I went Maverick this holiday

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll-up

This Thanksgiving I went a little "maverick" (wasn't that the word of the campaign?)

The reason I say this is because......I didn't make a pumpkin pie! (yes, that deserves an exclamation point...no pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving, or even a pecan pie--blasphemy!)

My husband's birthday was on the 20th and I made him a pumpkin pie for his "cake". Just one week ago. It's his favorite. I just didn't feel like making a pumpkin pie again so soon. So instead I made this pumpkin roll. It's a good dessert, we really like it. I had a lot of leftover pumpkin, so I made some pumpkin butterscotch cookies, a recipe I found on "Joy The Baker's" website.

Traditional? No. But good...yes.
(as I type, my tummy is still full, but my mouth is craving a turkey, stuffing and cranberry sandwich)


Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Roll-up

3/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup chopped walnuts--optional
Powdered sugar

8 oz cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
6 tbs.. soft butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease 10x15 inch jelly roll pan. Line with waxed paper or parchment paper; grease and flour waxed paper.
Sift flour with baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Set aside. Beat eggs with sugar in large bowls until thick and fluffy. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in sifted dry ingredients. Spread evenly in pre-pared pan. Sprinkle with walnuts. Bake for 15 minutes. Invert onto damp dish-towel dusted with powdered sugar. Peel off waxed paper. Trim 1/4 inch from sides of cake. Roll in towel as for jelly roll. Place seem side down. Cool Completely.
Beat cream cheese with remaining ingredients in bowl, until smooth. Unroll cake, removing towel, spread with cream cheese mixture. Reroll. Chill until serving time. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

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Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola or corn oil
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips
Position a rack in the middle of the oven . Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper.
Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chips.
Using an ice cream scoop with a 1/4-cup capacity, scoop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 2 1/2-inches apart. You could also simply use a 1/4-cup measuring cup if you don’t have a scoop. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth and flatten the rounds.
Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. Cool them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool cimpletely.
Dust the cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.