Pumpkin Dip

A really easy and really, no I mean really, good dip for Fall!  It's so good that I could eat it straight from the bowl with a spoon... seriously, but is equally delicious with your favorite dippers.  We used Nilla Wafers, apples and pretzels, but there are plenty of options available.  Try some of your favorites!  

I found the original recipe here.  She has lots of other really good recipes that I will have to try, check out her blog!  

In the meantime, here's what you will need:

1- 15 oz can of pumpkin 

1- 5 oz box of instant vanilla pudding (use in it's powdered form, not as a pudding)
1- 16 oz container of cool whip  (full fat, low fat or no fat)

1/2- Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/2- Tbsp Cinnamon

 Directions:

1. Mix pumpkin, pudding mix, cool whip, and pumpkin pie spice together (by hand) in a very large bowl.

2. Chill for several hours before serving.

3. Sprinkle with cinnamon, and serve with fresh apples slices, vanilla wafers or ginger snaps (or your favorite dippers).

Now, I must confess that when I made this, I added the cinnamon at the same time as the pumpkin pie spice and stirred it into the dip and sprinkled with additional cinnamon.  A happy accident, I don't think I'd change a thing, but I've provided you with the original recipe and will leave you with the choice to cinnamon or not to cinnamon! 

 I hope you enjoy!!

Valentine Pretzels

A Sweet (and Salty) treat for your Valentine!

Trust me when I say these are easy!  The hardest part is unwrapping all the Hugs and Kisses!  :)

 I found the directions, through Pinterest, here.  

All you need are 3 ingredients:

Square Pretzels

Hershey's Hugs and Kisse

Plain M&M's

Preheat oven to 200

Line baking sheet with parchment paper

Place pretzels in a single layer on baking sheet

Top each pretzel with a Hug or Kiss

(tip: Hugs and Kisses melt at different rates so don't mix them on your baking sheet)

Bake for 4-5 minutes until chocolate is shiny, not melted (you can see in the photo that I left one batch of Hugs in the oven a bit too long and they were a little too melted)

Place M&M in the center of the chocolate and gently press down (I'm particular and try to put the "M" side down!)

Let cool completely... the fridge works well for this!  :)

Enjoy!

Now the only question left... Would you be my Valentine?  :D

Cinnamon Roll "Waffles"

I've seen this all over Pinterest, and they're all the same so I don't really have a source to credit. 

Here's what you need:

~ Can of Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls

~ Waffle Iron

~ Appetite!

What could be easier!?!

Coat your waffle iron with non-stick spray.

(or butter the grates... whichever is your preferred method)

Place the rolls on the iron, close the lid and...

... viola!  Cinnamon Roll Waffles!

Top them however you wish.   Some of us used the icing that came with the cinnamon rolls, and I preferred to use syrup.  Either way, they were a hit and so very easy!!

Try it... I think you'll like it!

Pumpkin and White Chocolate Cookies

 

More Pumpkin Cookies!

While looking for the perfect recipe, where else but on Pinterest, I found this recipe here.  Since I was already making the Caramel Frosted Pumpkin Cookies I was looking for another cookie recipe, but I wanted one that was quick and easy, and of course good, and this one fit the bill.  Let me let you in on a secret... this recipe uses only 3 ingredients.  Yes, you heard me right, only 3 ingredients. 

1 box of Spice Cake Mix

16 oz Pumpkin Puree

2 cups White Chocolate Chips

(divide chocolate into 2 - 1 cup portions, 1 cup for cookies and 1 cup for topping)

Here's what you do:

Preheat your oven to 350-degrees.

Mix your 3 ingredients together.

Drop on parchment or silicone sheet lined cookie sheet.

Bake at 350-degrees for 10-12 minutes.

 Once the cookies have cooled melt remaining white chocolate and drizzle over the cookies.

