Usually I pen my columns after work, at night. Today I’m coming to you with my coffee in hand, and its ‘early’ morning. How does this affect the writing of this column? Hm…, I’m not sure, let’s give it a roll! Maybe with caffeine in hand I’ll be sharper, who knows…
Pumpkin Pudding, one of my favorite fall dessert dishes. This is like eating pumpkin pie without the crust, with a fabulous crunchy topping. Many people enjoy theirs with a squirt of whipped cream on top, not this farm girl. I like mine with about a 1/4 cup of half and half.
When it comes to level of difficulty this recipe is about a 1-2, very very simple. You will need a can of sweet condensed milk. Start watching this in the store. The three cans I purchased last week had already started to turn ‘tan’ in color. Your thought is probably: ‘It was too close to expiration.’ Nope, try expiration was 2 years away! If I lived a long distance from a grocery store I think I would always keep 2-3 cans on hand. When they’re opened and they’ve turned colors, I do not use them.
The choice of nuts in this recipe is your choice, of course. You can even play around with the cake on top, with all the different varieties of yellow cakes today.
I would be amiss to not give credit where credit is due on this recipe. There are many versions of this pudding dish, but this particular one was given to me by Judy Willoughby, of Gladstone, Missouri. Fall and Holiday dinners at church were not complete without this dessert present. It was almost her signature dish. Judy’s husband, Phil, married Ervin and I back in 1998.
I almost forgot, pumpkin pie spice. When I went to purchase it this week the price was over $6.00 for a container with only 4 tablespoons. I about freaked out, so I came home and made my own, (like my mom taught me to do).
I just went on line and down loaded one when I was making the pudding. Here is Taste of Home’s on line recipe for pumpkin pie spice:
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Stir well to blend and measure out for pumpkin pie spice.
Get outside, soak in the sunshine, before the Missouri winter is upon us. The vitamin D from the rays are important in many ways. For me it’s the overall effect it has on our attitudes and mental well-being.
Enjoy the day, time for another cup of Joe! Thank you taking the time to read my recipes! Simply yours, The Covered Dish. www.thecovereddish.com
Pumpkin Pudding
Serves 12-16
2 (15 ounce) cans pumpkin
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
Topping
1 yellow cake mix
1 1/4 sticks melted butter, 3/4 cup butter
1 cup chopped pecans
Mix all the pudding ingredients together and place in a greased 9 x 13 baking pan.
You can omit 1/2 cup of sugar and use 2 tablespoons of molasses, however it tends to make the pudding darker.
Gently sprinkle the yellow cake mix over the top of the pudding. Over the cake mix layer on the chopped pecans and lastly drizzle the melted butter over the top. Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for one hour. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, or straight cream.
