks and cook until soft, about five minutes. add garlic and cook for two more minutes. add bacon and cook until it starts to get crispy. 

add rice and cook, stirring, for a few minutes until it is slightly toasted. add one cup of broth and cook, stirring, until it is absorbed into the rice. repeat this process with the remaining three cups of broth and the one cup of wine. 

stir in pumpkin, black pepper, and chili pepper, and cook for a few more minutes.  

serve it with a really big smile or eat it all by yourself in bed with netflix. 

-YEH! 

RECIPE: SOFT PUMPKIN GRANOLA BARS (GLUTEN FREE & DAIRY FREE)

pumpkin season holllllerrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

things i love about pumpkin season: sweaters, fluffy scarves, pumpkin whoopie pies, halloween, making absurd halloween costumes, pumpkin bread, not getting sweaty that much anymore when i'm just sitting around and doing nothing, crunchy leaves, pumpkin yogurt, dark nail polish, sufjan stevens, shorter days and longer nights.

hello, coziness!! 

i about jumped on canned pumpkin the day after labor day. i've so far made three loaves of pumpkin challah and spent a good hour thinking about making pumpkin risotto (it hasn't actually gotten that cold yet... remember: risotto weather is in the bottom eight degrees of pumpkin weather. i just made that up).

typically i ring in fall with pumpkin bread but who are we kidding when we call it bread? it is cake. and it is far from eggboy friendly. so in an effort to make something pumpkin-y that is healthier than cake and free of gluten and dairy, i have been making granola bars that are really reeeeeally tasty, not too sweet, and so convenient for a quick breakfast or snack. they're great to wrap up individually and keep in the freezer... and yes, the cute twine bow is required when you do this.

soft pumpkin granola bars 

makes 12 

ingredients

2 c rolled oats (trader joe's and bob's red mill sell gluten free rolled oats) 

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp cinnamon

a pinch of cloves

a pinch of allspice

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

1 1/4 c almond milk (other milks would work too)

1 c pumpkin puree

2 to 4 tb honey, depending on how sweet you'd like them*** 

3/4 c toasted and chopped nuts, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, dried fruit, or any other fun mix-ins (optional) 

***the original recipe (and the one that i use) does not include any sugar. i like them like that, but as you can see from the comments, people want their sugar! i asked readers who did indeed enjoy them on the first try and they added anywhere from 2 to 4 tablespoons of honey. you could also try these with molasses, agave, or brown sugar.

clues 

preheat oven to 400. prepare a 12-inch loaf pan and set aside. 

in a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. mix in vanilla, eggs, almond milk, pumpkin, and honey. fold in nuts/seeds/fruit/mix-ins, if using. 

spread evenly in loaf pan. bake for 35-45 minutes, until the top is set and starts to darken.

let cool and slice into 1-inch bars. store in the fridge or freezer.

enjoy while wearing soft fluffy socks. and if you're having an extra sweet day, drizzle on another spot of honey!

-yeh!