Pumpkin Butter

At the Mount Pleasant Farmers' Market Jes picked up some Apple Butter, which is delectable- a little sweet, a little spicy, a little tart... At Trader Joe's I ran into pumpkin butter, which I've heard much about but never sampled. Since I had pumpkin at home already, I whipped some up with stellar results. Most recipes I found online called for traditional ground ginger, but I prefer the fresh flavor the grated root imparts. My new favorite breakfast is oatmeal with fresh chopped apple, a swirl of this tastiness on top, an extra dash of cinnamon and a few chopped almonds.

If you're using canned pumpkin, and want to use the whole can, go ahead and double the recipe.

Pumpkin Butter

1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup mashed, steamed pumpkin
1/4 cup water, apple juice, or apple cider
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine the maple syrup and the fresh ginger in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Simmer gently about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, and stir to combine, bringing the heat up to boil the butter. Once it boils, reduce the heat and simmer another 10 minutes, or until it reaches your favorite consistency.

Makes four 1/4 cup servings.

Nutrition Estimate per 1/4 cup serving: Calories 69. Total fat .1g. Total Carbohydrates 17.7g. Dietary Fiber 1g. Sugars 12.8g. Protein .5g.

Note to Grammy: See, I'm getting my cinnamon in :) Now if only I could find a way to integrate flax seed into this...