Pumpkin “Cream Cheese” Donut Holes

Welcome to Part 3 of my 3 Part Pumpkin Holiday Favorites posts! This is the final recipe I made using my Paleo Pumpkin Bread. I had a friend in town this weekend and we went to the Little Italy Farmer’s Market. I was secretly searching for homemade French Macarons…no I wasn’t…(yes I was) but scored some locally made Pumpkin Spice Grass-Fed butter instead. So Sunday morning I made a nice little brunch and made yet ANOTHER loaf of my Paleo Pumpkin Bread to slather the pumpkin spice butter on. You guys, this pumpkin bread is seriously my favorite thing in the world right now, besides the French Macarons that I didn’t find at the Farmer’s Market. I can’t believe how simple it is to make and how amazing it tastes. I’ve had readers flipping out for this stuff, making loaves and muffins galore! I need to make another loaf for Thanksgiving morning. Not because I have to, but because it’s the right thing to do.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, what are your menu’s looking like? I think we’re going to Brad’s Mom’s house this year, so I’ve narrowed it down to these: The Paleo Mom’s Pumpkin Pie, I made it last year and it tastes exactly like the real thing. Then instead of stuffing I’m going to make a Butternut Squash and Sausage dish alongside Bacon Brussels Sprouts, and last but not the least bit Paleo, my famous “Smashed” potatoes. They are covered in butter, sour cream, bacon, and onions both green and fried. This was a special request from Brad. And who am I to deny his (my) inner potato wanting?

The only thing I will be leaving out, and perhaps my favorite part of Thanksgiving, is the Green Bean Casserole. Bummer. I’m sure there is some really healthy fancy way to make it but who are we kidding, I want the crappy Campbell’s Cream of Chicken soup in can with gluten covered French’s Fried Onions on top. That’s how my Mom makes it and that’s how I want it. I’m pretty sure my Mom doesn’t read my blog so I feel confident in saying that she won’t see this. Growing up my Mom was the worst cook. (If you are reading this sorry Mom!) It’s true though. We would live off of Chicken Broccoli Casserole for weeks at a time. I seriously still have nightmares about it and a strong gag reflex when I hear the three words chicken, broccoli, and casserole, spoken in the same sentence. The one thing though that my Mom made phenomenally was her Green Bean Casserole. Obviously she had the casserole thing down. She now lives in Arizona and I’m in California, so I have to make it on my own. I remember bragging to friends one Thanksgiving about her recipe and telling them I was going to make it and wow their socks off because it was the best in the business and so special. So I called my Mom up all like, “Hey Mom, can I have the recipe for your Green Bean casserole? It’s my favorite in the whole world and I told some friends I would make it for Thanksgiving. I have a pen ready so go ahead…” and she replied, “It’s on the back of the French’s Fried Onions container.” Oh.

Paleo Pumpkin Cream Cheese Donut Holes
*Makes 30 Donut Holes

Step 1: Make your Paleo Pumpkin Bread

Paleo Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 cup coconut palm sugar
3 tablespoons canned coconut milk, full fat, room temperature
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
1/3 cup coconut oil, liquid
1 cup fine blanched almond flour (Honeyville Brand)
1/4 cup coconut flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon pink himalayan salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8×5 glass loaf pan liberally with coconut oil.

2. In a large bowl add the eggs, pumpkin puree, coconut palm sugar, coconut milk, and contents of one scraped vanilla bean. Stir together with a whisk. Then stir in the coconut oil. Continue whisking until ingredients are completely combined. Set aside.

3. In a medium sized bowl combine almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and ground cloves. Stir together with a fork until mixed.

4. Now fold the dry mixture into the large bowl with the wet ingredients and whisk until combined. Use a rubber spatula to transfer the batter to the greased glass loaf pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

5. While your pumpkin bread is baking go ahead and make your paleo cream cheese and vanilla frosting.

Step 2: Make your Paleo Cream Cheese and Paleo Vanilla Frosting Drizzle

Paleo Cream Cheese
Ingredients:
2/3 cup of cashew butter
1/3 cup of organic palm shortening
2 tablespoons canned coconut milk, full-fat, room temperature
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon pink himalayan salt

Directions:
1. You can either use store bought or homemade cashew butter for this. To make homemade cashew butter, add a cup of cashews to a high powered food processor and puree for about 10 minutes or so until you get a dough ball consistency. Scrape down the sides and then add 3 teaspoons of coconut oil, one at a time, until you have a creamy nut butter texture. Then add the rest of the ingredients and puree until smooth. If you are using store bought cashew butter, add 2/3 cup along with the rest of the ingredients to your food processor and puree until smooth.

Paleo Vanilla Frosting Drizzle
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Nikki’s Coconut Butter Vanilla Cake Batter
2 tablespoons coconut oil, liquid
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt
1/3 cup canned coconut milk, full fat, room temperature
cinnamon for garnish (optional)

Directions:
1. Soften your coconut butter in the microwave. Then add the liquid coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt. Stir and combine. Then slowly add the coconut milk to this mixture. You don’t want it too watery so add until you have a nice creamy consistency, you may not need to use the entire 1/3 cup of coconut milk. Then transfer to a Ziploc bag and set aside.

Step 3: Assemble your Paleo Pumpkin Cream Cheese Donut Holes

Directions:
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Once your paleo pumpkin bread has cooled, use a knife to free the loaf from the edges of the pan and then empty it onto a separate plate. Use a bread knife to cut off the edges of the bread. Place the cut edges back into your now empty loaf pan. Use a fork to mash them into fine crumbs and set aside.

3. Take your loaf of bread with the edges cut off and place it in a large mixing bowl. Use a fork to crumble it until finely ground. Fold the paleo cream cheese into your paleo pumpkin bread crumbles and mix until well combined.

4. Take a bit of the pumpkin bread cream cheese mixture and roll it your hands to make even sized little balls about an inch or so in diameter and transfer the balls onto your parchment lined baking sheet. Refrigerated for 30 minutes.

5. Remove the balls from the refrigerator and roll each one into the bread loaf edge crumbs in the loaf pan that you set aside earlier, then place back onto the parchment sheet.

6. Grab your vanilla frosting drizzle and cut a hole in the corner of the Ziploc bag. Squeeze the frosting onto the pumpkin balls in a drizzle fashion. Garnish with a few sprinkles of cinnamon and place back in the fridge for 30 minutes or until the drizzle solidifies. Enjoy!

I brought these into work the next day because when I made them I was still in the grasps of my Whole30. They were gone in no time. Then everyone kept coming over to my desk asking, “Did you make those balls?” to which of course I replied, “Heh heh, you said balls.” It’s like fart jokes people. It never gets old. So there you have it! Are you guys all pumpkined out yet? I’m not, but out of respect for my non-pumpkin loving readers, who I assume hang out with the non-chocolate lovers, I will try my hardest to make sure next week’s post doesn’t contain pumpkin. Are you feelin’ the love? I thought so. Bring it in for a hug, we’ll get through this together…as I wipe Paleo Pumpkin Bread crumbs of my face…with my sleeve, stay classy San Diego.