Recipe :: Peek-A-Boo Pumpkin Sugar Free Pastries

Ingredients:

1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened

1 15oz can pumpkin

1c + 1/2 c Splenda granular or Sugar

4 tsp ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 TBSP honey

1 egg white

2 pkgs Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (you want the pkgs that have two per pkg, so you will end up with 4 pie crusts.)


Directions:

Let the pie crust stand at room temp until soft and pliable. If you try to unroll them while they are cold they will break.

In a small bowl combine cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg. Stir with a fork to combine. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl combine the pumpkin, honey, cream cheese, 1c Splenda or sugar, add 1 TBSP of the spice mixture that you made and mix until smooth. Set aside.

On your countertop unroll one of the pie crusts. Roll it out with a rolling pin or large glass until about 1/16 in thick. Keep in mind the you will be adding another layer of pie crust so you don’t want the layers too thick.

Using a cookie cutter, (you can use any size you want, just keep in mind that you will need to adjust the filling size to fit.) make light indentations in the dough. Don’t cut the cookies all the way thru yet, these will just serve as a guide for the filling.

Put 1/2 tbsp of filling on the pie crust in the middle of each pumpkin outline.

Next take another pie crust and roll it out the same way. Try to make it the same size or a bit larger as the first. When you have it rolled out carefully lay it on top of the first layer with the filling. Using your finger press gently down on the dough to smooth it around the filling. Try to get as much of the air bubbles out as you can without smashing down the pockets of filling. When you’re done it should look like ravioli.

Now cut out the dough by centering the pockets of filling in the cookie cutter and press down to cut dough all the way thru. When you have cut them all out remove excess dough. Roll the excess out and make as many as you can from it the same way you did the first ones.

Using a fork you will want to press the edges to create a seal. Don’t press the stem part, just the edges of the pumpkin.

Gently press on the filling with your hand to distribute it evenly inside the pumpkin.

Repeat the entire process with the other two pie crusts.

In the bowl with your remaining spice mixture add 1/2c of sucralose or sugar. Mix together with a fork. It should look like cinnamon sugar.

In a small bowl beat the egg white a little to loosen it up. Using a pastry brush or your finger brush a lite layer of the egg white onto the pumpkins. Sprinkle lightly with your spice mixture.

Bake at 400° for 10 minutes or until edges JUST start to brown. Remove and cool on wire wrack.


My thoughts:

They took a little more time than I expected, but I had to stop a lot for my almost 7 week old son. So maybe that's why. They are delicious though! Even the husband approved of them, and he's not big on sweets.

Thanks to MommyDsKitchen.com for recipe!