Pre-drizzle

Post drizzle

I hope you enjoy!  :)

Pumpkin Cookies with Caramel Icing

It's that time of year, pumpkin recipes all over pinterest.  I wanted to bake, and it had to be pumpkin.  I found these cookies and decided these were it... these were the ones I had to try. 

Gotta tell you, these cookies are pretty amazing!  

I found this recipe here.  Here's what you'll need:

For the Cookies
1 cup butter flavored shortening
1 cup unsalted butter; softened
2 cups sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin (solid; not pie mix)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups all-purpose flour

For the Caramel Frosting
6 tablespoons butter
8 tablespoons milk
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  

Directions:

Cookies

1. Cream shortening, butter, white sugar and pumpkin. Add eggs and mix well.
2. Sift together the baking soda, ground cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg, salt and flour.
3. Add to pumpkin mixture and mix well.
4. Drop from spoon (or cookie scoop) to cookie sheet.
5. Bake 13-15 minutes at 350°F

6. Cool slightly on cookie sheet and transfer to cooling rack.  Cool completely before icing.

Caramel Frosting

1. Heat butter, milk, and brown sugar, over medium heat, until sugar is dissolved.
2. Cool and add confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, beat well.
3. Take cooled cookies and dip tops into frosting.

4. While frosting is still wet, sprinkle with fall-ish sprinkles or jimmies.

 

Glazed Pumpkin Scones

I love all things pumpkin!  Well, that is all things SWEET and pumpkin.  Not sure why you'd waste perfectly good pumpkin and make ravioli out of it if there are scones to be had. 

I found this recipe on pinterest and knew immediately that I wanted to try it.  These scones are made with pumpkin and have not one, but two different glazes to top it off!  These scones were surpisingly moist, not typically characteristic of most scones, and really really delish!!  The recipe that I followed can be found here.

Let's get started.  You will need:

Scones

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 TBSP baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 6 TBSP cold butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (we used our fresh pumpkin puree)
• 3 TBSP half-and-half
• 1 large egg

Preheat oven to 425.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking sheet.  Whisk together pumpkin, half-and-half and egg.  Set aside.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Mix well.
Add cubed butter to top and blend together until consistency resembles cornmeal.  Gradually fold the wet ingredients into the dry.
The dough will be very thick.
On a well-floured surface, flatten and form the dough into a 12″ x 4″ x 1″ thick rectangle.
Using a sharp knife, divide the dough into three equal pieces.
Slice each piece into an X shape, resulting in four triangles... 12 total (you can tell by looking at mine that my measurements were off).

 So you will end up with 3 squares, cut like this, side by side.  (Sorry, didn't think to take an actual picture of the dough at this step.  You can see the pictures from the original post here.)




Place your triangles on baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven and transfer to a cooling rack.

Cream Cheese Glaze

• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
• 2 TBSP milk (plus extra to thin down)
• 4 oz cream cheese

Mix the powdered sugar and milk together.  Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth, adding additional milk (1 TBSP at a time) until you reach the right consistency.  It should be fairly thin, but not runny.  Brush onto scones with a pastry brush.  Let dry for about 10 minutes

Spiced Glaze

• 1 cup plus 3 TBSP powdered sugar
• 2 TBSP milk
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• Pinch of ground ginger
• Pinch of ground cloves

Combine all of the ingredients for the spiced glaze and drizzle on top of scones.

I encourage you to try this... they are so good!! 

So grab yourself a cup of coffee (or if you're like me a Diet Dr. Pepper) and ENJOY!!

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Once again, Pinterest has inspired me to make something that I would not have otherwise thought to make...  Taco Seasoning.  There were many different options for the recipe, but the one that I used can be found here.  Rather than having to buy the individual packets, some that have ingredients that difficult to swallow (or pronounce), it will be nice to have it on hand for when the tex-mex cravings strike!  Another advantage is you can adjust the ingredients to suit your individual taste, or spice preference.

