Pumpkin Tiramisu (Eggless Recipe)

Blogging Marathon# 34: Week 3/ Day 2
Theme: Desserts with Vegetables
Dish: Pumpkin Tiramisu

If you are still thinking of what to make for Thanksgiving dessert, then here is a perfect recipe for you. I made this couple of weeks ago for our (very) early Thanksgiving party. After that party I realized that we don't really have to wait for Thanksgiving to give thanks to people we love and care about, it can be and should be done any time.

I was asked to bring a dessert and I thought something with pumpkin will be appropriate. I found a recipe for Pumpkin Tiramisu on Martha Stewart's site and I planned to make it. Recipe used uncooked pumpkin puree for layering with the lady fingers. I wasn't sure if it would be too pumpkiny, so I scratched that recipe. Then I found vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli's Vegan Pumpkin Tiramisu and after reading through the mostly positive reviews, I made it for the party.

This dessert is a little time consuming to make, but it totally worth the effort. Pumpkin crème layer can be made at least 2 days ahead and kept in the refrigerator until ready to use. Once the cakes are baked and the trifle is made, it needs to be refrigerated for at least 3~4 hours or overnight to set. The original recipe uses whipped coconut cream to make it completely vegan, but I used regular whipping cream since I never whipped coconut milk and didn't want to take try my luck at this party.

The trifle was well received at the party but what made me really happy was my mom and sister really liking it. I was skeptical if they would like the pumpkin and chocolate combination. They really enjoyed the combo.

I bought this trifle dish specially to take to the party. After filling up the trifle dish, I still have some cake and filling leftover that I used to make individual trifles.

Ingredients:

For the Cake Layer:

All purpose Flour - 2¾cups (use 3cups APF if not using almond meal)
Almond Meal/ Flour - ¼cup
Sugar - 2cups
Baking Soda - 2tsp
Almond milk - 1¾cups (soy milk or rice milk can also be used here)
Canola Oil - 1cup
Apple cider vinegar or white vinegar - ¼cup
Vanilla Extract - 1tbsp

For the Pumpkin Crème:
Cornstarch or arrowroot - 1/3 cup
Water - ¼cup
Coconut milk - ¾cup
Pumpkin Puree - 1 15oz. can
Maple syrup - ¾cup
Pumpkin pie spice - 2tsp** (don't have store-bought pumpkin pie spice, then make your own with recipe given below)
Salt - ½tsp

Espresso Soak:
Instant Espresso - 2tbsp
Water - ½cup
Almond extract - 1tbsp

Other Ingredients:
Heavy Cream - 2cups
Confectioners sugar - ½cup
Chocolate - for garnish

Method:

• Make the Pumpkin Crème: In a small bow, whisk cornstarch and water to form a smooth slurry. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, whisk together coconut milk, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice and salt. heat over medium heat until it just begins to boil, about 5 minutes.
• Slowly stir in cornstarch mixture while whisking continuously. Cook until the mixture becomes very thick, about 5 minutes, whisking frequently.
• Pour the mixture into a bowl, let cool 15 minutes. Then place a plastic wrap touching the top of the crème. Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
• Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 3 8" or 9" round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. (I used 2 8" round cake pans that are 3" deep).
• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
• In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together almond milk, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk just until combined. Do not over mix.
• Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 18 ~ 20 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (I baked for 23minutes in my 8" round pans). Cool completely before assembling.
• Make the espresso soak: In a small bowl, whisk all the soak ingredients until the espresso dissolves.
• Make Whipped Cream: Refrigerate the bowl and the blades used for whipped for at least 30 minutes. Whip heavy cream along with sugar until stiff peaks form.
• To Assemble: In a large trifle dish, place one layer of the cake (trim to fit) at the bottom and drizzle it with the espresso soak. Spread a layer of the pumpkin crème on top, followed by the whipped cream layer. Repeat this process for 2 more layers until all components are used up. Top with grated chocolate. You could also cut the cake to fit smaller individual trifle dishes. (I cut my 2 cakes into half and then layered them as described). Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice: Recipe from here. Double, tripe or quadruple the ingredients as per your recipe requirement:

For 1 teaspoon of Spice mixture: Combine the following

Ground cinnamon - ½tsp
Ground Ginger - ¼tsp
Freshly ground nutmeg - 1/8tsp
Ground cloves - 1/8tsp

For 2 teaspoon of Spice mixture: Combine the following

Ground cinnamon - 1tsp
Ground Ginger - ½tsp
Freshly ground nutmeg - ¼tsp
Ground cloves - 1/8tsp

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 34.