Happy Halloween!

Hope you have a happy and candy filled day!

Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze

This month's What's Baking? theme was a Fall Taste Theme. I love all of the flavors of all! Pumpkin and Apples and Pears, oh my!

While our hostess for this month,Ange, wanted us to shy away from the "normal flavors"-- I couldn't do it! I stockpiled 6! cans of pumpkin last fall knowing there would be a "shortage" yet again this year. (Only to find I had no problem finding it Sunday at my local Aldi!)

I saw this coffee cake on Tasty Kitchen and knew I had to make it. I have a love of doctoring cake mixes and here is another one!

Be sure to visit Ange for Monday to see what everyone else made!

Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze

recipe adapted from this recipe on Tasty Kitchen

• ⅓ cups Water
• 1 can Pumpkin (15 Oz) (not the pie filling)
• 2  eggs
• 1 tbsp. vanilla
• 2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 1 yellow cake mix
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/3 cup pecans, chopped
• 4 tbsp. butter, melted
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F.

In a large bowl mix together the water, pumpkin, eggs, 1 Tablespoon of vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice until well combined. Add the cake mix and baking soda and mix until just combined.

Grease a 9×13 pan with butter and pour batter into pan.

In a small bowl mix together 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour, walnuts, and melted butter. Use fingers to sprinkle over the top of the cake. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the glaze, combine the other 1/2 cup brown sugar, granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and heavy cream in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir until all sugar is dissolved.

When cake is finished baking, poke holes in the top with a toothpick. Pour glaze over the cake, making sure to cover all surfaces. Serve cake warm or at room temperature.

12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies- Red Velvet Cream Cheese Cupcakes

One of my favorite parts of holiday baking, is baking for (and with) people that you love. My sister and I are completely opposite. She is the pretty blonde that is skinny and I'm the oddball  bigger sister. She couldn't cook if someone paid her to, yet cooking is my love.

 While on Pinterest Sunday afternoon, she stumbled onto these cupcakes and I knew we had to bake them! Her boyfriend loves red velvet and one of our friends had a baby a few weeks ago so why not spread the love! She thought I was crazy for running to the store for ingredients but it's what I do! 

Again, I'm not a very good red velvet cake maker. I can't ever get it right. So the thought of making these cupcakes from scratch didn't sound fun to me but I knew we could find a red velvet cake mix and adapt these babies. I adapted the recipe's cream cheese interior for a bigger batch of cupcakes as well. 

Red Velvet Cream Cheese Cupcakes

recipe adapted from this recipe on Lick the Bowl Good

1 Red Velvet cake mix 

1 block of cream cheese, softened

4 tbsp. sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Place cupcake liners in 24 muffin tins. 
3. Make the cake mix according to package directions and set aside.
4. Mix together the cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla until well blended. 
5. Fill the muffin tins halfway with the cake mix.
6. Spoon cream cheese mixture over red mixture, dividing evenly between all cups. 
7. Drop small spoonfuls of reserved red batter on top of cream cheese mixture, making a bulls-eye pattern.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 for 30 minutes.
9. Cool on a wire rack.
10. Enjoy.

The Great Cookie Swap

of 2011!!! I saw a tweet about this and had to join! Especially knowing my love for cookies AND a great chance to have fun with other bloggers!!

Make sure you sign up!!




Yogurt Cake- Secret Recipe Club

This time for Secret Recipe Club I got to "meet" Manuela from Manu's Menu. Manuela is originally from Italy but is now living in Australia with her family. (She also has 2 adorable little girls!) Her blog is focused on providing the "real thing" of Italian cooking- which just fascinates me! She also has some recipes for gorgeous Macarons on her site! One section of her blog is called Manu's Menu in your Kitchen. Manu has posted where other people have made her recipes and posted them on her site! I loved, loved, loved this section!

This cake Manuela describes as one her favorite so I really tried to stay with the measurements that are listed in the original recipe. Be sure not the throw away that Yogurt cup after you dump the yogurt into your bowl because that is your measuring cup for this cake! Manuela says in her recipe that her yogurt cup is about 150 ml and here in states our yogurt is about 177 ml. Since the entire cake is measured with the yogurt cup, I just stuck with 6 oz. cup and used greek yogurt.

An ingredient that is also different in this cake is Caster Sugar. I had bought some at Williams Sonoma a few weeks ago and glad that I had it in my pantry. Caster Sugar is a finer version of sugar, almost like extra-fine sugar.

I also made a glaze for the cake instead of just dusting with confectioners sugar.Another change I made to my recipe was making it in a bundt pan as I do not own a springform pan. I've always had a love for bundt cakes and now I have another quick cake to make!

Be sure to check out all of the other great finds for this week's reveal of Secret Recipe Club!!

Yogurt Cake
adapted from this recipe at Manuela's Menu
*** YC is short for Yogurt Cup-- use your yogurt cup as your measuring cup!


