Waitrose Christmas Dessert Reviews

I've been lucky enough to be able to review several Christmas desserts from Waitrose this year, two of which were created by UK celebrity chef Heston Blementhal.  For those of you living outside the UK, or are who are just not unfamiliar with Heston, he's basically a real life Willy Wonka.  His creations are like little science experiments - many of which I find a little too out there, but his creations for Waitrose are suited more to the general public. 

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If you live in the UK, you may remember the infamous Christmas pudding he created last year exclusively for Waitrose.  It had an entire candied orange hidden inside, which infused the pudding with a delicious citrus flavour.  When you cut into the pudding you also got a cross section of candied orange as well.  Heston's Candied Orange Christmas Pudding sold out within days, and immediately began springing up on eBay for hundreds of pounds.  The same has happened this year, although the average price seems to be between £15 - £30.

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This year Heston has created several new Christmas desserts including a Chocolate Popping Candy Tart, a Chocolate and Cherry Blackforest Buche, and Puff Pastry Mince Pies With Pine Sugar Dusting.  

I was fortunate enough to try out Heston's Popping Candy Tart and his Pine Scented Mince Pies, as well as a Christmas Pudding Cheesecake by Waitrose's own label.  

First up I tried the Waitrose Christmas Pudding Cheesecake.  I had wanted to try it ever since hearing about it at the Waitrose Christmas product launch way back in the summer.  Although it wasn't available to sample on the day, I thought the concept was great.  The cheesecake comes in a neat dome shape, just like a real Christmas pudding.  It had a delicious graham cracker / digestive base, and the actual cheesecake bit was so light and fluffy in texture.  It was loosely studded with candied orange peel, raisins and pieces of Christmas pudding, but the flavour was not too strong or overwhelming, although the chocolate topping did taste a bit boozey.  My husband and I both really liked the cheesecake, partially because the Christmas pudding flavour was quite mild, making it a perfect alternative if you or your guests aren't that fond of the traditional Christmas pudding.  The Waitrose Christmas Pudding Cheesecake sells for £6.99 and serves approximately 6 people.

Next I tried the popping candy tart which is described as "a tart that will literally dance on your tongue. First you will be seduced by the luxurious velvety dark chocolate that has been infused with an exotic passion fruit puree, a direct contrast to the crunchy hazelnut base.  As your mouth begins to water the real surprise element begins as the popping candy begins to crackle and tingle on your tongue."

The description above is fairly accurate.  The chocolate is so rich and velvety smooth, with just a hint of passion fruit, making you want to savour every last bit in your mouth.  And that's when the popping candy hits you! There's just enough snap, crackle and pop to know it's there, but not so much that it's like you dumped an entire packet of the stuff into your mouth (like we all did when we were kids!).  I would definitely recommend Heston's popping candy tart as a special Christmas treat.  I also think it would make an even better dessert option for New Years Eve, although I'm not sure if it will still be available in stores then, but it's worth checking.  Personally, I think the only drawback to the popping candy tart would be the price.  Maybe it's just me, but £16.99 for a 10 serving tart seems a little steep for a prepared supermarket dessert.  I guess it just depends on how much you like your friends and family :-) 

Lastly I tried Heston's pine scented mince pies, which he describes as "delicious eaten warm from the oven, and then sprinkled with pine sugar for a Christmas tree aroma."  Unlike a conventional mince pie, Heston's version is incased in puff pastry rather than a normal tart shell.  The mince pies come with a generous sized packet of pine scented icing sugar that really does smell exactly like pine, so much so, that I initially found it a little off putting because it smelled like a household cleaner.  After dipping my finger into it and giving it a taste, I decided that I actually quite liked the pine sugar.  It had a nice subtle pine flavour, with a minty aftertaste.  I was really excited to give these mince pies a try, but in all honesty I found them a bit disappointing.  Perhaps it's because I've never been a huge puff pasty fan, but I found the pastry a bit bland - I think the pies would have been better in a traditional tart shell. There was too much puff pastry, and not enough filling inside, but I really did like the pine sugar. I think next year Heston could have a real winner if he kept the novelty of the pine sugar, but used a regular tart shell.  At £3.29 for 6, they're definitely more expensive than the average mince pies, but they won't break the bank either if you're looking to try a little something different.

