Make pancakes with Baby Bear Pumpkins!

29th October 2021 BWM Staff

Fall is here, and that means it’s the Season of the Pumpkin!

Whether you like pumpkin pie, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin spice lattes or Smashing Pumpkins, just about everyone has a pumpkin favorite this time of year! So, why not check out a few pumpkin recipes you might just enjoy?

Here are a few pumpkin recipes from one of our favorite chefs, the awesome Jonathan Bardzik!

Pumpkin Pancakes

Serves 4-6

Rich pumpkin and gingerbread spice lend plenty of heft to these pancakes without weighing them down thanks to separated and beaten egg whites. They are the perfect fall morning indulgence. Store extra pumpkin purée in the freezer for a winter breakfast that will warm you from the inside so you can enjoy the crisp outdoors.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose white flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp gingerbread spice*

Pinch of salt

4 large eggs, separated

3 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 cup Kabocha or Hubbard squash, cooked and puréed

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

6-8 tbsp butter or vegetable oil

*Gingerbread spice is a mix of anise, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and cinnamon. If you can’t find it at your grocer, substitute with a teaspoon of all or some of the above.

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, gingerbread spices and a pinch of salt. In a large bowl combine egg yolks and sugar. Whisk to combine. Add milk, squash, melted butter and vanilla. Whisk to combine.

Whisk egg whites to stiff, but not dry, peaks.

Add flour mixture to bowl with pumpkin and stir just to combine. Add 1/4 of the stiff egg whites into batter (see note below). Fold remaining egg whites into batter.

Warm a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add a couple of tablespoons of butter or oil. Add 1/4 cup batter to the griddle. When bubbles break through the surface leaving holes, about 3-4 minutes, turn and cook 1 minute longer. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding an additional pinch of salt and gingerbread spice if needed. Adjust the temperature of the pan If either side of the pancake is over or undercooked.

Add 2 tbs additional butter or oil and add batter by the 1/4 cup until you have used it all, adding additional fat to the pan as needed. Keep pancakes warm in the oven until they are all cooked and you are ready to serve.

Serve with farm fresh butter and real maple syrup.

TIP: This will lighten the batter before you fold in the rest of the egg whites. By lightening the batter, you will retain more volume when you fold in the remaining egg whites.

Pumpkin Lamb Sausage Pizza

Serves 8 – 10

This started as a mistake, but it turns out that pumpkin makes a delicious topping for pizza. Amy taught me to simplify the number of toppings and I love the simplicity that allows each ingredient — rich pumpkin, spicy MErguez sausage and sharp, salty Feta cheese — to shine.

Ingredients:

1 recipe pizza dough, see below, or two 12” pre-made crusts

1 tbsp olive oil

2 Merguez lamb sausages

1 1/2 cups Hubbard squash or pumpkin purée

1 cup crumbled Feta cheese

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup toasted pepitas – hulless pumpkin seeds

Cornmeal for dusting a wood peel

Directions:

Place pizza stone in the oven on a rack set in the middle and preheat to 550 F for one hour.

Warm olive oil in a 10” skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausages and cook for 6-8 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from heat and slice thinly. In a bowl, season pumpkin purée with salt and pepper to taste.

Press 1 ball of dough into a disk then push out from the center to form a 12” crust that is slightly thicker at the edge. Place on a pizza peel that is lightly dusted with cornmeal.

Time to top the pizza. Err on the side of undertipping. a pizza with too many toppings becomes too heavy to slide off the peel and prevents the crust from crisping up properly. Top crust with about half of the pumpkin mixture followed by the sausage, feta, onions and pipits.

Slide pizza into the oven and cook for 7-9 minutes, until the crust is brown in spots on edges. Let cool for a minute or two, then slice and eat!

Ellen Wells’ Pizza Dough

Makes 2 12” pizza crusts

I’ve tried many recipes for pizza dough but my favorite is one developed by my friend Ellen Wells. It’s great, is easy to work with and the ingredients are simple.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups water

Yeast (see note below)

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

Olive oil

NOTE: There’s lots of reading to do on the internet about how long to rise pizza dough. Ellen has figured out amounts for a room temperature rise. Letting it rise in the refrigerator overnight will give you more nuanced flavor and texture and is worth it if you’ve got the time, but the one hour rise is delicious! –

Heaping 1/2 tsp yeast for 6 hours proofing

1/8 tsp for 24 hours

1/4 for 12 hours

Ellen said she typically uses heaping 1/2 tsp for 6 hrs of proofing

A heaping 2 tsp works for a one hour rise.

Directions:

Stir yeast into 1/4 cup warm water. Let sit for 10 minutes while yeast foams. If the yeast doesn’t foam, sprinkle in a pinch of sugar. If it doesn’t foam in the next couple of minutes it’s time to buy new yeast.

Stir in remaining 1 cup water, flour and salt. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and lightly tacky, about 6-8 minutes. If dough is sticky, knead in additional flour. NOTE: I typically do all of this in the bowl of my stand mixer and turn it a few times at the end.

From dough into a ball. Set in a bowl and drizzle with about 2 tbsp olive oil. Turn the dough in the oil to coat and roll around to oil the sides of the bowl. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap. Let rise for 1 hour in a warm location, 75-85 degrees is ideal. Divide the risen dough into 2 pieces. This is the time to preheat your oven to 550 F with a pizza stone or sheet pan. You want the oven to preheat for an hour to get good and hot.

When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and divide into two pieces. Shape one piece into a ball, press into a disk then push out from the center to form a 12” crust that is slightly thicker at the edge. Top and bake on a pizza stone or baking sheet in a 550 degree oven for 7-9 minutes.

Tip: Don’t be afraid of the dough when shaping it. I’ve never had an evenly round crust and I always tear a hole in it. Just close the hole and top the pizza. You can call the shape “rustic” and say you do it on purpose.

If you’re looking for the perfect pumpkin to help make these recipes, look no further than the Baby Bear Pumpkin from All-America Selections (AAS)! The name alone makes it the perfect addition to any Bear’s fall decorations or recipes.

Baby Bear is not too big and not too small — an attractive size that’s very cute and suitable for children and adults. The texture of Baby Bear is very suitable as a nice pumpkin pie filling, and once you’re done with the filling, the shell can definitely be used as a decorative container for fresh Halloween or Thanksgiving flowers!

ABOUT ALL-AMERICA SELECTIONS

AAS is an 85+ year-old non-profit that evaluates new seed-grown plant introductions for professionals and home gardens. Each year new selections are professionally trialed alongside proven garden performers. Those that perform exceptionally across North America are recognized as All-America Award Winners.

AAS has recognized many fall plants like Prism Kale and Cinderella’s Carriage Pumpkin, which have appeared in the series Jonathan’s Kitchen: Seasons to Taste.