dessert

Pumpkin Squash Pie

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Yummy Pumpkin Squash Pie! Okay, I called it pumpkin squash pie because the one I made is really not pumpkin, its a squash similar to pumpkin. We don’t really have pumpkin here in Israel so I used chunks from this huge squash they sell in the shuk that’s kinda like a pumpkin. Anyway.. I’m sure this works great with just about any kind of squash or even sweet potatoes.

First things first.. the squash. Clean some squash and bake it in the oven until its soft. When its soft, take off the skin and purée in a blender or food processor until smooth. Its really that easy.

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The only thing I would say about it is that I covered mine with foil while baking thinking it would dry out too much. Well don’t worry about that. I had to put the cooked squash into a cloth and squeeze out “some” of the water. Holy cow there was a lot of water to squeeze out. Do yourself a favor and just bake it. That’ll do you for the squash purée.

2 Cups Squash Purée
350 Ml (1 1/2 Cups) Heavy Cream (I used 38%)
1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1/3 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Tsp Salt
3 Eggs
2 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Ground Ginger
1/4 Tsp Ground Nutmeg
1/4 Tsp Ground Cloves
1/4 Tsp Ground Cardamon
1/2 Tsp Lemon Zest

Beat the eggs in large bowl then mix in sugars, salt, spices, and lemon zest. Mix in the squash then mix in cream. Blend it all up until mixed really well.

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Pour into an uncooked COLD pie crust.

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Bake at 220°C for 15 minutes. This shocks the butter and starts to harden the crust making it more flaky later. After 15 minutes lower to 180°C and bake for about 45 minutes to an hour longer or until a poking utensil comes out clean from the center.

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Let it cool, then… well you know what to do with it next!

Persimmon Bread

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I grew up with a persimmon tree in my families back yard, but never really liked them. After trying the persimmons in Israel, I was hooked. It’s persimmon season now so I decided to try my hand at making persimmon bread. I compiled my own recipe from others I found online. Here is what I used.

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 Cups Wheat Flour
  • 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
  • 3/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cloves
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg (I wanted this but didn’t have any. And alas, it was shabbat)
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Allspice (I wanted this but didn’t have any. And alas, it was shabbat)

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 Cup Persimmon Puree
  • 1/2 Cup Butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/3 Cup Rum (Others said cognac, burbon, or whiskey which may lend better to the flavor, but I only had rum on hand)

Extras

  • 1 Cup Chopped Walnuts (pecans also sound good)
  • 1/2 Cup Raisins
  • 1/2 Cup Cranberries (dates also sound good)

Let the butter sit out until soft, then cream in eggs and rum. After mixture is really smooth, mix in persimmon. Combine dry ingredients, then slowly mix into creamed wet mixture until smooth. Mix in nuts and berries. Distribute into baking pan(s) and bake for 1 hour at 350℉. With our crazy Israeli convection oven, I did ~1 Hour at 90℃.

All in all it turned out pretty good. I think next time I’d like to have a more spiced flavor so I’ll make sure to have the nutmeg and allspice. This also would probably go really good with an only slightly sweetened cream cheese frosting.