You don’t need a pumpkin spice latte to savor the season. This DIY pumpkin toast is an easy, adorable treat for a fall shower, or wedding; an unexpected appetizer for a party; or just a fun lunch or after school snack for a playdate. Set out a platter of them and it becomes a centerpiece on its own—it’s fall decorating and fall food all in one! Pumpkin toast is also a healthy Halloween alternative to candy for your little ghouls and goblins.
You can switch up the spices to make pumpkin toast sweet or savory, and create any design you like! Top the ricotta base with one prize pumpkin, and pipe on curved lines to create a 3-D effect. Or, go for a series of small pumpkins and create a whole patch.
Sprinkle on pumpkin pie spice mix, add pepitas to create a stem, or cut dark chocolate into mini triangles to create a Jack-O-Lantern with chocolate eyes. Get creative with your own pumpkin pattern, and feel free to mix up the flavors as well! (And if pumpkin just isn’t your thing, check out our “cherry toast” made with cherry tomatoes!)
These are almost as fun to make as they are to eat, so, for adults or older kids, you can set up the ingredients and have everyone create their own!
Just start with any sliced bread you like, toast it so it’s sturdy enough to spread ricotta on, then add the cheese, spreading it smooth to create a canvas. (Not into ricotta? Cream cheese works, too, as does any white, spreadable cheese—or, for an extra-sweet snack, Nutella!)
Add whatever spices you like to the pumpkin puree or pumpkin better; we went for pumpkin spice mix for a sweet-and-spicy taste. You could choose a single favorite spice (like cinnamon), go sweeter with chocolate, or spicier with salt and pepper.
Then, use a piping bag (we cut the corner out of a Ziploc to make one) pipe on pumpkin puree or softened pumpkin butter into pumpkins of any size.
Accessorize your pumpkins by using pepitas or triangles of dark chocolate to make stems or eyes.
However you design yours, pumpkin toast is easy to whip up and makes a fun, seasonal snack break for your own lil pumpkins (and big ones, too!).
What You’ll Need
- Sliced bread
- Ricotta cheese (or other spread, like cream cheese or nutella)
- Pumpkin puree or pumpkin butter
- Pumpkin pie spice or other spices (optional)
- Ziploc bag or piping bag for piping on pumpkins
- Pepitas (optional, for decor)
- Dark chocolate (optional, for decor)
How-To
Step 1: Mix 1 15oz can pumpkin puree with a couple shakes of pumpkin pie spice pinch of salt + a tablespoon of honey. Or, use pumpkin butter instead.
Step 2: Toast bread and spread with ricotta cheese or other spread..
Step 3: Fill ziploc bag or piping bag with pumpkin puree or pumpkin butter, snip the tip,
and pipe either one big pumpkin or lots of small pumpkins all over the toast. Use a spoon to smooth out the pumpkin.
Step 4: Now it’s time to decorate! Pipe on curved vertical lines to look like the ridges on a pumpkin. Sprinkle on spices! Use pepitas or triangles of chocolate to make stems. Now all that’s left to do is enjoy your pumpkin toast!