At first I sprinkled the pine sugar on quite sparingly, but don't be afraid of it.  Next time I'd cover the tops in the sugar!

So what are YOU having for Christmas dessert?

Chocolate Chip Cookies YOU Don't Have To Bake

It's Christmas party season at the moment, and if you're looking for the perfect hostess gift baked goods always seem to go down well.  They're thoughtful and homemade, but sometimes - especially around Christmas time, we literally just don't have the time (or energy) to sit around baking.  If this sounds like a dilemma you have, then these cookies my friends are for you!  They look amazing, taste delicious, and only take about 5 mins to make - not bake!  That's because you don't do the baking, they do!  Just include a little card with the baking instructions so the recipient knows what to do.  

I had actually made these cookies in a jar way back in the summer as a hostess thank you gift, which is why they don't exactly look very Christmassy.  I'd used a spring mix colour blend of M&M's and some fun white and dark chocolate swirl chocolate chips I picked up in the States - why don't we get these cool things in the UK?!?!?

I love these cookies because not only are they easy to make, but they just look so pretty in the jar, especially with seasonal coloured M&M's, and a nice bow tied around them.  For some strange reason here in the UK M&M's do a Christmas blend of red and green M&M's, but they're only available in peanut flavour, and in a little 125 gram tube.  BUT - the good news is, if you're looking for fun and seasonal colours of M&M's, they are available at the M&M store in Leicester Square (I bought a variety of blue M&M's for my baby shower there).

To make these Cookies in a Jar, you'll need a jar (duh!), chocolate chips, M&M's (or other candy coated chocolate candy - you could also use raisins or nuts, but those aren't nearly as fun) and then the usual ingredients flour, sugar, oats, etc, and then layer them neatly in the jar.  Include a little instruction card letting your friends know they'll need to add in a bit of butter, an egg, and some vanilla to the mixture before baking.

Cookies in a Jar

Adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:

1 1/3 Cups (166g) Flour 

1 1/3 Cups (120g) Rolled Oats  

3/4 Cup M&M's, Chopped Nuts, or Raisins 

3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips 

1/2 Cup (100g) Brown Sugar, packed

1/2 Cup (112g) White Sugar

1 tsp Baking Powder 

1 tsp Baking Soda 

1/4 tsp Salt

Instructions:

1.  Layer the ingredients in a 1 quart jar (I think I got my jars from Ikea) in the order given above. Make sure to press each layer firmly in place before adding the next layer, otherwise it may not all fit. 

2.  Include a card with the following instructions: Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix in a Jar: 

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF (175ºC). Grease cookie sheets.  2. In a medium bowl, mix together 1/2 cup (115g) melted butter, 1 egg, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Stir in the entire contents of the jar. You may need to use your hands to finish mixing. Shape into walnut sized balls. Place two inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. 3. Bake for 11 to 13 minutes in the preheated oven. Transfer from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.

And there you have it!  A delicious home prepared Christmas (or anytime) gift that tastes amazing, and takes virtually none of your time!

Made With Pink's Christmas Gift Guide

With Christmas just around the corner, I couldn't help but pull together a list of my top must have gifts that I either own - or would like to see under my tree this year.  Anyone who knows me knows I absolutely LOVE shopping. I'm drawn to anything cute, pink or whimsical, so narrowing down my top gift picks was difficult!  I was originally going to choose my top 5, but that was far too difficult, so I settled on my top 10.  

Made With Pink's Christmas Gift Guide - Top 10 Picks

1.  Russian Doll Measuring Cups - this set of 6 cute measuring cups look like traditional Russian matryoshkas dolls, and stack neatly inside each other.  They measure 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4 and 1 full cup.  Available from John Lewis for £11 and other retailers.

