Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

It's been an interesting month here for me at casa Baking and Mistaking. I semi-dealt with a superstorm, had a semi-vacation and survived a semi-war. And what better way to deal with everything than baking - specifically, pumpkin whoopie pies with cinnamon cream cheese frosting?

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I love snickerdoodles. And if you read this blog, you should know that by now. After all, I've made snickerdoodle pie, snickerdoodle blondies, and of course the main event. And I also love pumpkin - as the muffins, pie bars, cheesecakes and cupcakes can attest to. So a recipe that combines the two? Sign me up!

Pumpkin Pie Bars

Is it still winter? The sun ins shining, but only half the snow has melted. One day it was 65 F, the next 35 F. One day I'm making Coconut Grapefruit Cupcakes, and the next...Pumpkin Pie Bars. Is everyone over the pumpkin thing yet? Or has it been long enough since Thanksgiving that pumpkin is now back in style?

 

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

After I cracked open, disemboweled, cooked and pureed my 5-pound pumpkin, I made pumpkin muffins, pumpkin soup...and still had pumpkin puree to go.  So I searched high and low, for the perfect recipe to highlight the remainder of my fresh pumpkin puree. And I found it, in these pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. 

Pumpkin Muffins....the hard way

I'm not big on free time these days. Or sleep. But somehow, when I managed to have a few hours on a Sunday free of all obligations, I decided to buy a pumpkin. Some people buy pumpkins to carve into scary faces and put on their porches. I bought a pumpkin to eat. And about six hours later...my pumpkin became muffins.

Mini Pumpkin-Shaped Pumpkin Cheesecakes

It just doesn't get any cuter than this people.

Individual desserts are pretty adorable to begin with - but when they take the shape of an ingredient? Oy.

I should probably start by explaining why I have a mini pumpkin cheesecake pan. As Alton Brown would say, it isn't quite a kitchen multi-tasker.
So I didn't purchase this baby, but I did win it on BakingBites.com! That's right, Nicole of BakingBites ran a giveaway for the pan and a copy of her cookbook, and I actually won! And of course I've been trying out things from her cookbook too - posts to come.

Anyway, back to the cheesecake. With the cream cheese and pumpkin and cinnamon and nutmeg....
Yum.
These have a graham cracker crust, pressed down in to the bottom and baked first, then topped with the filling. It was really pretty simple, the most time is probably spent dividing everything up between the 12.
My friend Tali thought they weren't quite festive enough, so she decided to update it a little.
And then I made her eat it. To each her own.
I had no problem eating mine.

Now, obviously I don't expect you all to have your very own pumpkin cheesecake pan. I would say you can make it in a muffin pan, only hesitantly, since it may be difficult to get them out. These have removable bottoms, so you just have to lift them up and take off the plate underneath.

This amount would probably be about right for a 9 inch pie - but you may need more crust.

Recipe:
Crust:
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp butter or margarine, melted
2 tbsp sugar

Filling:
12 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice

Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar. Divide equally among 12 muffin tins - about a heaping teaspoon in each - and press down with your fingers.
Bake on 325 for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.

Beat together the cream cheese and sugar. Mix in the eggs one at a time, and add in the vanilla.
Mix in the pumpkin and spices. Stir until completely combined and uniform in color.
Divide equally among the pans.
Bake on 300 (note a temperature change) for 18 to 20 minutes, until set.
Let cool for 30 minutes on wire rack, then place in fridge to cool for 1 1/2 to 2 hours before removing from pan.