Ingredients:
4 tbsp butter
4 pears, halved and cored
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped (or other nuts)
1 teaspoon Watkins caramel extract
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sour cream or yogurt

Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F with oven rack in center position..

Place the butter on a baking pan and put into the heated oven. Once butter has melted, add caramel extract and sprinkle with brown sugar. Add the pear halves with the cut side down on top of the butter/sugar (caramel) mixture and bake for about 30 minutes.

Once the pear halves are tender, turn them over and baste with the caramel sauce. Bake for a further 10 minutes until nice and golden.

Serve immediately, place the pear halves in bowls and top with caramel sauce, sour cream and garnish with the pecans.

This can be made ahead, simply reheat the pears and caramel sauce in the microwave before serving.

Ingredients:
1 Cup / 250 ml Sugar
1 Tablespoon / 15 ml All-Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon./ 2.5 ml salt
1 Tablespoon/ 15 ml Watkins Pumpkin Pie Spice
3 Large Eggs
1-1/2 Cups / 375 ml canned or mashed, cooked pumpkin
1 Cup / 250 ml Evaporated Milk
1 Unbaked 9-inch / 23cm Pastry Pie Shell

Directions: Combine sugar, flour, salt and Pumpkin Pie Spice; beat in eggs. Stir in pumpkin and milk. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 400 degrees F/205 degrees C for 50 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Make 10 servings. Top with whipped cream flavored with Watkins Vanilla.

Tip from the kitchen: to cook fresh pumpkin, wash, cut in half, remove seeds (set them aside to roast later if desired) and discard stringy bits. Cut pumpkin into four inch pieces, place in a large saucepan with several inches of water and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and steam until tender. Cool, remove pumpkin from skin with a spoon and mash to use in pie or other recipes.

Don’t try to use regular milk, it will turn out runny and won’t set!

This much-requested recipe was once featured on Watkins Pumpkin Pie Spice label.

Ingredients:
4-5 medium sized apples, peeled and cored
1/3 -1/2 cup /75-125 ml sugar, depending on tartness of apples
1 teaspoon/5 ml Watkins cinnamon

Ingredients for topping:
2/3 cup /150 ml flour, all purpose or whole wheat
2/3 cup /150 ml oatmeal
1/2 cup/125 ml brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon/1 ml Watkins nutmeg
1/2 cup/125 ml butter, softened

Directions: Mix together prepared apples, sugar and cinnamon and place in a 8″/20 cm square pan. Combine topping ingredients in a bowl cutting in butter until well blended and crumbly. Sprinkle topping over apples and bake at 375° F/190° C for about 30 minutes or until apples are tender. Serve warm or cold. Great with ice cream or whipped cream.

Tips from the kitchen:

• Double the recipe, make two and freeze one baked or unbaked to enjoy another time when you are too busy to make dessert. If unbaked, reduce heat to 350° F and allow extra baking time when baking from frozen. Thaw baked apple crisp in the fridge, then reheat in oven for 10 -15 minutes.
• Substitute 2 cups of fresh or frozen berries or other fruit for the apples to create a totally new dessert. Or use a mixture of apples with other fruit.