Whether you're looking for a tasty fall-flavored dessert or a gluten free take on pumpkin pie, this pumpkin souffle is a great choice. Gently spiced, light and delicious.
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Pumpkin pie has been on our menu at Thanksgiving for years now. Apart from one year when we visited family, I've made it and the recipe is a firm favorite, including with the kids.
We have generally had visitors in recent years which help us get through it, since one pie is too much for just us. We love other pumpkin treats too, like chocolate pumpkin pastry twists and pumpkin cinnamon rolls, but there's something about the flavors of a pie. For times when making one seems too much but you're craving the flavors, this pumpkin souffle is a great alternative.
Other advantages of pumpkin souffle
- it's gluten free;
- there's no extra crust to make;
- it cooks a lot quicker than a pie;
- you can make smaller quantities;
- it's in individual servings so no fighting over the last slice.
It's only fair, though, that I mention that it does have one or two slight disadvantages. First, like most souffles it does deflate a little almost immediately after you take it out the oven.
The above photo was within about a minute of taking them out, but the others are a couple minutes later as I was trying to get the right angle etc and they inevitably collapsed a little.
The other thing is while they have that nice fluffiness of a souffle, to get a nice pumpkin, and semi-pie flavor, I found some of them separated a little into fluffier souffle and almost a pumpkin custard underneath. Not that this is so bad, of course, but it's not as unified as I might have hoped.
None of this stops this from being a delicious dessert, though. I debated reducing the egg yolks as I saw some other recipes do, but I still kind of like the richness they add. And it saves having leftover yolks to use up.
I did also wonder if the fact I tend to use homemade pumpkin puree rather than canned had any impact. Clearly I need to do some experimenting to be sure 🙂
For now, though, let me just leave you with the fact that both I and the boys demolished this batch of pumpkin souffle pretty quickly once they had cooled enough to eat. The flavor is delicious, they are sweet without being over the top and we'll definitely be having them again.
Looking for more fall-flavored desserts? Try these!
- Apple panna cotta
- Bulgarian pumpkin strudel (tikvenik)
- Individual pear galette
- Clementine cake with cranberry glaze (GF)
- No churn pumpkin ice cream
- Plus get more dessert recipes in the archives.
Pumpkin souffle
Ingredients
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 pinch allspice
- 3 eggs divided
- 1 tablespoon fine sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Lightly butter 3 small ramekins/souffle dishes.
- In a medium bowl, blend together the pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and egg yolks until well combined.
- In a separate bowl (make sure it's very clean with no grease), whisk the egg whites until becoming fluffy. Add the fine sugar and whisk until they form soft peaks.
- Carefully fold the egg whites in to the pumpkin mixture, being careful not to beat out all the air but also not having any obviously white bits in the mixture. Divide between the prepared ramekins making sure each has a balance of any more liquid mixture and the fluffier part.
- Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 15 minutes until puffed up and the top is lightly brown and looks dry. Serve immediately, dusted with a little powdered sugar if you like.
Nutrition
See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store.
Get some more pumpkin inspiration:
Beverages:
Pumpkin Juice- Harry Potter Style from Jonesin' For Taste
Pumpkin Pie Bourbon Cocktail from Love and Confections
Savory:
Creamy Pumpkin Fiesta Chicken Soup from Amy's Cooking Adventures
One Pot Creamy Pumpkin Bacon Pasta from 4 Sons 'R' Us
Pumpkin Chorizo Tamales with Pumpkin Mole from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
Pumpkin Pizza from Platter Talk
Savory Pumpkin & Pepper Goat Cheese Tart from Hardly A Goddess
Baked Goods & Desserts:
Pumpkin Banana Bread from A Day in the Life on the Farm
Pumpkin Creme Brulee from Cookaholic Wife
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread from House of Nash Eats
Pumpkin Ginger Donuts from Daily Dish Recipes
Pumpkin Kolaches from The Spiffy Cookie
Pumpkin Maple Bark from Seduction In The Kitchen
No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake from Cooking with Carlee
Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins from The Bitter Side of Sweet
Pumpkin Spice Cake Roll from Grumpy's Honeybunch
Pumpkin Spiced Cookies from April Golightly
Remember to pin for later!
Disclaimer: Thank you PumpkinWeek Sponsors: Dixie Crystals, Cabot Cheese, and Eggland’s Best for providing prizes for the giveaway (which is now closed) free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for PumpkinWeek recipes. All opinions are my own.
Mary
The recipe looked simple and easy. But I felt there wasn’t enough pumpkin. I had 1/4 cup of pumpkin and also 1 cup of butternut squash. I used all of that with the recipe and had bigger ramekins. Yes it took a little more time to cook but it turned out great. Since there was more ingredients than expected I finished with a light dusting of sugar on top. Perfection. My husband wants this again and again.
Caroline's Cooking
Glad you enjoyed! I have been meaning to play around with the amount of pumpkin, actually - my only concern was it would be more like a crustless pie than a souffle (not that that's a bad thing, though!) And yes, definitely good to have that sugar dusting.
Donna Rote
Can I double or triple this recipe?
Caroline's Cooking
Yes, there's no reason why not, the one thing I would say is this can separate a little as it is due to pumpkin being that bit more dense, so you would have to watch that you get a good balance in each dish, and not some that are more a custard, and others that are all egg white.
Kristi
Are these 4oz or 8oz ramekins?
Caroline's Cooking
They are 4oz.
Jackie
I was looking at your recipe I don't see where or how many egg whites to use for this recipe
Caroline's Cooking
Hi, you use 3 whole eggs and separate them, so the egg yolks go in with the sugar etc to form a kind of custard, then you beat the whites and fold in, giving the souffle.
Abby
Hi! If I want to make this ahead for Friendsgiving can I prepare the batter and bake a few hours later? What do you recommend?
Caroline's Cooking
Unfortunately, souffles are one of those things that don't really work well made ahead as the air doesn't stay in either the batter or the end souffle which is a big part of what they are. You can, to a point, bake them ahead of time but they'll flatten down so won't be quite the same.
Sandi
We love souffles and I can't wait to try your pumpkin one. I missed pumpkin season.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, I really don't make souffles enough but agree they're great. And glad to have pumpkin back as well!
Andrea @ Cooking with Mamma C
How fun! I love the idea of individual servings that taste like fluffy pumpkin pie. Gluten free is a bonus too!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, they're the perfect little bite!
Jessica Formicola
This looks like the perfect fall dessert!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, it's so perfectly fall-flavored.
Pam Greer
Bring on the pumpkin! These souffles sound amazing and I'm to check out everyone else's pumpkin dishes!
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, and absolutely agree!
Lisa Bynum
This is a prefect treat. I agree that an entire pie is usually too much for just my family. We end up eating it for days ... and I don't need to be eating pie for days! This would give us a quick pumpkin fix.
Caroline's Cooking
I'm glad someone else shares the same problem (well, kind of - you know what I mean!). These are a great alternative.
Wendy Klik
Your souffles turned out lovely.
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you!