Pumpkin Cream Cheese

The other day I was perusing the refrigerated section of Trader Joe’s and I saw a little tub of pumpkin cream cheese. The tub looked up at me with its beady little eyes and said, “I dare you to make your own pumpkin cream cheese, Tracy.”

Clearly I showed that tub who’s boss!

If you’ve got extra pumpkin puree hanging out in your fridge, you can put it to good use with this recipe. Pumpkin cream cheese tastes just like a subtly sweet pumpkin cheesecake. Sounds good, right? It pairs perfectly with: crackers, gingerbread, graham crackers, cookies, bagels, you name it. Now if only I could convince Cooper to try some. His stubbornness just means more for me, right? I totally win this battle.

And we’re off!

Gather your ingredients. Plop your softened cream cheese in a bowl. Add vanilla.

Here comes the pumpkin! And then maple syrup enters the picture.

STIR! And now add in the brown sugar.

SPICE TIME! Ginger & cinnamon!

Stir stir stir. Put the cream cheese into the fridge for about an hour.

Spread some on crackers.

Smear some on a slice of gingerbread.

Or eat it directly from the bowl. Choose your own adventure!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese

makes about 1 1/2 cups

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons maple syrup (or agave)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Cover bowl and chill in the fridge for at least an hour before using.

jenny October 27, 2011

Wow. I was just 5 minutes ago perusing the new Martha where they made pumpkin butter. My husband loves pumkin muffins with cream cheese filing, so mythought was “why not pumpkin cream cheese?” I look at google reader and you had already done it. Perfect!

Reply
Katrina October 27, 2011

This sounds heavenly! Awesome idea!

Reply
Kate M. October 27, 2011

I just made pumpkin spice bagels-this would go perfectly!

Reply
Ashley October 27, 2011

Talk about perfect timing to click over here; I have a half can of pumpkin just sitting on my counter waiting to be used. This will be the highlight of my bagel this afternoon. Thanks for sharing!

Reply
marci October 27, 2011

wow, Tracy, you are genius. This homemade cream cheese is a contender! none of that sissy store-bought tub! 😉 Looks so thick, and is a gorgeous color. I can’t wait to make this – I have all the ingredients, too!! thank you!

Reply
Tort[e]s October 27, 2011

I bought that pumpkin cream cheese from Trader Joe’s a few weeks ago…and must admit that most of it made it into my mouth directly from a spoon, rather than on a bagel. Can’t wait to try your version!

Reply
Jamie October 27, 2011

Holy moley, this looks amazing! This would be perfect on a pumpernickel bagel with my morning chai latte. Thanks Tracy!

Reply
jenny October 27, 2011

the cream cheese looks yummy, but I must admit that I’m pretty fixated on that nice, thick slice of gingerbread…

Reply
Dottie October 27, 2011

Whoa. Just. WHOA! That is monumentally amazing!

Excuse me while I got out and make this RIGHT NOW.

Reply
brownsugarandbacon October 27, 2011

i want to dip graham crackers in that pumpkin-y goodness.

Reply
Cortnie October 27, 2011

Goodness gracious. I need to make this. And then eat most of it all by myself while watching t.v.

xo
cortnie

Reply
Michi Hernandez October 27, 2011

Mmmmm… This sounds so good. Coincidently I have all these ingredients in my kitchen too!

Reply
Kelsey October 27, 2011

I like your pumpkin spirit! I want to unlock the mysteries of TJ’s corn relish (the corn + chile in the salsa section). That stuff rocks my world.

Reply
- Tracy October 27, 2011
  
  oooh! i must try that. Maybe I can help you figure it out!
  
  Reply
  - Kelsey October 27, 2011
    
    Yes! That would be awesome! I recently made red pepper relish (September Everyday Food! also obsessed), which was my first relish so I was thinking that could be a good starting point for a TJ corn relish hack.
    
    Reply
Becky October 27, 2011

I am sooo gonna make this for the weekend. Smeared all over bagels….glorious! Thank you for sharing!

Reply
At Anna's kitchen table October 27, 2011

Ooh, gorgeous! Great idea!

Reply
themakeupgirl October 27, 2011

just finished a delicious tub of said trader joes pumpkin cream cheese and was totally thinking there has got to be an easy way to make this! can’t wait to try your recipe and thanks so much for sharing! ps…do you have a recipe for gingerbread too?! yums!

Reply
Jacqueline October 28, 2011

uhh-mazing recipe! you are correct, this tastes just like pumpkin cheesecake 🙂

Reply
Kasey October 28, 2011

Trader Joe’s makes me feel that way a lot. 🙂 I’m surprised I haven’t turned orange yet…from all the pumpkin I’ve been eating!

Reply
Kaitlyn October 29, 2011

You won’t believe that I have exactly eight ounces of cream cheese for no apparent reason, and leftover pumpkin puree. Thank you!!

Reply
Dina October 30, 2011

great idea! i’d like that on a bagel!

Reply
Russell at Chasing Delicious October 30, 2011

Yum! This spread looks scrumptious.

Reply
joy the baker October 30, 2011

gimme those crackers.

Reply
- Tracy October 31, 2011
  
  THOSE are the crackers I couldn’t stop eating last week! AHH.
  
  Reply
Nicola October 31, 2011

For those of us who NEED THIS IMMEDIATELY but live in places that don’t have canned pumpkin puree readily available, should we just boil up some pumpkin, drain, then whizz it till smooth?? I feel like this would be perfect at 3am when I come home from work….