2.  Kenwood kMix Food Mixer - I've never been a fan of the classic Kenwood mixer - purely because I didn't like the way it looked, but I'm loving the new kMix line which come in a range of funky colours.  The mixer shown is the Firecracker model, but my favourite is the Oyster Cove 1 which is made up of various shades of purples and greys.  The Firecracker model is available from John Lewis for £369.  All other models are available via the Kenwood Online Store for £399

3.  Pip Studio Tableware - Ever since spotting these gorgeous cups and saucers by Pip Studio last year, I've been a huge fan of the entire tableware range.  They're great because they come in 3 main colours - blue, pink and beige and can all be mixed and matched with each other.  My husband bought me several pieces for my birthday in August, and I just love them and will continue to add to my collection.  The range includes  tea cups and saucers, tea pots, plates, mugs, bowls, charger plates, etc and look gorgeous when the various colours are mixed with each other.  Available from John Lewis for £4 - £50 and other retailers.

4.  Charbonnel et Walker Pink Marc de Champagne Truffles - Swarovski Crystal Edition - I just love these delicious pink champagne truffles.  How could I not?  They're pink!  And they're actually what inspired my award winning Pink Champagne Cupcakes I made around the time when I first started Made With Pink.  To be honest, the only thing different about these truffles that makes them any different from the original Charbonnel Pink Marc de Champagne truffles is that the box is studded with gorgeous pink Swarovski Crystals. I'm going to be honest and say that I could never justify the cost of these just because they have Swarovski Crystals on the box, but there are obviously people who can!  I think for now I'm going to have to admire them from afar, but if you're looking for a gift for the person that has everything, then you may want to pick up a box.  Available from Harrods for £50

5.  KitchenAid Ice Blue Artisan Mixer - I know I'm featuring two mixers, but I just love the look of both of the ones I've chosen.  I don't know if I could ever stray from my pink KitchenAid Artisan Mixer, but this Ice Blue Model (slightly resembling a giant package from Tiffany's) just might tempt me.  If I could have both I would!  Available from John Lewis for £419 - currently comes with a free glass mixing bowl worth £61

6.  Pink Heart Cast Iron Casserole Dish - I spotted this adorable baby pink heart shaped cast iron casserole dish during a recent shop at Sainsburys.  I was immediately impressed with the finish an quality of the dish, as well as it's reasonable price tag. I know for a fact that this will be waiting for me under our tree on Christmas morning :-)  If you're not a fan of the heart shape, it's also available in the traditional round shape in two different sizes.  Available from Sainsburys for £30

7.  Hovis Bread Tin - I don't know why, but I just love this vintage inspired Hovis bread loaf tin.  I'd seen them previously in Selfridges, but never purchased one.  I love the old fashioned look of them, and think they would make a fantastic gift - especially with a loaf of my banana bread already baked inside! I'm not sure if Selfridges still carry these, but they're available online in two different sizes from Not On The High Street for £16 - £28

8.  Peggy Porschen Apron - Ever since discovering Peggy's cake decorating books I've been a huge fan of hers, and fell in love with her pretty pink and brown aprons after seeing them on display in her cake parlour.  At the time of posting this the adult apron is currently sold out, but the children's size is still available.  The aprons are normally sold in store and online, but as the adult size is out of stock it's best to call the parlour to check availability.  Available from the Peggy Porschen Parlour for £15 - £25

9.  Kuhn Rikon Colori Knives - I can safely say that these coloured knives are the most used thing in my kitchen.  I've lost track as to how many I actually have, but the baby pink ones (I have several) are my favourite.  I love these knives because the blades are made of high-quality carbon with a non-stick coating and plastic blade protecting case, which makes them great because I can toss them in my drawer or purse (yes, I've been known to carry one in my purse!) without them getting dull.  They come in a huge variety of colours and patterns including leopard and zebra prints, and even polka dot and cupcake patterns!  Available from various retailers for around £6

10.   ToDryFor Tea Towels - I stumbled across the ToDryFor website a few months ago, and can't get enough of their quirky tea towels!  They have a huge range of designs, many inspired by London and other famous world cities, but the 2 pictured above are probably my favourites.  Available online from the ToDryFor website for £8.50 - £12.50

Hopefully my picks will help you choose the perfect gift for your loved one, or feel free to hint to them about something that caught your eye!  

* Please note that My Top 10 Picks were independently chosen by me, and without any compensation or influence from the manufacturers. 

