Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Just when you think I might be done adding more pumpkin recipes to the blog... I post a new one :) I promise the end is near! I have one more left and then I'll move on! Anyway, I felt like making cookies a while back and since I had never tried making pumpkin cookies, I thought I'd give them a try. Now I know there have been a lot of new recipes out there for crisp/chewy pumpkin cookies, however this is not one of them. These are puffy, soft and dare I say cake-like. They're your "traditional" pumpkin cookies. I know not everyone is a fan, but I promise these babies are good! If you're not too wild about the chocolate chip pumpkin combo, you can always ditch them and go the butterscotch route, or even do cinnamon chips instead! Enjoy and happy baking!

Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
2 c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
½ c. vegetable oil
1 egg
1 c. solid-pack pumpkin puree
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips*

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugars, vegetable oil, pumpkin puree and vanilla. Mix on medium for about 1 minute. Add egg, mixing until just combined.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and fold in the chocolate chips by hand.
4. Scoop onto prepared sheets and place in oven to bake for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are firm and light brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool on sheets for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
*NOTE: I used 1½ c. regular size chocolate chips and ½ c. mini chocolate chips, however, I realize most people don't have minis on hand so the recipe calls for 2 c. of regular size chips.
Adapted from All Recipes, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies III | Makes approximately 24 standard size cookies

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes Topped with Maple Buttered Pecans

Almost a week had gone by with a container of pumpkin puree staring me down each time I opened the refrigerator. Yesterday I finally decided to do something about it. I had been trying to come up with some way to use it before it went bad, but the only thing I could think of that would be quick and relatively mess-free was pumpkin bread. I wasn't super excited about that especially since I've been baking a lot of muffins and breads lately. When my parents came over to babysit, that gave me a little more time to play around. So what did I do? I made cupcakes. I have to say, these just might be the best I've ever made! The cupcake itself is moist, tender, buttery and sweet, and the frosting is tangy and melts in your mouth. The maple buttered pecans give these added texture and flavor and really compliment the pumpkin flavor. I definitely ate my fair share of these, Stephen even joined in too- and he never eats pumpkin goodies! I'm thinking these would be a great treat to give to friends and family or even a new addition to a traditional Thanksgiving dessert spread!

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes Topped with Maple Buttered Pecans

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour

¾ c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

¼ c. vegetable oil

¼ c. (½ stick) butter, room temperature

2 eggs

1 c. solid-pack pumpkin puree

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

¾ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting:

3½ c. powdered sugar

4 oz. original cream cheese, room temperature

3 tbsp. butter, room temperature

¼ c. solid-pack pumpkin puree

½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

¼ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

Maple Buttered Pecans:

¾ c. whole, halves or chopped pecans

1 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tbsp. maple syrup

¼ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

½ tbsp. butter

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one regular size muffin tin with liners, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, oil, and sugars for 2-3 minutes or until light and creamy. Add pumpkin puree and vanilla, then with mixing speed on low, add one egg at a time, mixing until incorporated. 

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing until just combined.

4. Remove bowl from stand and fill each liner ¾ of the way full. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned and spring back when touched. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely (about 30 minutes).

5. Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for the frosting (except for the powdered sugar) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted wit the whisk attachment. Beat until smooth, about 2 minutes on medium-high speed. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the powdered sugar. Once all of the sugar has been added, beat on high for 2 additional minutes. Set aside.

6. Combine all ingredients for the maple buttered pecans (except for the butter) in a small mixing bowl. toss to coat the nuts evenly. Spread onto a lined baking sheet (Silpat or parchment), place in the preheated oven for 12 minutes, stirring half way through the baking process. Remove from oven and toss in a clean bowl with the butter, let cool.

7. Frost cooled cupcakes with desired tip, top with cooled pecans.

Life Made Simple Original Recipe, frosting inspired by a recipe in the Holiday 2013 issue of Something Extra | Makes approximately 12 standard size cupcakes

Smashed Pumpkin Smoothie

When I was in college one of my favorite things to drink for breakfast was the Pumpkin Smash from Jamba Juice. During the fall I probably had at least 3-4 a week! Let's just call it a guilty pleasure. Ok, so maybe it's not so guilty- these babies are loaded with non-fat vanilla fro-yo, low-fat vanilla yogurt, low-fat milk, and of course pumpkin pie filling (which has fiber, potassium, protein, and vitamin A). See, that's not so bad, right? Anyway, after moving to Florida and not living anywhere near a Jamba, I figured it was time to try and make my own. Guess what? It was pretty easy. The list of ingredients is a short one and all you need for prep is a blender and a chilled glass. That's it! Gather, combine, blend, pour, and in minutes you've got a delicious fall treat! Happy blending!

