Pumpkin Pie Ebelskivers

It’s been a welcoming, but unseasonably cooler temperatures for Southern California. I’m ready for holiday fare and nothing screams Fall more than pumpkin-whatever’s. I’ve had my eye on this recipe for pumpkin pie ebelskivers and couldn’t have timed it up better, making them with unused portions of pumpkin purée and already whipped up cream-cheese filling from the Petite Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Filling I made last week.

I’m not a newbie when it comes to ebelskivers.  I would say I’m an intermediate, experienced ebelskiver cook.   However, these pumpkin pie ebelskivers threw me for a loop!    It has a fantastic pumpkin flavor…it really does taste like mini-pumpkin pies!    It’s one of those recipes that if you’re a pumpkin pie lover, your first taste will have your eyes involuntarily widen and before you know it, you’re humming, “Mmmm.”     Really.   Great flavor, with or without the cream cheese drizzle.      However, the directions from the cookbook I used for this recipe was not forthcoming about the cooking time, texture and handling of these ebelskiver gems. The following notes will assist in a more successful outcome and thus more likely to produce a winning favorite when serving it at your breakfast or brunch table.

Read more about ebelskivers from a couple of my previous posts:

• An Ebelskiver Surprise!
• Ebelskivers – More Ideas and Recipes!

• It costs less to buy graham crackers (a generic brand) and create your own crumbs, than buying it as graham cracker crumbs. Place graham crackers in a plastic sealed bag and crumble with your hands. Store extra in refrigerator for longer shelf-life or in pantry.
• No need to purchase special ebelskiver turning tools (really!). Use wooden bamboo skewers.
• This is a great recipe to use when you have left-over pumpkin puree.
• Practice. If you’re planning to make this for guests…practice making ebelskivers before you entertain – like the day or weekend before. You may be a natural at it, but depending on the recipe, it may take your trial and error to get the timing and turning right, so practice so you’re not in a bind when expecting guests for breakfast/brunch.
• Cook these ebelskivers at the lowest temperature possible on your stove (I have a gas stove) to allow even and thorough cooking. I found that 10 minutes on the first side was perfect at the lowest heat, allowing even browning and cooking.
• Note that the title of these treats is called pumpkin pie, it will have a pumpkin pie texture in the middle NOT pumpkin bread.
• If you’re using bamboo skewers to turn, use the rounded (blunt) side, not the pointed side (don’t be tempted). If you use the pointed side, you will inevitably puncture the ebelskiver.
• When adding batter to the pan’s wells, start at 12 o’clock and work clock-wise, filling the middle well last. That way you can more easily remember the order in which you started when it’s time to turn the ebelskivers.
• Note update: I don’t want to deter or intimidate you to try this recipe, but if you haven’t made ebelskivers before, I encourage you to start with a more basic recipe. As I mentioned in the post, this one threw me for a loop because the texture is more soft, making it challenging to flip the pancakes over.

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Pumpkin Pie Ebelskivers

source Ebelskivers – More Ideas and Recipes! by Kevin Crafts

Makes 21 Ebelskivers

Special Tools Requirements
An Ebelskiver pan
2 Wooden bamboo skewers (metal skewers may scratch your ebelskiver pan)

Ingredients

1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, separated
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk, room temperature
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin purée

Confectioner’s sugar for sprinkling (optional)
Cream Cheese Icing (optional and source to follow)

Directions

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the graham crackers crumbs, flour, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt.   In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks with a whisk or fork.  Add the condensed milk and 2 tablespoons of melted butter.    Add the yolk-mixture to the flour-mixture and, using a wooden spoon, stir until well blended.   Expect that the batter will be slightly lumpy.

In a clean bowl, beat egg whites with a hand-mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into batter, alternating with the pumpkin purée in 2 additions, just until well blended and there are no white streaks.

Brush the wells of an ebelskiver pan with remaining melted butter and place over:

• medium-low heat for electric stove-tops
• low heat for gas stoves

Note: You will need to test this and cooking time will vary as to your heat source intensity.

When the butter in the wells starts to bubble, add 2 Tablespoons of batter to each well.

Cook until the bottoms of the ebelskivers/pancakes are lightly browned and crisp, about 10 minutes (set your kitchen timer!). Use 2 wooden skewers (blunt side) to turn the ebelskivers and cook until lightly browned on the other side.

Transfer finished pancakes to a platter and keep warm in the oven while you makes 2 more batches.

Dust with confectioner’s sugar OR drizzle with cream cheese filling (see recipe from Petite Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream-Cheese Filling).   Serve immediately.