Hearty fall dessert recipes

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Pumpkin cookies are the specialty this week from my daughter's pre-kindergarten classroom. Mrs. Sue has had the 4- and 5-year-olds busy making cookies. Lexie told me they were good, but she didn't eat the raisins. That's okay, though; at 4 years old I guess you don't have to eat your raisins if you don't want to. So, once again I will share with you another great Purple Room specialty.

Pumpkin Cookies

1 stick butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

2 cups flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Stir until the batter is well mixed. Lightly grease cookie sheets. Drop batter by teaspoonfuls onto the cookie sheets. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Eat and enjoy.

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Louise Wallace of Cape Girardeau shares with us a delicious side dish that has become a favorite at church dinners.

Carrots and Pineapple

2 cups baby carrots

1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks or tidbits

4 teaspoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon butter or margarine

In a saucepan bring 1 inch of water to a boil; place carrots in a steamer basket over water. Cover and steam 8 to 10 minutes or until crisp-tender. If no steamer basket is available; fill a pan of water one-third full, bring to a boil; add carrots and cook about 15 to 20 minutes. If using a pan stir often to cook all carrots. Drain pineapple, reserving juice; set pineapple aside. In a saucepan, combine cornstarch and cinnamon. Add the brown sugar, butter and reserved juice. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for about 2 minutes or until thickened. Add the pineapple and the brown sugar mixture to the carrots, cook another 3 to 5 minutes to coat and heat.

We are still sharing pear recipes. There were so many received in that it will take awhile to get through them all; so be patient and we will cook our way through pear season.

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Jodi Thompson of Jackson, Mo., shares several pear recipes with us today. They all sounded so good that I just could not decide between them, so you'll get them all.

Pear and Pecan Cake

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 1/2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla

5 firm pears, cored and chopped

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9-by-13-inch-baking pan. Sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Beat together brown sugar, oil, eggs, sugar, water and vanilla until smooth. Blend in dry ingredients.

Stir in pears and pecans. Pour batter into pan. Bake for about 55 minutes, cool before serving.

Pear and Hazelnut Bread (Bread Machine Recipe)

1 1/2 large pears

3 tablespoons oil

1/2 tablespoon yeast

2 cups bread flour

1 1/8 cups rye flour

3 tablespoons wheat germ

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 tablespoon fennel seeds

3 tablespoons hazelnuts, chopped

1/2 cup warm water

Bring all ingredients to room temperature and pour into machine, in order suggested by your manual. Choose regular setting. Select "white bread" and push start. In hot and humid weather, use 1/8 cup less water.

Ripe, actually overripe, pears make the sweetest, moistest bread. This subtly flavored loaf does fine on it's own and makes excellent plain, cinnamon, or French toast. Or place a thin slice of cold cooked lamb on it and briefly warm in the broiler.

Classic Pear Crisp

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

8 medium pears; peeled, sliced

1/2 cup flour

3/4 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

In small bowl, stir 1/4 cup brown sugar with 1 tablespoon flour and cinnamon. Toss with pears and place in 8-inch square baking dish. Stir 1/2 cup flour with rolled oats and 1/2 cup brown sugar, and slowly stir in 1/4 cup melted butter. Spread over apple mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until tender and topping is golden brown.

Cranberry-pear relish

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

2 medium pears, cored and diced

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 4-inches cinnamon stick

Place ingredients in saucepan. Bring to boil and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Cover and chill. Remove cinnamon before serving. Makes about 3 cups. May be made ahead and chilled for up to a week.

French Pear and Almond Pie

1 (15 ounce) refrigerated pie crust

1 teaspoon sugar

4 (15 ounce) cans sliced Bartlett pears in light syrup

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup almonds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place one pie crust on a lightly floured board. Brush with water and sprinkle with sugar. Top with second crust and roll out into a 15-inch circle. Place on a baking sheet coated with non-stick spray. Meanwhile, drain pears in a colander reserving 2/3 cup juice. Place pear juice, brown sugar, cornstarch, extract and cinnamon in a small saucepan; whisk to combine. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Place drained pears into a large bowl and toss with thickened juice mixture. Place pears in center of pie crust and sprinkle with almonds. Bring dough edges up in a circle over pears, leaving a 4-inch space in the center. Press lightly to seal. Sprinkle top with sugar. Tent lightly with foil if crust browns too quickly. Bake for 40 minutes; let cool before cutting. Serve with Almond Whipped Cream (recipe follows) or vanilla ice cream. Makes 8-10 servings.

Almond Whipped Cream (optional)

Place 1 cup heavy whipping cream into a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Beat for about 10 seconds longer.

Pear and Cranberry Crisp Topping

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup firmly packed golden brown sugar

1/2 cup old-fashion oats

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Filling:

7 large firm, slightly under-ripe pears (about 3 1/2 pounds), peeled, cored and cut lengthwise into eighths

1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

For the topping: Combine first 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Add butter and cut in, using fingertips or pastry blender, until mixture resembles coarse meal.

For the filling: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350 degree. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish with 2-inch high sides. Toss all ingredients in a bowl to combine well. Transfer to prepared dish. Sprinkle topping evenly over filling. Set dish on baking sheet and transfer to oven. Bake until topping is golden and juices bubble thickly, about an hour. Cool at least 20 minutes before serving. Serve with heavy cream or ice cream.

We do have one request this week from Carolyn Thomas of Thebes, Ill., for pear relish. It would be a relish to eat with ham and beans much like a chow chow.

Have a wonderful week and don't forget to purchase your frozen turkey for Thanksgiving in plenty of time to allow for proper refrigerated thawing time. Usually you can figure about 24 hours per every 5 pounds in weight. Happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699; Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.