Smashed Pumpkin Smoothie

Ingredients

½ c. non-fat frozen vanilla yogurt (I used Häagen-Dazs)

½ c. low-fat vanilla yogurt

½ c. low-fat milk (I used 1%)

1 c. ice

¼ c. pumpkin pie filling

¹⁄₈ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

¹⁄₈ tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender, putting the heavier ones towards the top (ice, frozen yogurt etc.). Blend until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Pour into a chilled glass and enjoy!

NOTE: I used pumpkin pie filling instead of puree because it's much sweeter. If you plan on using puree, make sure you add at least 1 tbsp. of sugar or honey to it! Also if you don't want to use low fat everything- don't! It's up to you how "healthy" you make it :)

Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 1 (16 oz) smoothie

Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodle Blossoms

A few years back I was on the hunt for Pumpkin Spice Kisses. Unfortunately every Target in the state of Utah was sold out! So the next year when they were back in stock, I picked up a hefty stash of them. One of my favorite ways to use them (aside from snacking on them) is in these snickerdoodle blossoms. The other day while the little one slept I broke out my KitchenAid and whipped up a batch. The dough is soft, buttery, tangy and full of cinnamon flavor with a hint of pumpkin. I like to roll the balls of dough in a cinnamon sugar mixture that has a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spiced mixed in. I think it really compliments the kiss! These blossoms make an excellent treat, perfect for gift giving or for sharing with your family!

Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodle Blossoms
Ingredients
3 c. all-purpose flour
1½ c. granulated sugar
1 c. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 egg
¼ c. pumpkin puree
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1½ tsp. vanilla

Pumpkin Spice Coating:
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ bag Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy. With mixing speed on low add pumpkin puree, egg then vanilla. Mix until just combined.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, soda, cinnamon, cream of tartar, and salt. With mixing speed on low, slowly add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix until combined.
4. Remove bowl from mixer and chill dough for 30 minutes. Once dough is sufficiently chilled, use a standard size cookie scoop to create balls. Roll dough in hands to form balls, then roll into pumpkin spice mixture. Place onto cookie sheet and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a measuring cup.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheet half way through the baking process. Cookies should look soft and should have slightly firm edges before removing from the oven (don't over cook them or they will be dry and crumbly). Allow to cool for 2 minutes before pressing a kiss into the center of each cookie.
6. Let cookies cool on sheet for 3 additional minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction, Soft & Thick Snickerdoodles | Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies

Mini Pumpkin Loaves

Now that the weather has finally cooled off a bit, I'm in full fall baking mode (as much as I can be with a one month old strapped to me 24/7)! As you can probably tell, I'm a bit obsessed with pumpkin. Unfortunately for me Stephen isn't wild about it. So usually I make smaller portioned recipes or give away most of the pumpkin goodies I make. This time around I decided to make miniature pumpkin bread loaves and mix in my favorite toppings. With so much variety you really can't go wrong! I kept all of these beauties to myself, snacking on them throughout the day and eating them throughout the rest of the week. I think the flavor gets better and better as the days pass, the sweet spiciness of the bread becomes more vibrant. Now if you don't want to make so many different kinds, don't worry, you can do what you please, or if you don't have or want to use a mini loaf pan, you can aways bake the batter in a 9x5" pan which yields one standard size loaf. No matter what you decided to put in these or how you decided to bake them, I hope you'll enjoy them as much as I did!

Mini Pumpkin Loaves
Ingredients
1¾ c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. sugar
½ c. brown sugar, packed
⅓ c. water
¼ c. oil
¼ c. unsweetened applesauce
1 c. pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
1¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Optional toppings:
chocolate chips

butterscotch chips

cranberries

cinnamon & sugar

chopped pecans

chopped walnuts

pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a miniature loaf pan* or one 9x5 inch loaf pan with baking spray. Lightly dust with flour, remove any excess by patting it upside down over the sink or a garbage can, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together applesauce, oil, and sugars. Mix until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, water, and vanilla, mix until smooth. Add in one egg at a time, mixing after each addition.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk together. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated. Now you can either mix in the "toppings" or actually put them on top, the choice is yours.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan, if desired, sprinkle additional toppings over the batter. Place in oven and bake for 22-25 minutes, or 50-60 minutes for one standard loaf. The tops should be slightly dark, but should not be burnt! They will spring back after touched. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 20 minutes (or 45 for a standard loaf) before removing. Allow to cool on a wire rack for an additional 30 minutes before eating.