Cupcakes for Christmas

With the big day just around the corner, there's still time to make a little something special to share with your friends and family on Christmas eve or Christmas day.  We're all pretty busy this time of year.  There's food to prepare, gifts to be wrapped and stockings to be stuffed.  I've come up with a few super easy ways to decorate your cupcakes for Christmas.  And don't worry if you're not very handy with a piping bag - I've also made a couple of cute little toppers that you can just stick right on top of your cupcake.  Here's a few really simple ideas to decorate some cupcakes for Christmas. 

Christmas Tree Cupcakes 

These really are as simple as they look.  Pipe a big swirl of green icing onto your cupcake for the tree, then add some sprinkles for the lights, and finally cut out a little star from sugar paste or fondant to top it all off.  Pretty cute huh? (Excuse my icing, it looks a bit dry but it really wasn't!)

Christmas Pudding Cupcakes 

Christmas puddings are a staple on every Christmas table in the UK, but they're not very common in North America.  They're traditionally made with dried fruit, spices and brandy, but are a bit labour intensive and can require up to 8 hours of steaming before they're done the first phase of cooking.  Christmas puddings are made months ahead of time, and are then stored in a cool dark place (as one recipe states: "under the bed in an unheated bedroom is an ideal place") until the big day.  They're traditionally served with a custard or brandy sauce poured over top, and garnished with a sprig of holly.   If you're like me and can't be bothered with all that fuss, and I much prefer the taste (and ease) of a chocolate cupcake then give these decorated Christmas Pudding Cupcakes.  Cover your cupcake with chocolate icing, take a dollop of white icing and spread it around so it looks like it's running down the top of the cupcakes, and then top it off with a few pieces of holly that have been cut out from sugar paste of fondant. Easy, and no piping bag required! 

Gingerbread Man Cupcakes 

You've got 2 choices with these, but both require a mini gingerbread cutter.  Last year I got a package of 12 mini gingerbread man cookie cutters, each one in a different position.  I didn't get around to making gingerbread men this year, so I just used some sugar paste that I tinted brown.  You can use either sugar paste, fondant or gingerbread for your little men, and then use some little sprinkles for a face and buttons. 

Here are the two fondant plunger cutters I used for the star and holly decorations.  They're sold in packs 3 stars and 3 holly leaves, each in a different size.  I kinda forgot to take a picture of all my little gingerbread men.  I got them at TK Maxx last year, but still see them there every few months. 

If you're more of a cupcake topper fan, then you can give these ones a try.   

I purchased some pre-tied bows from the fabric store and just glued a toothpick onto the back of them.  Simple. But if you're in more of a crafty mood you might want to making the little reindeer toppers.  

I picked up a pack of little gingham print wooden reindeer and a pack pre-tied tiny green and silver bows from Hobby Craft - each were only £1.  Simply trim the bows and glue them onto the reindeer using a glue gun.  Once they've cooled, flip them over and glue a toothpick onto the back. 

These are so easy to make, and I think they're really something different than a regular cupcake decorated using only icing.  There's just something very fun and whimsical about them.  So I've you've got a bit of spare time in the next day or so, give one of these cupcake ideas a try!

Gifts From The Kitchen

 

I'm snowed in.  Seriously.  I'm one of the thousands of people in the UK that haven't been able to go anywhere for the last few days.  The country is in chaos, along with other parts of Europe.  Planes, trains and automobiles - they've all ground to a halt.  I'm sure that my friends back in Canada and the US are laughing at us right now.  After all, it's just a bit of snow right?  Wrong!  I haven't been able to leave the comfort of my own home in 4 days, but at least I've been stuck in the comfort of my own home and not at the airport or Eurostar terminal like the thousands of other  people who are snowed in at the moment. 

Being snowed in a few days before Christmas has presented me, along with the rest of the UK with a bit of a challenge - we haven't finished our Christmas shopping!  I live in an area that doesn't get a lot of traffic down our road, which means that we've got a lot more snow and ice than most areas.  One thing that I have been able to do is pop into the corner store to pick up a few supplies.  Baking Supplies.  Even though I haven't been able to get out to do my Christmas shopping I've been able to bake and in this case - roll some delicious little Christmas treats that would make the prefect last minute Christmas gift. 

These chocolate truffles couldn't be easier to make, and they're soooo good you definitely can't eat just one.  But be careful!  Make sure you don't eat them all, or you won't have any left to give to your friends!  