To make this recipe you will need:

1 Cup Chili Powder
1/2 Cup Cumin
1/4 Cup Onion Powder
1/4 Cup Oregano
2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
2 Tablespoons Paprika
2 Tablespoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes  

1 Tablespoon Sea Salt
a few dashes of Cayenne pepper 

(you can adjust the amount of red pepper flakes and/or cayenne pepper if you like more heat!)

Put all the ingredients in a mason jar and shake! 

It's that easy!!  :)

It's kinda pretty, dontcha think??

I then packaged them in smaller jars for gifts.  Oh, and one for me! :)

The labels and hang tags were purchased from My Own Labels.  I love these labels and think they add just the right finishing touch. 

I encourage you to try this, I believe you just might like it!   

Olé!!

Banana Muffins

I had several overripe bananas and promised myself that instead of just pitching them I would make something with them.  I found this Banana Muffin recipe on Pinterest and had to give it a try!

I found the recipe here.  

Here's what you'll need:  

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed

Directions:
Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the banana. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until blended.

Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a rack and cool slightly.

Notes:  

~ I didn't have vegetable oil and used canola oil instead.  I suppose you can even substitute applesauce if you wish to be more health conscious.  

~ I also added approximately 2 - 2.5 tsp of cinnamon.  

~ I was able to get 24 muffins, instead of the 18 stated in the recipe, and could have probably had 2 more if I had another muffin pan.  I'm not sure why this happened unless the size of my 4 bananas was larger than what was used in the original recipe resulting making more batter.  Whatever the reason, I'm not complaining!  :)

~ After I filled one muffin pan I added mini chocolate chips to the remaining batter.  Mmmm...

These muffins are sooo good!  I think this recipe is a keeper!!

ENJOY!!

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Bottomless Vanilla Extract

This Christmas several friends and family were recipients of homemade vanilla extract.  The recipe is simple... Vodka and split vanilla beans and a couple of months (for it to become vanilla-y).  What is great about this is that you may never have to buy vanilla extract again.  When the bottle starts to get low just add more vodka.  When it starts to lose the essence of vanilla just remove the old beans and add new split vanilla beans.  Simple!  

I found these great bottles at Specialty Bottle and the labels at myownlabels. 

I will be making more of these very soon!!

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!!

Sweet and Salty Halloween Treats

I love sweet... and I love salty... Put them together and I'm a happy girl!!

A picture says a thousand words and I don't think you need that many to see that this is an easy snack to put together!  There are many different variations all over pinterest, but I found my inspiration here.

Ingredients:

Mini Pretzels (I used the snaps, shaped like squares)

Hershey Kisses Hugs (I used kisses and hugs)

Candy Corn

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. Place pretzels on cookie sheet, not touching. Unwrap Hershey's Kisses (the most time consuming step of the whole process) and place on top of pretzels. Place filled cookie sheet in oven. Bake for 3-5 minutes but no longer. You will know they are ready when the Hershey Kisses start to get shiny. Take out of oven and gently place candy corn on top of Hershey Kisses, pushing down gently. Cool and then transfer to serving platter or wrap up as gifts. Your fridge will come in handy to speed the cooling process.

Enjoy!!

Cheesy Garlic Biscuits

Other pinners claim that this recipe is a Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit "copy cat" recipe.  Uhh... not so much!  Don't get me wrong... these were really very good, and so easy, but I don't think they tasted like Red Lobster.  Maybe it's because I used the lower fat Bisquick, or maybe it's because I used garlic powder instead of garlic salt but whatever the reason it won't stop me from making this recipe again.  I found the recipe here.

Here's what to do...

1 1/2cups Bisquick
1 1/2cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp oregano (you can omit or use less)
3/4 tsp garlic salt

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray cooking sheet with non-stick spray.

2. Put biscuit mix, cheese and milk in a bowl and mix well to form a sticky dough.

3. Using spoon, drop lumps of dough onto cookie sheets. Bake for 10min.

4. In a bowl, melt butter and mix with oregano and garlic salt.

5. When the timer goes off, take them out and brush with butter mixture and bake 5min at 400F and another 5-6min at 350F.