*NOTE: I used the Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch® Nonstick Mini Loaf Pan, if you are using larger mini loaf pans, please adjust the baking time as needed.
Adapted from allrecipes.com, Pumpkin Bread | Makes (8) 3"x4" miniature loaves or (1) 9"x5" loaf

Biscoff Streusel Pumpkin Muffins

Fall screams baking to me! How about you? I've been on a muffin kick lately and this recipe is just another product of my obsession with pumpkin puree. My pantry is full of it, dangerously full of it, so prepare yourself for more pumpkin-packed recipes in the future ;) Anyway, back to these bad boys. I originally share this recipe over at Lil' Luna a few weeks ago, but now I get to share it here with you. These muffins are a pumpkin/Biscoff/cream cheese lover's dream. I know that there's kind of a lot going on here, but trust me, it all works. Here's what I did- I started off by making a really simple spiced batter, then topped it with slices of cream cheese, and then sprinkled over it a chunky speculoos streusel. The cream cheese helps to bind the muffin and the topping together and gives it a tangy creamy component that it really needs. I decided to bake my muffins in a taller and larger cupcake liner so that they'd be more like bakery-style muffins, but you don't need to worry about them overflowing if you're using standard liners or even just spray. These have turned out to be one of my new favorite muffins, I hope you'll think the same too!

Biscoff Streusel Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:

1½ c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
1 c. pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
2 eggs
¼ c. vegetable oil
¼ c. unsweetened applesauce
¼ c. water
¾ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Streusel:

¼ c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

¼ c. all-purpose flour

¼ c. finely crushed Biscoff cookies

2 tbsp. Biscoff spread

3 tbsp. butter, cold

4 oz. original cream cheese, cold and cut into dime size slices

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one standard size muffin pan with liners or grease with baking spray, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with mixing speed on low, combine sugars, puree, vegetable oil, applesauce, water, and vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and set aside.

4. For the streusel, in a small mixing bowl combine sugars, flour, crushed cookies, and ground cinnamon. Using a pastry blender, cut in cold butter and Biscoff spread. Continue working the mixture with the pastry blender until it resembles chunks about the size of a rice krispie. 

5. Pour batter into prepared muffin pan, dividing evenly. Top with slices of cream cheese, then sprinkle streusel over top. You will want to be generous with the streusel, but you may have a few tablespoons left over. Gently pat the streusel into the batter to help it bake into the muffin. 

6. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops spring back and the streusel is golden brown in color (note: baking times may vary depending on how much you streusel you add and the heat of your oven). Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe adapted from Libby's Pumpkin Cranberry Bread | Makes 12 standard size muffins

Zucchini Carrot Pumpkin Muffins

I had this crazy idea the other day to combine three of my favorite kinds of quick breads. Zucchini bread, carrot cake bread and pumpkin bread. They all have a spiced batter and require fall vegetables for texture and flavor. I started off by using a cup of pumpkin puree, then added a bit of grated carrot to it and a half cup of grated zucchini. I was a bit nervous about how the liquid in the carrot and zucchini would effect the texture of the muffins, but since I was able to squeeze most of it out, it wasn't a problem. These baked up perfectly and smelled divine! I topped mine off with a bit of whipped cinnamon cream cheese topping, but these are just as tasty without. Nuts or raisins would also be a great addition to this recipe along with pepitas (pumpkin seeds). Enjoy and happy baking!

Zucchini Carrot Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:

1½ c. all-purpose flour

1 c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

1 c. pumpkin puree (not pie filling)

2 eggs

¼ c. vegetable oil

¼ c. unsweetened applesauce

¼ c. water
¼ c. finely grated carrot, liquid removed
½ c. finely grated zucchini, liquid removed

¾ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Whipped Cinnamon Cream Cheese Topping:
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
¼ c. butter, room temperature
½ c. powdered sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. cinnamon
2-3 tbsp. milk

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one standard size muffin pan with liners or grease with baking spray, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with mixing speed on low, combine sugars, puree, vegetable oil, applesauce, water, and vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand, gently fold in carrot and zucchini, set aside.

4. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops spring back and are golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. While muffins cool, to make the whipped topping, combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Gradually bring up the mixing speed to high, beat until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. The mixture should be very soft and spreadable, this is like frosting, but with less sugar. If more milk is needed to create a smoother consistency, add more and continue beating. Spread onto the tops of the cooled muffins.

Recipe adapted from Libby's Pumpkin Cranberry Bread | Makes 12 standard size muffins

Cinnamon Topped Pumpkin Bread + A New Look

 These past few days have been kind of crazy for the two of us. Between school, work, church, and running a million errands, we really haven't been spending too much time at home. Yesterday I convinced myself that it was ok to relax a bit. I slept in, caught up on some work, and reheated leftovers for dinner. Yeah, it was one of those days. Today, however, was a little more productive. I went to the bank, the store, cleaned the house, and installed the new look for 2013. I know it's a little early but I didn't want to wait. I was tired of the same old thing and wanted to mix things up a bit. I can't tell you how much I love the templates that Blog Milk has over in their shop! I used Papier as the basis of the design and then imported my content. I love it! I know that a few other bloggers are using the same template right now, but the customization aspect really helps set each one apart. I also like that Blog Milk only releases 15 copies of each template, that way their sort of unique. Anyway, if you're looking to upgrade your look I highly recommend purchasing one of their templates, especially since custom design comes at a high cost... I'm talking upwards of $250 (and that's considered to be pretty cheap)!

Enough about that, now onto the bread! I only have a few more cans of pumpkin puree left in my pantry, and of course I was saving one for pumpkin bread, so here it is! I adapted a recipe that I found on allrecipes.com, and let me tell you, it was love at first bite. This bread is moist and sweet and covered in crunchy cinnamon goodness. It's everything a pumpkin lover could want and more! Seriously, this is good stuff people! I added the topping because I had some cinnamon chips and pecans, but if you're not a fan, just omit it, I promise it will be just as good! This bread would be awesome with a cream cheese swirl or studded with chocolate chips too... just throwing a few more ideas out there for you☺

Cinnamon Topped Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients

1¾ c. all-purpose flour

1 c. sugar

½ c. brown sugar, packed

⅓ c. water

¼ c. oil

¼ c. butter

1 c. pumpkin puree

2 eggs

1 tsp. baking soda

¾ tsp. salt

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Topping:

1 tbsp. flour

5 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tbsp. butter

1 tsp. cinnamon

¼ c. chopped pecans (optional)

¼ c. cinnamon baking chips (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray one 8 x 4 inch loaf pan with baking spray. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, oil, and sugars. Mix until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, water, and vanilla, mix until smooth. Add in one egg at a time, mixing after each addition.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk together. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Set aside.
5. To make the topping, in a small mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar and cinnamon. Cut in cold butter with a pastry blender. The mixture should resemble coarse crumbs. Sprinkle on top of batter along with nuts and cinnamon chips.
6. Place in oven and bake for 1 hour. The topping will begin to darken but should not burn. Remove from oven and let cool in pan on a wire rack for 1 hour before removing.

Adapted from allrecipes.com, Pumpkin Bread | Makes 1 standard loaf

Chocolate Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I have a confession for you all... I've never made a whoopie pie, well, until a few days ago. I'm not sure how I've made it through all of these "culinary" adventures without doing so. I have however, helped my mom make her famous mint "sandwich cookies," which people mistakingly call whoopies, but for me, a whoppie pie is cake-like with a soft frosted center. So lets count those mint ones out, deal? Well, like I said, I finally decided it was time to try my hand at making some. I love the idea of pumpkin and chocolate together, so I decided on these little pies. Yes they're a bit funky looking, not exactly smooth and flawless like most traditional whoopies, but they definitely make up for that in taste! They're soft and sweet and full of that pumpkin flavor that we all love so much... oh, and did I mention that there are mini chocolate chips in there too? Yep... they're kind of perfect :) Enjoy!