You only need 3 main ingredients to make these tasty little balls.  Chocolate, cream and a bit of sugar.  You'll also need few extra ingredients too - Icing sugar, cocoa & some grated chocolate.

Chocolate Truffles

6oz (170g) Chocolate, good quality, either dark or milk.
8 Tbsp (120ml) Cream 

0.5oz - approx 3 Tbsp (14g) Sugar

1 Tbs Baileys liqueur, or other of your choice

Icing sugar, cocoa, grated chocolate, coconut or chopped nuts for rolling your truffles in


1. Break up or chop chocolate into small pieces and put into a small to medium sized stainless steel bowl.

2. Pour cream and sugar into a small sauce pan and heat over medium heat until almost boiling. Stir frequently to prevent any burning. 

3. Once the cream and sugar has come close to boiling, pour it over top of the chocolate pieces (the chocolate should be mostly covered by the cream).  * If you'd like to add additional flavour to your truffles, now's the time to add it.  I used Baileys Cream liqueur with my first batch, but you can use rum or any other liquor you'd like.  Let the cream sit on the chocolate for 5 minutes.  After 5 minutes, start to stir the chocolate and cream together using a metal spoon.  Start from the inside and stir clockwise working your way to the outer edge of the bowl.  Stir until the chocolate and cream mixture is smooth and combined.  There shouldn't be any lumps of chocolate left.  This is what's known as Chocolate Ganache.  Let the chocolate ganache mixture cool, and then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night. 

4. After chilling over night the mixture should be quite solid.  Scoop out some of the chocolate ganache using a small spoon, and roll it into a ball using the palm of your hand.  It gets messy here because the chocolate ganache melts quickly so it's hard to get your truffles into perfectly round balls.  Once you've rolled out your truffle, the outside will be moist and sticky.  Now's the time to roll it in whatever coating you choose.  I started out with cocoa, icing sugar, and grated milk and white chocolate. Put your "coatings" in a few shallow dishes and drop your truffle into them.  Give the bowl a few shakes and your truffles will coat themselves in whatever coating you choose.  Continue to roll and coat your truffles until your all done.  This recipe should make about 36 truffles. 

I made my first batch of truffles using good quality organic dark chocolate and Baileys Irish Cream liqueur.  They turned out beautifully, but were very rich so make sure you don't eat too many! There you have it!  A perfect gift for the holidays, made by you!   

I liked these truffles.  I mean I really liked them.  But - my husband thought they were a bit too rich for his liking, so I opted to make a batch using milk chocolate instead.  I also tried something different with my second batch.  Something Christmassy. 

Something Red.  Something Green.  Something White. 

Pretty festive huh? 

I made this batch using grated Wilton Candy Melts in Christmas colours.  I also made a few using grated pink candy melts, but I gobbled them up before I could get a picture. Oops! 

To get these perfect little colourful curls, I just sandwiched 2 Wilton Candy Melts together and grated them on the small holed side of my regular box grater.  I only needed about 10 candy melts in each colour.  Simple!  If you've got time before Christmas I  really suggest you try making these.  You could even leave out a few for Santa!

A Winning Combination

First of all, my apologies for the lack of posts over the past few weeks.  Our home computer was broken so I haven't been able to get to my baking pictures, and I've also had a horrible cold for the last week.  Throw that into the mix along with the pre-Christmas events that I've had going on, and I'll admit I've been pretty useless.  I mean, I haven't even been on Twitter for 7 days!  Me!  Yeah, I know.  It's sooo not like me!   BUT- I'm back now with a few weeks worth of Christmas baking posts that I'm going to try and get up before the big day.   

The first Christmas event I went to this year was actually back in November.  It was a product launch hosted by Sainsbury's for their new Taste The Difference (TTD) Christmas & Party Food product range. I had a fabulous evening chatting with the lovely folks at Sainsbury's and learning about the products in their new TTD Christmas range.  I was impressed to hear that their Panatonne is sourced straight from Italy, and comes from an old family recipe passed down from generations. There was plenty of delicious food on hand to sample including miniature Thai Fish Cakes, Steak & Ale Pies, Chicken & Bacon Pies, and the cutest little paper cones filled with tiny pieces of fish & chips!  

