Howdy Kitchen: Pumpkin Pie Dip

This was originally posted over at The Project Girl. 
Put I thought I'd share it here as well.

Pumpkin bread.  Pumpkin cheesecake.  Pumpkin muffins.
Pumpkin cookies.  Pumpkin pie.  Pumpkin fudge.

Pumpkin....I can't get enough of it!

In case you haven't figured it out, I LOVE pumpkin!  :)

Thanks to my good friend Pinterest, I came across a delicious
pumpkin pie dip that will NOT disappoint!

But first, let's think about presentation.

{I need to give props to Mindy of Best Energies Best Affections for the idea.  Thanks Mindy!}

Maybe it's just me, but I do enjoy food presentation.

I'd much rather eat/serve chips out of a bowl, instead of a bag.
I'd much rather eat/serve caramel, dips,  salsas, etc out of bowls,
instead of the containers they came in.

So, when I wanted to put together a little treat platter to share at work,
I wanted it to look nice.

1. To start off, you need fun bowls!

While in San Francisco for a work training, I got to shop at Anthropologie!
{There isn't a store located in Iowa.  Sad, I know!}

Because I can't afford the clothing, I went and looked at the House & Home items,
because that stuff rocks!

In the end, here's what I came home with.

Aren't they awesome?!  {I now wish I would have gotten more!}

2.  Next, get some sort of big platter, tray, etc.  Thanks to Mindy and her grand idea,
I used a vintage round cake pan.

This isn't just any cake pan.  I found it my Grandma's attic.
So it does have some meaning behind it.

3.  Decide what you want to put in the bowls for dips and dippers.

I decided to go with honey wheat pretzels, honey graham crackers, and grapes.
I would have used apples as well....if I had some on hand.

I served honey crisp apples with this during a craft day, and the ladies loved it!

4.  Now for the dip!

Pumpkin Pie Dip

{Original recipe found here.}

My version of the recipe....

Ingredients:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2.5 cups powdered sugar
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin pie filling
1+ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1+ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1+ teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:
Beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add pie filling, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla, beating well.
Cover and chill.
Serve with favorite dippers!

5.  Enjoy!

It not only tastes delicious, it looks great as well!

Another fun idea would be to use clear/white/solid colored bowls,
and add the fun to the pan itself.
Just line it with some scraps of material, scrapbook papers,
or one of your favorite cloth napkins.

Obviously, I didn't think about that ahead of time.  But I will next time!
I just wanted to use my new bowls!  :)

This idea originated from Mindy as a veggie tray.
She had assorted veggies in different bowls, with a Ball jar of dip in the middle.

With the holiday season upon us, have fun with your treat/snack/dessert/drink presentation.

Don't be afraid to think outside the box!  You very well could be the hit of the party!