Pumpkin Tiramisu

Tired of the same old Thanksgiving desserts?  Looking for something a little different?  How about trying this Pumpkin Tiramisu that I put together for Walmart as a sweet Thanksgiving treat!  (Doesn’t it look pretty on the Pioneer Woman Paige plate?)

Tiramisu is a chilled dessert made with “Lady’s Finger” cookies dipped in strong coffee alternated with layers of sweetened mascarpone cheese that has had whipped cream folded into it.  There is a bit more to it than that–depending on the specific recipe of course–but that’s the general idea.  The cookies soften up from the coffee and the cheese layer as it chills and it sort of all amalgamates into a pudding-y texture.

The problem with Tiramisu isn’t making it–(well there are some recipes that use egg which are a bit more complex)–for the most part the problem is actually finding the ingredients.  Walmart usually has everything, but my local store didn’t have Lady Fingers OR mascarpone cheese.  I’ll be honest–I checked several other retailers in my area.  Nobody had the cookies, and only one had the cheese and that was $8 for 8oz.

Yeah. Not in my budget.

That’s ok, because there are some substitutes that can give you a very similar dessert!  When I did my shopping at Walmart I picked up cream cheese from the dairy section (along with the heavy cream the recipe called for) and then a couple of pound cakes from the Walmart bakery.

Here’s the process. (The full recipe will be at the bottom of the post.)

First you slice up  your pound cake and toast the slices in a 350 oven for about 12-15 minutes.  You want them a bit crisp.  This seems like a silly step, and you could skip it I guess, but you are drying it out so that when you add the coffee you don’t have it too soggy.

Next you take your Great Value 100% Pure Pumpkin.  You want the pumpkin–not the pumpkin pie mix (which has other stuff in it).  You are going to beat that together with your softened cream cheese, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and heavy cream.  Set that aside and then in a clean mixing bowl you will whip some of the heavy cream to make unsweetened whipped cream.

Now in you 8X12 baking dish (you can halve this recipe and then use an 8X8 if you aren’t feeding a crowd) make a layer of the sliced pound cake.  Brush well with cooled coffee mixed with some rum.  Alternately you can dip the slices into the coffee–I was worried they might fall apart!

Now you layer on about 1/2 of the pumpkin mixture and then 1/2 of the whipped cream. Repeat with a second layer, then sprinkle the top with some of your pumpkin pie spice.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a minimum of 6 hours.  Feel free to chill overnight or longer–it will keep several days in the fridge.

This dessert does not have a super strong pumpkin taste–it’s definitely pumpkin, but not “in your face”.  With the cream cheese instead of the mascarpone cheese it has a flavor reminiscent of cheesecake.  We really enjoyed it!

So if you are looking for a little something different, head on out to Walmart and pick up the ingredients for your own Pumpkin Tiramisu.  While you are at it, why not pick up an extra toy or gift to donate to a charity for the holidays?

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Pumpkin Tiramisu

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 C Heavy Cream divided into 1 C & 1/2 C portions
• 2 8 oz pkg Cream Cheese
• 15 oz Pumpkin
• 1/2 C Sugar
• 2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice plus more for garnishing top
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 C Coffee strong coffee, cooled to room temp
• 1/4 C Spiced Rum
• 1 loaves Pound Cake

Instructions

1. Cut pound cakes into 1/4 inch slices, then toast for 12 min in a 350 oven. Set aside.

2. Whip 1 C heavy cream. You want stiff peaks, but don't go over into making butter! Refrigerate until ready to layer your tiramisu.

3. Beat together cream cheese, pumpkin, 1/2 C heavy cream, sugar, pumpkin pie spice & vanilla.

4. Mix coffee and spiced rum in a measuring cup.

5. -n a 8X11 pan (or a trifle dish--but then you'll probably wind up doing 3 or 4 layers) cover the bottom with pound cake, brush with a generous helping of coffee mixture, then spread 1/2 the pumpkin and 1/2 the whipped cream. Repeat.

6. Sprinkle some pumpkin pie spice on the top of the dessert.

7. Chill 6 hours or more.

Variations

1. You could substitute whipped topping for the homemade whipped cream.
2. You can replace the 1/2 C heavy cream in the cream cheese mixture with milk
3. The rum can be left out of the coffee.
4. Brown sugar can replace the white sugar.

****This is a sponsored post****

Disclosure: As a participant in the Walmart Moms Program, I’ve received product samples and compensation for my time and efforts in creating this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.