Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

What goes better with pumpkin than chocolate?  Nothing!  These thick and fluffy cookies are a delicious fall treat!

Pumpkin Cake

This Pumpkin Cake is filled with pumpkin, cinnamon, and cloves.  It's the perfect dessert for fall!

Pumpkin Scones

How is it possible that it is already time for October's Secret Recipe Club reveal? Cliche, I know, but I can't believe how quickly this year has passed. Halloween is already next week and before we know it, it will be Thanksgiving and then Christmas!

I am not complaining though, I absolutely love this time of the year! I especially love the flavors of the seasons, specifically apples and pumpkin. Last month I hit the jackpot with a delicious apple recipe, a Rustic Apple Galette.

This month, I was assigned to Heather's blog,  It's Yummy to My Tummy. I set out to find another recipe that would is the flavors of the season. When I came across this recipe for Pumpkin Scones, I knew this was the recipe I would be making.

These scones came together in a flash. I made a few adjustments to the recipe, using heavy cream in place of half and half as I find cream makes scones tender, and I only made the spiced icing rather than 2 icings. I loved these scones. They were full of flavor and absolutely delicious alongside a hot cup of apple cider for breakfast or a snack.

Pumpkin Scones

Makes 8 scones

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon ginger
6 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
3 Tablespoons heavy cream
1 egg


1-1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch of cloves
pinch of ginger
2 Tablespoons milk

1.  In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.

2.   Cut the butter into the dry mixture, and combine until the mixture looks like wet sand.  (You can also use your food processor for this step.  I just used 2 knives, or you could also use a fork.)

3.  In a small bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, heavy cream, and egg.

4.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until a ball of dough is formed.

5.  Place the dough on a floured surface and form a large dough circle, about 1 inch thick.

6.  Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into 8 equal wedges.

7.  Place scones on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake at 425 for 15 minutes, until light golden brown.

8.  While the scones are cooling, mix together the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and milk to form the icing.

9.  Drizzle the icing over the cooled scones and allow it to set before serving.

Source: It's Yummy to My Tummy

Pumpkin Caramel Monkey Bread

This time of year, foods seem to revolve around fall flavors like apples and pumpkin.  I know you've seen it on my blog.  Pretty soon, we'll make the transition to flavors like gingerbread and peppermint.  I admit, I'm listening to Christmas music as I write this, but I still am enjoying the flavors of fall.  Let's continue enjoying them with this recipe...

One of my favorite breakfast recipes is Monkey Bread.  I've made it for as long as I can remember.  In fact, I remember as a young teenager, listening to my family visit in the living room while I showed my cousin how to make Monkey Bread in the kitchen.  She'd never experienced the wonder that is Monkey Bread until then, and I was delighted to introduce her.  We ended up refrigerating the dough overnight (another thing that makes this recipe so great!) and then I got up before everyone else to bake it the next morning.

It's a great deal of fun to just rip off a large chunk of this bread.  It certainly doesn't last long in my house.  I'll make a full recipe for Mike and I to have for breakfast.  Usually within 2 or 3 days, the pan is licked clean.  That was the case with this fall flavored bread.  I brought my mother-in-law a small piece of bread since she loves pumpkin, but the rest of it was eaten bite by bite...every time I walked by the pan! 

It's that good.

Pumpkin Caramel Monkey Bread

Makes 16 servings

1/3 cup reduced-fat butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons water
1/3 cup canned pure pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 (7.5 ounce) cans buttermilk biscuits

1.  In a small pan, melt butter, brown sugar and water.

2.  Mix in the pumpkin and vanilla. Bring to a boil, turn heat to low and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often.  Set aside.

3. In a large Ziploc bag, shake together sugar, pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon.

4. Quarter each biscuit and place in the Ziploc bag, shaking to cover.  (I do about 12 pieces at a time).

5. Evenly layer half the sugar coated biscuits in a well greased Bundt pan.

6. Spoon half of the cooked sauce over the biscuit pieces.

7.  Evenly layer the remaining half of the biscuit pieces in the pan.

8.  Sprinkle any remaining sugar  mixture over the top of  the biscuit pieces.

9.  Spoon remaining half of the cooked sauce evenly over biscuit pieces.

10. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, until the top biscuits are golden brown. Remove from oven. Let sit for about 5 minutes.

11.  While the monkey bread is still hot, carefully loosen sides and middle of pan and invert onto a serving plate.

Serve warm.  Pull pieces apart to enjoy the monkey bread!

Source: Skinny Kitchen

Pumpkin Donut Muffins

The days are getting shorter and the temperatures are dropping.  The leaves are changing and the wind is picking up.  Pumpkins and apples are dominating the market and blog-land.  Fall is here in full force!

I love to use fresh seasonal products, so I'm really enjoying pumpkins and apples right now.  I made some homemade pumpkin puree and decided to use that in this recipe.  The texture and color is slightly different from canned pumpkin puree.  Mine was a light yellow color and I strained a lot of water out of it before adding it into the recipe.  The muffins cooked up perfectly and have a subtle pumpkin flavor.  The cinnamon sugar coating gives these muffins a slight crunch and they really do taste like donuts!