Chocolate Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Ingredients:
2 c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1¼ c. sugar
8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1 c. buttermilk, room temperature
1 egg
1½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
¹⁄₈ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Filling:
¾ c. powdered sugar
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
4 tbsp. (½ stick) butter, room temperature
¼ c. pumpkin puree
¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
¹⁄₈ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add the egg, buttermilk and vanilla, mix until incorporated.
3. In a medium size bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined (the dough will look more like a batter- remember these are cake-like).
4. Remove bowl from stand place in refrigerator for 15 minutes. Once the dough has chilled, scoop 12 balls of dough (about the size of 2 tbsp.) onto the prepared cookie sheets. Place in oven and bake until the edges begin to set (approximately 8-9 minutes), be careful not to overbake. Remove from oven and let cool on sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.
5. While the cookies are cooling, to prepare the filling, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together cream cheese, butter and pumpkin. Add in pumpkin pie spice, salt and vanilla. With mixing speed on low, gradually add powdered sugar. Beat for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Fold in mini chocolate chips (or roll edges in once they have been frosted).
6. Pipe filling onto the flat side of one cookie, then sandwhich. Continue until all of the cookies have been piped and sandwiched.
Adapted from Food Network Magazine, Whoopie Pumpkin Pies | Makes approximately 12 whoopie pies

Pumpkin Muffins with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling

Since I have a thing for cheesecake and coffee cake, I thought combining the two in a pumpkin muffin would be pretty darn amazing. It just made sense to me, you know? I'm glad I did, because these babies are incredibly good! I love the idea of cream cheese in muffins, whether it be chocolate muffins, strawberry muffins or pumpkin muffins- it's really a great ingredient. Combine it with some cinnamon and vanilla... oh man, it melts together while baking and tastes like a bite of cheesecake once it cools! The topping on these is crunchy and sweet and gives these muffins a little extra something (or what I would call the coffee cake topping). These really are a little taste of heaven!

Pumpkin Muffins with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling

Ingredients

1½ c. flour

1½ c. sugar

½ c. brown sugar, packed

½ c. canola oil

2 eggs

1 c. pumpkin puree

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

For the filling:

4 oz. Original Philadelphia Cream Cheese

½ c. powdered sugar

¹⁄₈ tsp. vanilla

½ tsp. cinnamon

For the topping:

2½ tbsp. flour

2 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. brown sugar. packed

2 tbsp. butter, melted

pinch of salt

¾ tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 muffin tins with 16 cupcake liners. Set aside.

2. In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients for the filling. Mix together with a spatula until smooth. Refrigerate until needed.

3. To make the topping, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix until incorporated.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat sugars, oil and pumpkin puree until smooth. Add vanilla and one egg, mix. Add the second egg and mix until combined.

5. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. With mixing speed on low, gradually and to wet ingredients. Mix until smooth. 

6. Scoop batter into liners filling ¼ of the way full. Place a gum ball sized dollop of filling in each, then cover with remaining batter until each liner is filled ¾ of the way full. Sprinkle with chunks of topping. Place in oven and bake for 20-23 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and place pans on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before removing muffins and letting them cool on the rack for 15 minutes.

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, Pumpkin Muffins | Makes approximately 16 standard size muffins

Spiced Pumpkin Ice Cream

One of my favorite things about fall is using pumpkin in every way possible. I'm not sure how much Stephen likes pumpkin, but he's slowly getting used to the idea of having it on a weekly basis. At least he tries everything I make with it... and goes back for seconds :) Since we love to make homemade ice cream I thought this would be perfect for after dinner! It tastes like a frozen pumpkin pie- so delicious! It would be great with some gingersnap cookies crumbled on top or chopped toasted pecans. However you decide to serve it, I'm sure it will be a hit!

Spiced Pumpkin Ice Cream
Ingredients:

¼ c. sugar
½ c. brown sugar, packed

1 c. pumpkin puree

1 c. heavy cream

1½ c. whole milk
5 egg yolks

½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground ginger

¹⁄₈ tsp. ground nutmeg

¼ tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine milk, ½ c. of heavy cream and sugars. Bring mixture to a low simmer.
2 While mixture is heating over the stovetop, in a medium size mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks with pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg and salt. Slowly pour hot milk mixture into the eggs, whisking while doing so.
3. Return mixture to the stovetop and continue heating until the temperature coats the back of a rubber spatula or reaches 160 degrees on a thermometer.
4. Pour the mixture through a mesh sieve into a large mixing bowl. Add vanilla, salt, remaining ½ c. of heavy cream and pumpkin puree into the large mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and place into refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.
5. Once the mixture has chilled, pour mixture into an ice cream machine and chill according to manufacturer's instructions (20 minutes or so with the KitchenAid attachment). Transfer the churned ice cream into an air-tight freezer safe container and freeze for 3-4 hours before serving.
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma, Pumpkin Ice Cream | Makes approximately 6-8 servings

