Pumpkin Cream Trifle

Mom sent me this recipe- they made it for Thanksgiving dinner. It sounds delicious and looks amazing. You can't go wrong with pumpkin and cream cheese.
Pumpkin Cream Trifle

1st Layer:
1 pkg. spice cake
1 small pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 c. canned pumpkin
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. water
3 large eggs
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and blend with electric mixer on low for one minute. Scrape down bowl and blend at medium for two minutes. Spray 9X13 pan and pour batter into it. Bake for 32-39 minutes, or until cake tests done. Cool completely. When ready to assemble trifle, cut into 1-inch cubes.

Second Layer:
1 large pkg. instant cheesecake flavored instant pudding
2 cups cold milk
2 cups freshly whipped cream (unsweetened)
1 bag Heath Toffee bits (by chocolate chips in grocery store)

Combine pudding with milk and blend with whisk until it starts to thicken. Fold in whipped cream.

To assemble the trifle: Place 1/3 of cake into large bowl, followed by 1/3 cream mixture and then 1/3 toffee bits. Repeat two more times. Refrigerate.

Baked Pull-Apart Pumpkin French Toast

I had my doubts about this recipe, but I made it this morning and loved it! It is really rich, so I didn't eat too much. My kids weren't big fans, but if you love pumpkin, this would be a fabulous Thanksgiving morning breakfast--tastes almost like pumpkin pie!








Baked Pull-Apart Pumpkin French Toast
adapted from SimpleBites.net

Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 loaf hearty whole wheat bread, sliced
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 cup milk or cream
  • 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/4 cup salted butter, melted
  • 2 Tablespoons molasses
  • 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice blend
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
Instructions
The night before…
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, pumpkin puree, 2 Tablespoons melted butter, molasses and 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice blend.
  2. Dip each slice of bread into the mixture to coat well, then place, one layer thick, on a 13×17 baking sheet. Drizzle any remaining pumpkin mixture on top of the bread.
  3. Place plastic wrap over the soaking bread slices and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
In the morning…
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter an 8 x 11 baking dish. Mix together brown sugar with remaining teaspoon of spice blend.
  2. Remove plastic wrap from the soaked bread and brush tops lightly with remaining 2 Tablespoons of melted butter. Sprinkle French toast tops all over with cinnamon sugar mixture.
  3. Starting with the smaller pieces, arrange the slices of bread in the buttered baking dish, propping them up on top of each other until the pan is full. Place on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until the tops are crispy.
  4. Serve at once with pure maple syrup and whipped cream.