Pumpkin Chiffon with Toffee or Praline

This has the flavor of pumpkin pie with the much lighter texture of mousse

It's great in a regular pie crust piled up high or spread thin in a tart shell. I topped it with Swiss butter-cream curls, homemade English toffee, and leftover pieces of pie crust that I cut into the shape of fall leaves and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar before baking.

It's also fun to serve in mini tart shells or in crepes, topped with fresh Chantilly cream and more crushed English toffee. I like to make my own toffee but Almond Roca or heath bars work too. It would also be really good with praline coated nuts on top.

Both recipes, the toffee and the praline coated pecans are at the bottom

It looked a lot better before I cut it and messed up the Swiss Butter-cream

Pumpkin Chiffon
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
2/3 cup milk
1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon each ground ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg
4 egg yolks
1 c. whipping cream (whipped with sugar and vanilla to taste)

2 pie shells (Chocolate Graham cracker work well)

In a heavy saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over milk; and let stand for 5 minutes. Cook and stir over low heat until gelatin is dissolved.

Add the pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce the heat and cook, and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat.

Stir a small amount of hot filling into egg yolks; return all to pan; stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer (mixture will be thick).

Remove from the heat. Cover surface with waxed paper; refrigerate without stirring until cooled. Fold in the whipped topping.

Let set until firm enough to shape. Chill until firm.

Toffee
2 c white sugar
1 lb salted butter
1 c slivered almonds

semi-sweet chocolate chips and finely ground pecans for topping

In a heavy pot, melt butter and sugar over medium heat. Continue cooking and stirring occasionally over medium heat as toffee begins to foam up and caramelize. It helps not to stir too often esp at the beginning but you have to make sure it isn't burning on the bottom as it starts really cooking. Watch on a candy thermometer as it goes up - add almonds at about 200 degrees. Cook until 288 on candy thermometer. Immediately pour onto a heavy cookie tray and spread thin. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top, let melt, and spread thin, sprinkle with pecans. let cool, break into pieces.

Praline Coated Pecans
6 Tbsp butter
1 c. light brown sugar
1 c. coarsely chopped pecans, walnuts, or both

Combine butter and sugar, mix until crumbly. Blend in nuts. Spread flat and bake on tin foil for 10 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 350. Cool. Sprinkle on top of chiffon.

I have baked these nuts in pumpkin cake and chopped then up a bit into smaller chunks and mixed them into frosting on spice cake. You can also add a little cinnamon and nutmeg to the brown sugar before you bake them and serve them as candies nuts just as they are