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Sunday, November 23, 2014

Pumpkin Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce

 Pumpkin Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce

Just in Time for Thanksgiving:  Pumpkin Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce
by Victoria Challancin

With Thanksgiving looming for Americans, even for expats like me, I wanted to offer a simple seasonal dessert that would be a perfect ending to a heavy meal of turkey and all the trimmings. Although I tend to stick to traditional family recipes for this beloved holiday, I can easily see substituting this easy-to-prepare dessert for my aunt's traditional pumpkin pie.  Good enough to eat a dozen, yet small enough to be satisfied with just one, this dessert is guaranteed to gratify all.

The filling comes together quickly, and the wontons fry in minutes.  Perhaps the maple cream dipping sauce is gilding the lily, but it is tasty enough to be included and offers that last bit of decadence to polish off a day of general gustatory excess.

Pumpking Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce

Cook's Notes:  If using canned pumpkin, there is more enough to easily double this recipe.  And why not?  If opening a packet of 50 wonton wrappers, it is easy enough to make more than the twenty listed in the recipe amounts.  And trust me, these disappear almost as quickly as you can fry them, roll them in sugar, and put them on a plate!  You can use plain water to seal them, in lieu of an egg wash.  Also, these can be baked--but they are definitely better fried!


Recipe:  Pumpkin Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce
(Recipe from tablespoon.com)
Makes 20 wontons, but can easily be doubled

Wontons:
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (see the recipe below)
2 tablespoons Neufchatel cream cheese, room temperature
20 wonton wrappers
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)--or just use plain water
Vegetable oil for frying
Powdered sugar or cinnamon/granulated sugar for dusting

Optional Maple Dip:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup Neufchatel cream cheese, room temperature (or use regular cream cheese)
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a small bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and cream cheese until combined.

Lay wonton wrappers on a clean surface.  Brush egg wash (or even plain water) along edges of each wrapper and place 1 teaspoon filling in the center.  Fold each wrapper into a triangle and pinch edges to seal.

In a large, deep saucepan over medium heat, bring about 1 1/2 inches oil to about 320 degrees F.  Drop 3-4 wontons (or more if you can add them without crowding the pan) into the hot oil and cook 2 to 3 minutes each side or until golden brown.  Alternately, you can spray the wontons with oil, dust with cinnamon sugar, and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden.

Remove wontons with slotted spoon and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cool slightly. Repeat with remaining wontons.  Dust wontons with powdered sugar or cinnamon-sugar.

To make the dipping sauce:  In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, cream cheese, maple syrup and ground cinnamon.  Serve dip alongside warm wontons.


How to make Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix:
Makes 2 1/3 tablespoons
(Adapted from The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs & Spices by Tony Hill)

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground mace
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Place all ingredients in a small bowl.  Whisk or stir to combine.  Store in an airtight container for up to 1 year.

Parting Shot:  

©Victoria Challancin

Flavors of the Sun Cooking School
San Miguel de Allende, México

Please ask permission before using photos or text.  Thank you1




11 comments:

Eha said...

What a delight to see something somewhat different for you national holiday! Altho' we naturally do not celebrate Thanksgiving down Under there is nought to separate us from an interesting recipe :) ! Tho' do wonder what the Pilgrim Fathers would have thought bout 'wontons' and 'Neufchatel' cheese . . . just have to try this soonest . . .and lovely to see you back from your travels !!

~~louise~~ said...

Hi Victoria:)
Thank you so much for sharing this creative pumpkin recipe. I agree, it's not to heavy and just perfect to end a meal of way to many goodies, lol...

Thank you so much for sharing...love the parting shot too:)

Hotly Spiced said...

Thanks for the recipe for pumpkin pie spice mix. We can't buy it here so it's very handy to have a recipe and know what's in it. These wontons look so good and I can almost smell that dipping sauce. What a great idea and so good for Thanksgiving xx

Anonymous said...

hey victoria this pumpkin recipe is really so fascinating.. em drooling over your clicks wow

Joan Nova said...

What a fun (and tasty) party item — and def good for Thanksgiving too!

Karen (Back Road Journal) said...

I'm sure that there is no way to avoid eating more than one, or two or three. :D

Cathleen said...

Wow! This is so creative! I have yet to make anything with pumpkin...but I think that's going to change.

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

I absolutely love the sound of these-with the maple dipping sauce of course (but I'm always a gal that likes a bit more). Happy Thanksgiving! :D

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

I absolutely love the sound of these-with the maple dipping sauce of course (but I'm always a gal that likes a bit more). Happy Thanksgiving! :D

Unknown said...

Wow, this is looking so yummy. I will try this Pumpkin Pie Wontons with Maple Cream Dipping Sauce on this week end. I will make this recipe for my guest’s on my daughter birthday. DO you have some more online cooking recipes for me? This recipe is so simple to make.

Victoria Challancin said...

Thank you, Cris. I am pleased you found this recipe helpful. For more online recipes, simply go to the drop-down menu at the top of the page.