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Last year I baked a few treats and took them to a fall activity at church. Just about every dessert was pumpkin, which wasn't something I was going to complain about, I love pumpkin! It was there that I tried a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin for the first-time-ever. For some reason the thought of those two ingredients together was frightening to me. I just couldn't imagine pumpkin and chocolate in the same bite. So I put one on my plate and went back to the table. I ate it. I liked it. No, I loved it! I suddenly found myself going back for seconds. Who knew? What a lovely combination it turned out to be. So this is me, a year later, finally making myself a batch of those incredibly delectable muffins. They're sweet and "spicy" and studded with chocolate chips both big and small. After baking some of these your house will smell amazing and your family (along with your stomach) will thank you- trust me.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
1½ c. flour
1½ c. sugar
½ c. brown sugar, packed
½ c. canola oil
2 eggs
1 c. pumpkin puree
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 muffin tins with 16 cupcake liners. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat sugars, oil and pumpkin puree until smooth. Add vanilla and one egg, mix. Add the second egg and mix until combined.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. With mixing speed on low, gradually and to wet ingredients. Mix until smooth. Remove bowl from stand and fold in the chocolate chips.
4. Scoop into liners filling each ¾ of the way full. Place in oven and bake for 20-23 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and place pans on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before removing muffins and letting them cool on the rack for 15 minutes.
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, Pumpkin Muffins | Makes approximately 16 standard size muffins

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts

October is here which means it is officially time to crank out the pumpkin recipes! Excited? I am! Last night we had the missionaries over for dinner and I made chili and cornbread. For dessert I had prepared these tasty little cheesecake bites. This was my first attempt at baking in my mini cheesecake pan and I had no idea what I was doing. Since I made my own recipe I was unsure of the baking/cooling time.... yeah, I winged it. Turns out that my guesses were pretty spot-on because these came out moist and oh so delicious! Happy October and let the pumpkin madness begin!

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes
Ingredients
1 package (8 oz) Original Philadelphia Cream Cheese, room temperature
½ c. pumpkin puree
¼ c. + 2 tbsp. sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. heavy cream
¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or allspice)
¹⁄₈ tsp. nutmeg

For the crust:
8 gingersnap cookies
1 graham cracker
1½  tbsp. melted butter
1½ tsp. brown sugar
¼ c. pecans
pinch of salt

For the vanilla bean whipped cream:
1 c. heavy cream
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
Seeds from ¼ a vanilla bean

Pumpkin pie spice for garnish

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a mini cheesecake pan with baking spray. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind all ingredients for crust, except for the melted butter. The mixture should resemble slightly coarse crumbs. Remove mixture and pour melted butter over. Mix until crumbs are wet. Press into the bottom of each hole. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes.
3. While crust is baking prepare filling beating together cream cheese, sugar and pumpkin puree until smooth. Add spices, vanilla, heavy cream and egg. Mix until just combined.
4. Pour filling over each crust, dividing evenly. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 20 minutes before removing cheesecakes (yes your cheesecakes will sink a little, this is normal).
5. Remove cheesecakes from pan using the bottom of a wooden spoon. Using a butter knife, remove metal bottoms and place cheesecakes in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
6. While cheesecakes are cooling, prepare vanilla bean whipped cream by fitting a chilled mixing bowl into your stand mixer. Add heavy cream, sugar and scraped vanilla bean seeds. Using the whisk attachment beat on high for 2-3 minutes until stiff peaks begin to form. Return to refrigerator until cheesecakes are ready to be served.
7. To assemble, using a mesh sieve, lightly dust cheesecakes with pumpkin pie spice before or after topping with a swirl of whipped cream. Enjoy!
Stephen + Natalie | Makes 12 mini cheesecakes using the Chicago Metallic Mini Cheesecake Pan

