Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipes

Steps:

• Side Bar: Before you start, set your cream cheese and butter out for several hours, so it can warm up to room temperature. Set rack in middle of oven and preheat to 300 degrees. Cut the tops off the pumpkins and set aside, With a teaspoon or grapefruit knife, scrape the fibrous pulp and seeds out of the pumpkins. Scrape some of the meat off the inner walls so they are no more than 3/8-inch thick. Put the cream cheese, butter, sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in a large mixing bowl and beat at medium speed until blended. Take care not to mix too much air into the batter. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, until each is incorporated. Reduce the speed and beat in the sour cream, vanilla and pumpkin puree. Fill the pumpkin shells with the batter and bake, on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes. Turn the pan and place the tops next to the pumpkins. Bake for 10 more minutes, until barely set and firm. If, at any time, the cakes start to puff up, turn the oven down or remove them. Let cool, in the pan, then refrigerate.;
• Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes until the berries have popped and form a thick sauce. Let cool. To serve, spoon cranberry sauce on top of filling. Place the pumpkin lid on a jaunty angle. Stick the birthday candle and mint sprig into the top.

Steps:

• For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with orange paper liners.
• Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter browns, 6 to 9 minutes. Immediately transfer to a medium bowl and let cool slightly. Whisk in the granulated sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla.
• Whisk the all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a large bowl. Add the brown butter mixture and whisk until just combined (do not overmix).
• Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups, filling them three-quarters of the way. Bake until the tops of the cupcakes spring back when gently pressed, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove to a rack to cool completely.
• For the frosting: Beat the butter and salt with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and add the confectioners' sugar, about 1 cup at a time. After each addition, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy again, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add the milk, vanilla and orange food coloring and beat until smooth.
• To decorate: Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes with a round pastry tip. Level off the top with an offset spatula to an even and smooth layer. Next, use a toothpick or small skewer to create "grooves" in the frosting to look like a pumpkin. Insert a chewy chocolate quarter in the top of each cupcake to look like a "stem" and drape the green sour gummy belt candy to look like a "vine." Repeat with the remaining cupcakes and candy. Refrigerate until the frosting is slightly firm, about 15 minutes.
• For the royal icing: Whisk together the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in a large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons water and beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft, glossy peaks form, adding up to 1 more tablespoon water if necessary (it should be thick but pipeable). Tint with black gel food coloring until very black. Cover the bowl with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap to prevent the icing from drying out until ready to use. (Makes about 1 cup.)
• Transfer the royal icing to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. Pie jack-o-lantern faces on each cupcake. Set aside until the royal icing has set, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350° and butter two 10-inch bundt cake pans.
• In a large bowl, stir together the flour, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the milk, pumpkin, and vanilla extract until smooth.
• In another large bowl, beat the butter or margarine and oil together with an electric mixer until combined. Next, beat in the sugar. Then beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
• Alternately beat in the milk/pumpkin mixture and the flour mixture until just combined.
• Divide the batter between the two prepared pans. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.
• Cool the cakes in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn them out onto wire racks to cool completely.
• Frosting:
• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Mix in the vanilla extract. Then beat in the powdered sugar gradually until the frosting is a spreadable consistency. Color about 1 cup of the frosting green and the rest orange.
• Assembly:.
• Trim the bottoms of the cakes so they lie flat against each other. Frost the flat surface of the bottom cake and place the other cake on top. Frost the entire cake orange. When the frosting dries, add green frosting leaves and top with the ice cream cone to create a stem.
• Decoration:.
• Sprinkle sugar over your work surface and use a rolling pin to flatten 12 large yellow and white gumdrops together into a pancake about 1/4 inch thick.
• Adults only - use a knife to cut out the eyes, nose and mouth. Microwave 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips for about 60 seconds.
• Dip the left side and bottom of the facial features in the melted chocolate. Dab a small amount of water onto the top surface of each feature, sprinkle the edible glitter on top, then press the facial features onto the cake.

Steps:

• Ginger Shortbread Crust:
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Place flour, sugar and ground ginger in a food processor and pulse a few times to mix together. Add egg yolk and softened butter and pulse until the dough comes together.
• Press the dough onto the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with your fingers, then smooth it out with an offset spatula. Prick the crust a few times with a fork to prevent the crust from puffing up during baking.
• Bake for 15 minutes or until the crust is a light golden brown.
• Let cool completely.
• Beat the reserved egg white lightly, then brush it onto the crust to prevent it from becoming soggy.
• Pumpkin Cheesecake:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Fill a baking pan about 3/4-inch deep with hot water. Place it on the bottom rack of the oven to create a steam bath.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, whole eggs and egg yolks until creamy.
• Sift together the flour, cinnamon, cloves and ginger, and add to the cream cheese mixture; mix well.
• Beat in the heavy cream and vanilla, then add the pumpkin and beat just until mixed thoroughly.
• Pour the cream cheese batter over the prepared crust and bake on the middle oven rack for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Allow the cheesecake to cool completely.
• Place in the refrigerator and chill overnight.
• Use a jack-o'-lantern template to decorate the cheesecake with the cocoa powder.