Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pie with Pecan Streusel Topping

Good evening, readers! I know you're thinking "Pumpkin!?!? In January!?" Well, as you may already know,  I love love love pumpkin, so I'm always ready to jump at any opportunity to bake and eat it! So this time, I contributed to a pot luck with this delicious dessert. The friend who was throwing the pot luck suggested I make the pie since she and her fiance could not get enough of it when I made it for Thanksgiving a couple of years ago.

I originally got the recipe from a fellow Virginia Beach blogger at How to Eat a Cupcake. It was adapted from a Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. She used a homemade pie crust in her recipe but I cheated with 2 regular 9" frozen pie crusts, which works just as well. I made 2 pies this way, or you could use one deep dish crust and make one thick pie. But I liked the fact that I could keep one and leave the other at the pot luck.

• 1 8-oz package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 slightly beaten egg

• 1/4 c canned pumpkin
• 1 c evaporated milk
• 2 beaten eggs
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1/4 c packed brown sugar (I used dark brown)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1/2 c chopped pecans 
• 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp butter, softened

*Note: I doubled the streusel  topping recipe because I made 2 pies.*

1) In a mixer, beat the first four ingredients on low to medium speed until smooth.

2) I chilled the mixture in the refrigerator fro 30 minutes. (I put mine in a separate bowl so I could reuse my mixer bowl).

 3) Preheat the oven to 350. Pour the mixture into the bottom of the pie shell(s)

4) Mix the next 6 ingredients until smooth in a mixer.

5) Carefully pour the pumpkin mixture over the cream cheese.

6) Cover the edges of the pie crusts with foil to prevent over-browning (aka burning) then bake for 25 minutes.

7) Remove the foil and bake the pies for another 25 minutes. Meanwhile, I chopped up my pecans and mixed the final 4 ingredients to make the pecan streusel topping.

8) Sprinkle the topping onto the pie(s) and bake for another 10 -15 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center of the pies comes out clean.

And the hard part is having to wait 1 to 2 hours for the pies to cool on a wire rack. But then you get to have this!

Yummy! The perfect complement for this pie would be either fresh-whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. I think I'll have a slice right now...

Pumpkin Pecan Muffins with a Pecan Streusel Topping

I made these delicious muffins for Thanksgiving, but these can be made year-round (if you're going to hoard cans of pumpkin like I'm going to). I started searching for a basic pumpkin muffin recipe at allrecipes.com but I added pecans and used canned pumpkin instead of a fresh one. Here's my modified version:

• 2 cups canned pumpkin puree
• 3 cups all-purpose flour (I used unbleached this time)
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans (you could add more or completely delete)

Streusel topping:

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two standard muffin pans (or 1 jumbo muffin pan) with paper cups.
2) In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together 2 cups pumpkin puree, vegetable oil and eggs. Stir pumpkin mixture into flour mixture until smooth. Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups.  

3) In a different bowl, mix brown sugar and flour. Add butter and cut mixture, using a fork. Add pecans, and spoon the topping on top of the unbaked muffins.

It looks like a lot, but it will work out. Trust me!

4) Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a butter knife inserted in the center of a muffins comes out clean. 

Yummm!

These muffins were a definite hit with the family! I loved the added crunch of the nuts and the crumbly streusel topping! Make sure to use a napkin when eating them. They get a little messy!