A tasty twist on classic cinnamon rolls

After making the cheesecake and cupcakes the other day, I had a container full of leftover pumpkin. I kept trying to think what I could do with it, I was thinking about making Pumpkin Smash smoothies but that called for soy milk and vanilla frozen yogurt, which I didn't have on hand. Then I remembered that a few weeks back I had wanted to make pumpkin cinnamon rolls and that they just happened to call for the amount of pumpkin I had left over. So I adapted a recipe and gave them a shot. Both Stephen and his friend Eric agreed that although they didn't scream pumpkin, the subtlety was nice.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
1/4 c. warm water
1 package (or 2 1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast (at room temp)
1/3 c. whole or 2% milk
1 large egg, beaten
3/4 c. solid-pack pumpkin puree
1 tbsp. butter, melted
3 1/4 c. flour
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4. c. granulated sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Filling:
1/3 c. (1 stick) butter
2/3 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2-3 tbsp. solid-pack pumpkin puree or pumpkin butter (optional)

Frosting:
4 oz. cream cheese
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. whole or 2% milk
2-3 c. powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Stir yeast into water in a large bowl. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before stirring to combine (it should get thicker and begin to bubble). Stir in the milk, egg, pumpkin, butter, 1 1/4 c. flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Beat vigorously with paddle attachment for 2 minutes.
2. Attach dough hook to mixer. Slowly add the rest of the flour, a little at a time, until the dough is stiff enough to knead.
3. Turn dough onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour if necessary, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough into a greased bowl (olive oil is fine), turn the dough to coat the entire ball. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled, approximately 1 hour. If the dough is has not doubled by then, allow it to rise for an additional half hour.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the filling by combining the sugars, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice in a small bowl. Set aside.
5. Transfer the risen dough to a floured surface and roll into a 16"x 12" rectangle. Spread butter and pumpkin over dough. Sprinkle with sugar mixture. Roll into log and cut into 15 slices using a sharp knife or dental floss. Place slices into a 9x13 or two 8 or 9 inch round cake or pie pans. Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake the for 20-25 minutes or until rolls are golden brown (don't worry if the filling rises and bubbles, it will go down once the rolls have been removed from the oven).
7. While rolls are baking, prepare frosting by beating the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, salt and lemon juice in a medium mixing bowl until smooth. Add the powdered sugar one half cup at a time. If the mixture becomes too thick, slowly add milk one half tablespoon at a time.
8. Remove rolls from oven and let cool on wire rack. Frost 5-10 minutes after removal.
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour and bakedbree | Makes approximately 12-16 rolls

Hello, fall! Hello, pumpkin!

So as you can probably tell, I'm just a little excited for fall. My Pinterest account can attest to that. But for some reason I've been holding back on making pumpkin goods. There have been two cans of pumpkin sitting in my pantry for weeks now and I've done nothing but stare at them. I think it has something to do with the fact that I want to make everything I see that has pumpkin in it, and because I can't, I haven't made anything at all. But....... that all changed last night. With a Relief Society dinner fast approaching I finally caved. I decided that I would go ahead and make not one, but two desserts. First on the list was cheesecake. Do you remember how I attempted to make that raspberry white chocolate one a couple of months ago? Maybe not. Hopefully not. I know I'd rather not remember, but thankfully I figured out where I went wrong. Anyway, instead of relying on a recipe I had bookmarked in my KitchenAid cookbook, I decided to be really brave and make my own. And guess what? It turned out REALLY good! I'm just a little proud ;) Unfortunately since I had to take it to the dinner, I never got a picture of the inside. So all you get is the before and after. What can I say? A picture is worth a thousand words. (P.S. the recipes below are 4x6, so all you have to do is print them!)

For the second dessert I made pumpkin cupcakes. I have been seeing a lot of recipes on blogs and websites for cupcakes, but again, I decided to create my own. And yet again, another success! My only suggestion is to store these in the refrigerator (because of the cream cheese) and to add extra powdered sugar to the frosting if you're planning on piping it like I did... it helps keep things in place.

November Arrangement

One of the floral arrangements we made in November was inside of a pumpkin. It was probably the hardest arrangement to make so far, but it turned out really good. I gave it to my boss and his family to enjoy since Stephen and I went to Florida for Thanksgiving. He was super impressed and kept telling me how it was still looking great 3 weeks later.

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