Reply
Kimberly October 31, 2011

I was drooling about this when you first posted it, but I didn’t have anything on hand to eat it with, so it went in the “make later” file. I since decided to make Joy’s whole wheat molasses bread tonight, and it wasn’t until I saw your recipe re-posted on The Kitchn that I realized it would probably be perfect with Joy’s bread. I’ll now be making both recipes tonight, so needless to say, I see a very happy belly in my near future.

Reply
- Tracy November 1, 2011
  
  now that’s GREAT teamworking!
  
  Reply
Mike November 2, 2011

This looks really really good!!!!!

Reply
Samantha November 2, 2011

Oh my. Just the title of the blog made me drool!! I totally have to make this! Was it just delicious to consume?! Yum! Thanks so much for posting

Reply
friday favorites « lovelaughterandlipgloss November 4, 2011

[…] -easy, cheesy…homemade pumpkin cream cheese […]

Reply
Tiffany November 6, 2011

Made this recipe a few days ago and LOVING it! I’m putting it on everything…crackers, muffins, bread….oh the possibilities! Thank you 🙂

Reply
- Tracy November 7, 2011
  
  Awesome!!! So glad you tried it out.
  
  Reply
Sunday Favorites | the kitchen generation November 6, 2011

[…] This pumpkin cream cheese from Tracy at Shutterbean tastes as great as it looks. It’s definitely a […]

Reply
Charlene @ Sweetchic November 7, 2011

I must make this!! But I don’t have maple sugar… do you think honey would work as a sub??

Reply
- Tracy November 7, 2011
  
  Yup! Or agave.
  
  Reply
Nan November 8, 2011

I’m going to try a fat-free, sugar-free version of this, before I get addicted to the full-octane version!

Reply
Darcee November 16, 2011

I just made this, but my end product seems pretty runny? I’m saying something, because yours doesn’t look runny at all. I used maple flavored agave syrup instead of good ole maple syrup, but other than that, followed the recipe precisely. Any ideas? It’s chillin’ in the refrigerator right now, perhaps that will make a difference. Oh, and also, mine is much lighter colored than yours.

Reply
- Tracy November 16, 2011
  
  Peculiar! It must be your agave syrup. I know that agave is generally more runny than maple syrup. Was your cream cheese watery at all? The lightness in color might have something to do with the canned pumpkin you used. The canned pumpkin I used from Trader Joe’s was a pretty bright orange. Crossing my fingers for your batch in the fridge!
  
  Reply
  - Darcee November 17, 2011
    
    I think it was the agave I used. The cream cheese wasn’t watery or over softened at all, I used Trader Joe’s brand. And the pumpkin I used was from there as well. It thickened up just a smidge overnight in the fridge, but is overall still kind of thin. Tastes very good, my kids approve of it on a slice of gingerbread. Thanks Tracy!!
    
    Reply
jeanne November 22, 2011

I just made this Pumpkin Cream Cheese spread. Very, very good! Thanks for the recipe. I’m thinking I’ll use this w/gingerbread for Thanksgiving dessert.

Reply
Brandi B November 23, 2011

I’ve been meaning to write to you how amazing this recipe is! I’ve made it three times since you posted it and everyone continues to rave about it. Serving it with Ritz has been our favorite – that salty top is the perfect balance to the dip. Today a batch is going to the fire department inspired by Julie. Thank you for your great recipes and inspiration! BTW, I’ve also been eating crispy corn tortillas with avocado and lemon nonstop this past week 🙂 Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Reply
Mama-made-easy: Creamy Pumpkin Oatmeal « Proverbs 24:3-5 November 1, 2012

[…] I mentioned a while back that to make things easier we eat oatmeal each morning. I was surprised to see we have been eating oatmeal for breakfast for over a year now, and still it’s the meal that the girls eat the best, AND The Man hasn’t gotten tired of it yet. Amazing. One of the things I try to do is flavor the oatmeal with the seasons, and this year I came up with a great one to put in the fall mix: pumpkin oatmeal. We all just loved it, creamy and delicious. I can’t wait to cook up the pumpkins we have for decorations and make some more purée so I can stir up another batch. And here is another recipe I can’t wait to try when we have some more pumpkin purée…umm or this one! […]

Reply
I love lists, Friday! – Shutterbean November 2, 2012

[…] I bet these Pumpkin Crepes would go well with my Pumpkin Cream Cheese. […]

Reply
rita in mi November 20, 2012

I have made this in the past, and I’ll say, it’s also very delicious on French toast.

Reply
mimi November 25, 2012

fabulous!!! I never buy anything I can make!!! great idea. thanks

Reply
Charlene April 23, 2013

The cost of maintaining a store is much more to do two more releases are already in
the local Torrance production of GODSPELL. 7, which would suggest that something slightly more complex is happening.

Reply
Blogs in the Spotlight: Cooking Blogs for Every Home Cook - KendraNicole.net June 30, 2014

[…] the Baker. While Tracy features some incredible and unique recipes – like truffled popcorn, pumpkin cream cheese, and rosemary lemonade – it is her photography and graphic design that sets her blog apart. […]

Reply
Lynda October 30, 2015

Very good recipe! In place of maple syrup, I used Log Cabin pancake syrup.

Reply