Serve immediately!!

(Crock) Pot Roast... my first!

To set the scene... it's a Sunday, a lazy Sunday, and thinking ahead to dinner I know that I don't want to spend much time in the kitchen.  Enter Pinterest and a crock pot recipe that I've been wanting to try.  This seemed to be the perfect day to try it out!  The original recipe came from Six Sister's Stuff.  If you've never checked them out, you really should.  They have so many great recipes, a few that I have tried in the past and many more that I hope to try very soon!

 Okay here's what you'll need:

3-4 pound roast
12 oz Coca Cola
3/4 C dark brown sugar 
3/4 C Heinz chili sauce
3/4 C ketchup
3/4 pkg. dry onion soup mix
4-5 new red potatoes
1.5-2 C baby carrots



The directions state to combine all the ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.  I had to modify these slightly as I didn't get it all together until noon and couldn't wait until after 8 pm to eat.  So I put it on high for the first 3 hours and then cooked it on low until 6:30 or so.  It was done and the meat was so tender that I couldn't remove it in one piece.  I probably didn't need to cook it on high for as long as I did, but it tasted wonderful and it's been deemed a keeper!

It really was super easy and received the stamp of approval so I know that this is something I will be making again!  Yummmm!

Easy Berry Cobbler

Easy... that's about all I can handle these days.  I found a recipe for an Easy Berry Cobbler (that was also short on guilt) that I knew I had to make.  I found the recipe on Living A Changed Life.  Here is what you will need... just 3, that's right... 3 ingredients!!:



                                               Two 12-oz bags frozen mixed berries

1 box white cake mix (no pudding)

1 can of diet 7-up or sierra mist (clear soda)

I did not end up using both of the bags of berries that are pictured above.  The bags of fruit that I bought were 16 oz instead of the recommended 12 oz.  When I put the triple berry mix in the baking pan I thought that that was more than enough,  although you can use more if you would like.

Okay, ready?  Here's what you need to do... 

Place frozen fruit in a 9x13 baking dish. Add dry cake mix over the top. Pour soda slowly over cake mix. DO NOT stir the cake mix and the pop - this will give you a 'crust'.

Bake 350 for 45-50 min.

Serves 16; 4 PointsPlus

With or without ice cream... the choice is yours.  I'm sure you'll love it either way!!

ENJOY!!

Skinny Baked Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

Macaroni and Cheese, the ultimate in comfort food.  Not really the best choice when trying to "be good". Enter Pinterest and skinnytaste.com.  A healthier version of a family favorite... so I had to try it!  I would encourage you to try it too!  This is what you will need:

Ingredients:

• 12 oz high fiber elbows like Ronzoni Smart Taste
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp light butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 2 cups skim milk
• 1 cup fat free chicken broth (vegetarians use vegetable broth)
• 8 oz (2 cups) Sargento shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar
• salt and fresh pepper to taste
• 12 oz fresh broccoli florets (I used pre-cut bag)
• 1/8 cup grated parmesan
• 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• cooking spray

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 375°.
Cook pasta and broccoli together in a large pot of salted water, according to package directions for al dente (or slightly under cook 2 minutes). Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish (I used 2 smaller baking dishes so we could have 1 for home and 1 to take to tomorrow's work potluck) with cooking spray.

In a large, heavy skillet, melt butters. Add onion and cook over low heat about 2 minutes, add flour and cook another minute, or until the flour is golden and well combined. Add milk and chicken broth and whisk, raising heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil; cook about 5 minutes or until the sauce becomes smooth and thick. Season with salt and pepper.

Once the sauce is thick, remove from heat, add cheese and mix well until cheese is melted. Adjust salt and pepper to taste, add cooked macaroni and broccoli and mix well. Pour into prepared baking dish. Top with grated cheese and breadcrumbs.Spray a little more cooking spray on top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, then broil for a few minutes to get the breadcrumbs golden.

Enjoy!  I know we did!!