Pumpkin Donut Muffins

Makes 12-16 muffins

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup buttermilk
1-1/4 cups pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
2-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.  Set aside.

2.  In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk and pumpkin puree.  Set aside.

3.  Place the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

4.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined. 

5.  Reduce the mixer speed to low and add flour mixture and pumpkin mixture alternating between the two.  Beat until just combined. 

6.  Scoop the batter evenly into greased muffin tins.  (A 1/3 cup measuring cup is perfect for this!)

7.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

8.  Let the muffins cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

9.  While the muffins are cooling, melt the butter in a small bowl.

10.  In another small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon.

11.  Working one a time, dip each muffin into the melted butter.  Then roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture until completely coated.  Return muffins to the wire rack and cool completely.

Store leftovers in an airtight container.

Source:  Brown Eyed Baker

Baked Pumpkin Donuts

Two donut recipes in the same week?  What can I say?  I told you I like donuts :) 

The original recipe made these baked donuts as donut holes.  Since I'm having so much fun with my new mini donut pan, I decided to make some mini donuts as well. 

These were a huge hit in our house!  Mike wanted to eat them all before I had a chance to even snap a picture of them.  I think they lasted about a day and a half and then they were all gone.  I can't wait to make these again!

Baked Pumpkin Donuts

Makes about 24 donuts

For donuts:
1-3/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup pureed pumpkin
1/2 cup milk

For coating:
1 stick (1/2 cup) margarine
2/3 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon

1.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

2.  In a large bowl, whisk together oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin, and milk.

3.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until just combined.

4.  Scoop batter into greased tins. I used both mini muffin tins and my mini donut pan.

5.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

6.  While donuts are baking, melt margarine in a small bowl. 

7.  Combine sugar and cinnamon in another small bowl.

8.  Allow donuts to cool for 2 minutes.  Then dip each donut first in the margarine and then roll in the cinnamon sugar.

Source: The Craving Chronicles

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

I hope you're not completely sick of apple and pumpkin recipes!  I'm having so much fun coming up with fall-inspired recipes, and I can't wait to continue sharing them with you.  I'm going to try to space them out with some non-apple or pumpkin recipes though, so that you don't get tired of the fall recipes before I share them all.  Today though, I want to share these chocolate chip pumpkin muffins...

I brought a plate of these muffins to work, to my in-laws, and to my parents.  They got rave reviews.  I love the added sweetness from the chocolate chips and the slightly crunchy streusel topping puts these over the top...literally!

Before we get to the recipe, I have a little announcement.  Since I didn't celebrate my blogiversary this year, or a significant post number, I have decided to celebrate my followers.  You all are what makes blogging so much fun--I love the feedback I get from posts and the new friends I've made through blogging.  That being said, I am so close to hitting 200 followers, so when I do hit that milestone, I have a giveaway planned for you!  I think we can hit 200 by the end of the year, so stay tuned!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

Makes 16 muffins

You will need:
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Streusel topping:
2 Tablespoons margarine, cold
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons flour

1.  Combine flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in large bowl; set aside.

2.  Combine pumpkin, 1/2 cup melted butter and eggs in small bowl; stir until well mixed.

3.  Stir pumpkin mixture into flour mixture just until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

4.  Spoon batter into greased muffin tins (or use cupcake liners).  Fill each tin about 3/4 of the way full.

5.  In a small bowl, cut the flour and brown sugar into the margarine until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle on top of the muffins.

6.  Bake at 400 degrres for 22 to 23 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Adapted from: A Well Seasoned Life

Pumpkin Carrot Cake Bread

Let's take a break from apple recipes for a day and focus on pumpkin instead!  When I saw this recipe, I was imediately intrigued.  I was surprised because I am not typically a fan of pumpkin.  However, this recipe just seemed so perfect for fall and now that it's finally feeling like fall up here in Michigan, I thought pumpkin would be perfect!

This bread is very dense--probably more dense than you would expect from a fruit bread.  The slightly sticky and dense texture reminded me of some meal replacement or protein bars I've had in the past.  I think some diced apples or chocolate chips, or maybe even cinnamon chips, would be an excellent addition to this bread!

 Pumpkin Carrot Cake Bread

Makes 1 loaf, about 10 slices

You will need:
1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 15oz can pumpkin
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons applesauce (I substituted applesauce for oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup grated carrots
1/4 cup mix-ins: chocolate chips, diced apples, walnuts, raisins etc.

1.  In a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.

2.  In a separate bowl, combine egg, pumpkin, sugar, applesauce, and vanilla. 

3.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined.

4.  Fold in grated carrots and any other mix-ins.

5.  Pour into a greased bread pan. 

6.  Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Source:  Faith, Fitness, Fun