 

More Christmas Appies

They also had some delicious prawns rolled in a crispy wonton wrapper and then tied at each end to look like a mini Christmas cracker - too cute!  I washed all of those delicious appies down with several glasses (ok, more like 5 - it was a long day!) of the new Sainsbury's Hibiscus Pink Fizz which was sweet and delicious - one of my favourite things of the evening.  Another favourite of the night happened to be their new Mince Pie Ice Cream.  It's deliciously creamy, with chunks of mince pie folded throughout.  I think it would be amazing on a nice hot waffle drizzled with a bit of syrup.   

Mincemeat Pies & the delicious Mince Pie Ice Cream!

For those of you who aren't familiar with a mincemeat (or mince) pies and tarts, they don't actually have real meat in them.  At least they don't anymore.  Mince pies have been a traditional Christmas treat for hundreds of years, and traditionally they did contain real meat, along with fruit and spices.  Nowadays mincemeat is made using a mixture of dried fruit such as apples, raisins, currents, candied citrus peel, brown sugar, spices and brandy. I'll admit that when I first moved here I was quite put off by mincemeat pies.  Perhaps it was just the name, or that I wasn't used to the combination of strong flavours, but after being surrounded by boxes and boxes of mince pies at work during the weeks leading up to Christmas, I actually found myself growing quite fond of them.  Mincemeat pies aren't very common in Canada or the US, but I do know that you can purchase pre-made mincemeat in a few Canadian stores (not sure about American ones), but I don't recall ever seeing any pre-made pies or tarts available. 

A month or so ago Sainsbury's sent me a jar of their new Taste The Difference Mincemeat filling.  Since mince pies are so common during the Christmas period, I decided to try and use my jar of mincemeat for something other than the predictable pie.  I've come up with a few delicious recipes that make a great alternative to the traditional mincemeat pie.  The first one is a delicious Apple Crumble with a few spoon fulls of mincemeat tossed in to create a Chrsitmassy twist on a classic dessert.  

Mincemeat Apple Crumble 

6 Apples of your choice.
1/4 heaping Cup mincemeat filling
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Nutmeg 

2/3 Cup + 2 Tbsp packed (155g) Brown Sugar (called Dark Muscavado in the UK)
1/2 Cup (63g) Flour
1/2 Cup (45g) Oats
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/3 Cup (75g) Butter, softened 

1. Pre-heat oven to 365F.  Grease a dish of your choice. I used a 6x8 deep casserole dish, but an 8x8 glass pan would work as well. Peel and slice your apples, and place them into your dish.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.  Dump in the mincemeat and stir until mixed throughout (If your dish isn't deep enough, you may have to combine the apples and mincemeat in a separate bowl before putting it into your baking dish. 

2. In a large bowl combine brown sugar, flour,  oats, cinnamon, nutmeg and softened butter. Using clean hands, combine everything together in the bowl by tossing the dry ingredients together with the butter, and then squeezing the butter together with the dry ingredients until well combined.  Really squish it around so everything is moist and mixed together.  The mixture should crumble into little balls - break up any really large ones.   

3. Sprinkle the crumbly mixture on top of the apples and bake for 35 - 45 minutes, until apples are tender and the topping is golden brown.  The juice from the apples should be bubbling through the edges of the dish and crumbly topping when done.  Let the apple crumble cool for about 20 mins, and serve over vanilla ice cream. 

** This apple crumble is absolutely delicious, even without the added mincemeat.  If you don't feel like added in the mincemeat to the apple crumble, it can be made without and served over the Waitrose TTD Mincemeat Ice Cream.  The first few times I tested out this recipe I used Gala apples, but then I made a full sized version using Granny Smiths for a dinner party I had and I think I preferred it with the Granny Smiths, although both were really tasty.  

 

And now for the part you've all been waiting for!  The winner of the Cupcake Bag giveaway is: 

Congratulations Liz!!!  I'll be in touch shortly to get your mailing details, but if you see this before I email you then feel free to contact me with your details.

Whoopie! It's a Giveaway!

You may recall that I made my very first whoopie pie a few weeks ago when I tested a recipe for a new cook book that has yet to be released.  I was really impressed with how easy whoopie pies were to make, and wondered why the heck it took me so long to try them!   

