pumpkin pecan streusel torte 

Would bob have ever given this food blog recipe a try stumbling across it on the internet? Not a chance, but this is a real culinary delight, combining  the pumpkin pie filling interior sandwiched in between upper and lower crusty layers in a magical matching of texture and taste. Gifted to bob almost exclusively by our friend Reema for one of our low key dinners, almost exclusively since ani has met very few sweet desserts that she will accept, and its creator left most of it behind although bob insisted she take some home for herself, allowing him to savor in small daily portions till it disappeared after a week.

bob grew up on pumpkin pie, and then explored pumpkin cheesecake in his early food prep experiences beyond childhood, and for a time got to experience Trader Joe pumpkin bread mix for a few pumpkin seasons, but the pumpkin intake then somehow slowly ebbed with age. And pecans...for some reason he placed these walnut imposter nuts in the do not bother list, but another ephemeral seasonal product, the Whole Foods chocolate pecan pie, abruptly changed his mind on that categorization.

And how about that German food term streusel? This must be the first time we've ever impacted this word that we can recall, not really knowing what it meant. Wiki says a crumbly topping of flour, butter and sugar, plus optional additives, like oats or nuts. With a warning "Not to be confused with Strudel". Exactly what came to mind before this little bit of cooking research. "Torte" is another can of worms. Let's not get into it, pretending it is just another word for cake. Which this present recipe clearly is not. But then cheesecakes are not really cakes either, so let's not be too technical here.

We have not yet made this for ourselves (read "for bob", unless we can find some other victims to try this out on), but are relying on Reema's assurance that she just followed the instructions except for jettisoning all the spices except cinnamon from the pumpkin puree layer. Personal preference. You decide.

ingredients

crust

1 cup pecans

3/4 c all purpose flour

6 T packed light brown sugar

4 T unsalted butter, melted

1/8 t salt

filling

2 large eggs

1 (15-oz) can pure pumpkin, such as Libby's

1 (12 fl-oz) can evaporated milk

1/2 c granulated sugar

1/2 c packed light brown sugar

1 1/2 T all-purpose flour

1 3/4 t ground cinnamon

1/4 t ground nutmeg *

1/4 t ground ginger *

1/8 t ground cloves *

1/8 t freshly ground black pepper

1/4 t salt

       * Reema optional

streusel

1/3 call- purpose flour

1/4 c rolled oats

1/2 c packed light brown sugar

3/4 t ground cinnamon

1/4 t ground nutmeg

1/8 t salt

4 T cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

3/4 c chopped pecans

instruction

1.  Preheat the oven to 375°F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Combine the crust ingredients in a food processor and process until the nuts are finely ground.
3. Transfer the crust mixture to the springform pan, spreading it evenly and patting down with some flat kitchen item.
4. Whisk the eggs in a large bowl and add the remaining filling ingredients and whisk until smooth. Pour the filling over the crust in the pan.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the filling is set around the edges but still wobbly in the center. Judgement call here. Then remove from the oven but leave oven heat on.
6. Meanwhile (i.e, while the stuff is baking), combine the dry streusel ingredients minus the nuts in a medium bowl, and mix until well combined.
7. Add the butter pieces and, rub the butter into the other ingredients with your fingers until the mixture is evenly moistened and clumpy. Stir in the pecans and refrigerate until ready to use.
8. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the partially baked filling (don't worry that the filling is still a bit liquid; the topping will not sink). Bake for 25 to 30 minutes more, until the filling is set and the topping is golden brown.
9. Let the torte cool completely on a rack, about 4 hours.
10. To serve, run a thin-bladed knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the torte from the sides, then remove the outer ring from the springform pan and transfer the torte to a platter. Slice into wedges and serve with sweetened whipped cream, if desired. Or even a little softened vanilla ice cream but not so much that you overwhelm the torte taste. Really this is great without any topping at all.
11. Refrigerate leftovers in the pan covered by aluminum foil and serve later at room temperature or not.

notes

1. From  Jen Segal's "once upon a chef" blog: pumpkin pecan streusel torte. Thank you Jen! For publicizing someone else's recipe. At least she gives credit where credit is due. Like we are now doing.
2. This is a bit involved, so save for a special occasion that makes it worth the effort. For best effect serve to pumpkin pie lovers.
3. Whole Foods Thanksgiving chocolate pecan pie, an affinity pumpkin product? [online recipe, Google search]
4. Illustrations available.