Easy Pumpkin Roll

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
•  
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch jelly roll pan or cookie sheet.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice. Stir in pumpkin puree, eggs, and lemon juice. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Spread the mixture evenly.
3. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 15 minutes.
4. Lay a damp linen towel on the counter, sprinkle it with confectioner's sugar, and turn the cake onto the towel. Carefully roll the towel up (lengthwise) with the cake in it. Place the cake-in-towel on a cooling rack and let it cool for 20 minutes.
5. Make the icing: In a medium bowl, blend cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and sugar with a wooden spoon or electric mixer.
6. When the cake has cooled 20 minutes, unroll it and spread icing onto it. Immediately re-roll (not in the towel this time), and wrap it with plastic wrap. Keep the cake refrigerated or freeze it for up to 2 weeks in aluminum foil. Cut the cake in slices just before serving. Serve cold.

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Grilled Bartlett Pears A La Mode

Ingredients

• 5 Bartlett pears
• 1 stick butter
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons Mexican vanilla extract
• 1 quart vanilla ice cream, for serving

Directions

Preheat a grill to medium-high heat.

Cut pears into thick slices (4 to 5 per pear). Place slices evenly in a large pan or bowl. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Pour melted butter over pears. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla to pan and mix until pears are thoroughly coated with the mixture.

Place pears directly onto hot grill. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove pears and place in individual dessert bowls. Pour remaining butter mixture into a medium, grill-safe saucepan. Place saucepan on grill and cook, stirring, until boiling. Remove from heat.

Place 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream over the pears in each bowl. Pour butter sauce over ice cream and serve.

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Rainier Cherry Crumble

Rainier cherries are sweet enough on their own that the filling for this crumble needs no extra sugar. The topping is crunchy and nutty, and the filling is sweet, warm, and gooey, for a perfect comforting dessert. You don't even need a cherry pitter: Hit each cherry with the flat side of a chef's knife (like crushing garlic cloves), and the pit pops right out. 

• Cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• Dash of salt
• 3 pounds very sweet cherries, such as Rainier, pitted
• 4 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped almonds, toasted
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 7 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces

1. Preheat oven to 400°.  

2. Place a 9-inch cast-iron skillet in preheated oven; heat 5 minutes. Remove pan from oven, and lightly coat with cooking spray.  

3. Combine cornstarch, juice, dash of salt, and cherries in a large bowl, tossing well to coat. Pour cherry mixture into prepared pan.  

4. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients (through 1/8 teaspoon salt) in a medium bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. 

5. Sprinkle flour mixture over cherries. 

6. Place skillet on a jelly-roll pan. Bake at 400° for 35 minutes or until filling is thick and bubbly and topping is browned. Remove from oven; let stand 20 minutes. Serve warm.

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Organic Carrot Cake

Who was the evil genius who invented the carrot cake? This is an oily, sugar filled concoction that even uses a fat based frosting (mere sugar wouldn’t do). .. But, you have to admit, it tastes out of control good. .. That is, when it’s done well. You know over the course of the years I’ve spent on this planet I’ve learned a few things and one of them is that a “carrot cake” that has this cute little orange frosting carrot on top should be avoided like poison ivy. … So ours is decedent, so what? My plan when baking this is to cut out a single slice and then hustle the rest of the cake down to my three nieces the next town over. I get my fix, they get theirs and everyone’s happy. Anyway here’s how it’s done..
- Theo at organictestkitchens.com

Carrot Cake

• 2 1/2 Cups of Organic All Purpose Flour
• 1 Teaspoon of Aluminum Free Baking Powder
• 1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda
• 1/4 Teaspoon Organic Allspice
• 1 Teaspoon Organic Cinnamon
• 1/2 Teaspoon Organic Nutmeg
• Pinch of Cloves
• 1/2 Teaspoon of Sea Salt
• 14 oz. of Peeled Grated Organic Carrots (just buy a One Pound Package and figure that by the time you cut the tops, tips and grate you’ll have your 14 oz.)
• 1 1/3 Cup of Unrefined Organic Sugar
• 1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar (packed in)
• 3 Large Organic Eggs
• 1 1/4 Cup of Organic Canola Oil
• 1/4 Cup of Plain Organic Yogurt
• Optional-1Cup of Organic Walnuts or Pecans if you like nuts

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz. of Organic Cream Cheese
• 5 Tablespoons of Organic Unsalted Butter
• 1 Tablespoon of Organic Sour Cream
• 1 Teaspoon of Organic Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/2 Cups of Organic Powdered Confectioner’s Sugar

Recipe for the Carrot Cake:

• Set the oven rack to the middle of the oven and preheat to 350F
• Take out a cake pan that’s either round (9″x3″ high) or square (13″x 9″)
• Coat the baking pan with unsalted butter and dust with flour.
• Place parchment paper on the bottom of the cake pan.
• Take out a Large Mixing Bowl
• Measure 2 1/2 Cups of Flour into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1/4 Teaspoon of Allspice into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1/2 Teaspoon of Nutmeg into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1 Pinch of Cloves into the large mixing bowl
• Measure 1/2 Teaspoon of Sea Salt into the large mixing bowl
• Whisk together the dry ingredients.
• Cut the tops and very tips of 16oz of Organic Carrots. Peel and Grate.
• Add the Grated Carrots to the dry Ingredients in the large mixing bowl. Use a large wooden spoon to mix everything together to insure that the carrots get coated with the dry ingredients.
• Take out your food processor
• Add 1 1/3 Cups of Sugar to the food processor (do not start)
• Add 1/2 Cups of Packed Brown Sugar to the food processor (do not start)
• Add 3 Large Eggs to the food processor (do not start)
• Add 1/4 Cups of Plain Yogurt to the food processor (do not start)
• DO NOT ADD but just Measure 1 1/4 Cups of Canola Oil
• Start the food processor and run for about 25 seconds
• Now add in the Measured 1 1/2 Cups of Canola Oil slowly to the food processor while it’s running (through the addition port/spout)
• After all the oil is added stop the food processor
• Transfer the liquid ingredients into the large bowl containing the grated carrots and dry ingredients
• Using the large wooden spoon mix everything together until everything is wetted and there is no evidence of dry ingredients to be seen
• Optional: Add 1 Cup of Walnuts or Pecans (or a combination of both) at this time if you like nuts in your cake
• Pour this mixture into the baking pan
• Place in the oven when it reaches a temperature of 350F
• Bake for 40-45 mins (until it passes the dry toothpick test (inserted it comes out clean))
• Remove cake from oven. Let it sit in it’s pan on a cooling rack for about 30 minutes. After this time flip onto another cooling rack remove the parchment paper and let it cool completely.
• Frost the cake when cooled

Recipe for the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Add 8 oz of Cream Cheese to an Electric Mixer Bowl
• Add 5 Tablespoons of Unsalted Butter to an Electric Mixer Bowl
• Add 1 Tablespoon of Sour Cream to an Electric Mixer Bowl
• Add 1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract to an Electric Mixer Bowl
• Turn on the Electric Mixer and combine
• After these ingredients are combined slowly add the Powdered Confectioner’s Sugar to the Electric Mixer Bowl (mixer stopped). Then start the mixer to blending in. Do this 1/2 cup at a time until all the Powdered Sugar is blended in.

 That’s it. You should share this recipe with a friend ..  maybe they’ll make it and bring over half the cake for you to enjoy as well.

Find this recipe and others at organictestkitchens.com

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