Last week I made pumpkin pie, and I've been on a bit of a pumpkin kick ever since.  One of my favourite things to make with pumpkin are my pumpkin spice cupcakes, but this time I decided to forgo my "old faithfuls" in exchange for something new. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies!  I've wanted to make these pumpkin whoopie pies for ages - long before I offered to test the chocolate and vanilla ones, but I just never got around to it.   

These whoopies are really delicious.  They're a bit like carrot cake, but without all those little carroty bits.  Sandwich some cinnamon cream cheese filling in between them, and you've got a match made in heaven. 

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

1½ cups (190g) flour 

½ tsp salt 

½ tsp baking powder 

½ tsp baking soda 

½ tsp vanilla extract 

2 ½ tsp ground cinnamon 

½ tsp ground ginger 

½ tsp ground cloves 

1 cup (220g) packed brown sugar 

½ cup (125ml) vegetable oil 

¾ cup (165g) pumpkin puree 

1 egg 

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling 

½ cup (113g) Cream Cheese  

½ cup (113g) Butter, room temperature 

1½ cups Icing Sugar 

2 tsp vanilla 

1 tsp cinnamon  

Maple syrup or flavouring** (optional) 

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF (175ºC), and lightly grease 2 baking sheets, or line with parchment paper. 

2. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in a bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the oil, vanilla and brown sugar together. Mix in the pumpkin and eggs, and beat until well combined. Add in the flour mixture, and mix until combined.   

3. To form your whoopie pies, drop two teaspoons of batter onto the prepared baking sheets.  Alternatively, you can pour your batter into a piping bag, and pipe 1½ inch circles onto your baking sheets Bake for 10 minutes. Cool. 

4. For the cream cheese filling, beat the butter and cream cheese together until well blended.  Add in the icing sugar, cinnamon and vanilla, and blend until light and fluffy.  If the icing isn't stiff enough, add in a bit more icing sugar until it's thick enough. **I tried several variations with my cream cheese filling.  I split the filling into thirds, and left 1/3 plain, 1/3 cinnamon, and 1/3 maple (I used McCormick brand Maple Flavouring from Canada).  I thought all 3 fillings, were delicious, but I'm a sucker for anything cinnamon, so preferred the cinnamon variation the best. 

5. Spoon or pipe the cream cheese filling onto the bottom of one of the whoopie pies before placing another one on top of the filling to create a small sandwich. Repeat until all of the whoopie pies are complete. 

There ya go.  Pumpkin Whoopie Pies!  Bet ya can't eat just one! 

And now for the best part!!!

Since we're almost half way through the first week of December, I'm assuming most of you have probably started your Christmas shopping by now.  I have.  And while I was out shopping a few weeks ago, I came across another one of these reusable nylon cupcake bags.  I've had this exact bag for ages, and I have to admit it's great for popping into your purse and whipping out at a moments notice to carry home all of your purchases.  And because it's Christmas, and because it's the season for shopping - and giving, I've decided to give away this cute little bag.  To enter for a chance to win, all you have to do is leave a comment below telling me what you'd put in the bag when you go shopping. Would it be a hat and scarf for mom? A DVD set for your boyfriend? Or toys for your kiddies? You can get extra entries by doing each of the following, and then leave a comment telling me which ones you've done.     

• Become a Follower of Made With Pink using Google Friend Connect  
• Become a Fan of Made With Pink on Facebook 
• Follow me on Twitter, and Tweet the following message: I've just entered to win a Cupcake Fizbag from @Made_With_Pink  http://tiny.cc/h5fi3

Links to all of the above are in the right hand column.  Maximum of 4 entries per person.  Contest open residents world wide. The winning comment will be chosen at random.  

Contest closes at midnight (London, UK time) on Sunday December 12th.

Good Luck!

*** I Just wanted to remind everyone that you MUST leave a comment below in order to be entered into the prize draw, otherwise I have no way of keeping track of who tweeted, followed etc.  If you make a comment anonymously then please leave an email address so I can contact you if you win. You should leave a separate comment for each of the 3 things listed above if you want to be entered more than once.  I will be using random.org to choose a number from all of the comments listed below in order to determine the winner. ***