1 YC greek yogurt, (6 oz. cup)1 YC all purpose flour2 YCs self raising flour2 YCs caster sugar1 YC milk1 YC vegetable oil 3 eggs2 tsp. baking powderButter to grease the baking dishconfectioners sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. With an electric hand mixer combine the yogurt, all purpose flour, self rising flour, caster sugar, eggs, milk, baking powder, and oil.  
3. Grease a standard bundt pan with butter (or non-stick spray) and pour the cake batter in it.
4. Bake the cake for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. ( Do not open the oven before 30 minutes have passed or the cake will not rise.)
5.   Let it cool and then sprinkle the top with icing sugar.

12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies- After the Dance Pralines

Can you believe that we are already on Week 4?!?!?!??

Time keeps slipping away from me and I really need to start planning better because there are a whole lot more cookies that I want to share. Today we don't have a cookie but a treat!  My favorite treat! In fact, when I went to IFBC New Orleans, my friend Amy and I went on a hunt for the best Pralines in New Orleans. While these are nothing like the ones we bought (can you say HELLO sweet potato pralines?), but considering they are a definitely win in my book. These aren't the creamy pralines you are used to but a great treat to make this Christmas season. 

I've had this recipe FOREVER but have never made and I really don't know why!

These pralines are actually called After-The-Dance Pralines because young women would make these before going to a ball and then come home and enjoy them with their friends afterwards.

After-The-Dance Pralines

recipe adapted from November 2003 Southern Living

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg white, beaten

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, toasted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Stir together brown sugar and egg white and gently fold in chopped pecans.

Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls onto a greased or aluminum foil (or silpat). Turn off the oven. Let the pralines set for 8 hours in the oven. Enjoy!

Marzetti Simply Dressed

My boys are not big salad eaters but salads are one thing that I love!

 I love all the different combinations and toppings and dressings!

I normally just make a salad dressing of my own so I loved being able to try Marzetti's new Simply Dressed Salad Dressings.

 Marzetti's Simply Dressed salad dressings actually have ingredients that can be pronounced and no HFCS!

I was also amazed at all of the flavors to choose from! I chose the Ceasar dressing but some of my other choices were Pomegrante, Ranch, or Ginger (which will be my next purchase!)

 As a Foodbuzz Tastemaker, I received a coupon for a free bottle of Marzetti Simply Dressed Salad Dressing

 All opinions are my own.

Wordless Wednesday

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice

So do you see that little bottle of pumpkin pie spice? 

That little bottle at Wal-Mart the other day was $3.74. While some may not think that is high, I do. (That bottle is the bottle I bought last year!- but it was empty) 

I still even had cinnamon from the bet!(Yeah, the husband one that bet. He said he would.) Guess what? Even after making this spice mix the cinnamon is still not gone.

I quadrupled this recipe and ended up with enough pumpkin pie spice to fill my bottle and my mom's bottle.

As much as we love pumpkin around here, I know that this will definitely is a keeper recipe!

Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice
adapted from Smells like Home who adapted from  Martha Stewart

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves

Instructions:

In a small bowl, stir together all the spices.  Yields about 1 tablespoon.

Apple Sandwich

I kept seeing this snack all over Pinterest (oh I how I love thee!) and knew it was time to make it! I was able to find the actual "recipe" via the Whole Foods website. I thought I had granola but didn't so we used chocolate chips instead.

I love apples and peanut  butter together anyway but had in some chocolate and honey on tap and this snack will make your mouth water! My husband was dying to eat this while we were making it! 

(Coley was napping!)

We also found out while making this that we had no apple corer. Instead of coring the apple with a corer, we cut the apple into slices and then took out the middle with a knife. (Or well my husband did, because my knife skills stink. P.S. If you are in the Chattanooga area, my husband will be teaching some classes at the North Shore location of Mia Cucina starting October 25th!!)

Apple Sandwich

recipe adapted from this recipe at Whole Foods

1 large apple ,cored and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick rounds 
3 tablespoons peanut butter 
2 tablespoons mini semisweet chocolate chips 
1 tablespoon honey

1. Spread one side of half of the apple slices with peanut  butter.
2.  Then sprinkle with chocolate chips.
3. Top with remaining apple slices, pressing down gently to make the sandwiches. 
4. Drizzle honey onto the apple sandwich.
5. Transfer to plate and serve.

Disclosure "As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received  2 jars of Planters Peanut Butter." 

Stuffed Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

Ahh, Sugar Cookies. My favorite part of Christmas Cookies! Every year my grandmother makes teacakes. They are really cutout sugar cookies but with a family recipe. My Christmas is really made when I get to go to my grandmother's house and enjoy all of the cookies that she makes. 

My grandmother turned 80 this year and still makes at least 8 kinds of cookies during the Christmas season. She always makes family favorites and some new ones. Each grandchild has their own favorite but my grandmother's favorite is a fruitcake cookie.

This is a cheater recipe (or Sandra Lee recipe as my mother called it!)

 I used a regular bag of sugar cookie mix and doctored it up to give it some more flavor.

 This cookie was awesome!

I was making some cream cheese frosting and decided to add some more deliciousness to the cookie.

 Adding the cream cheese frosting just made them even better!

 This cookie was an adaptation from This month's Kitchen Play by McCormick Spice. This month had the theme of Kid Friendly Halloween! While Peabody made pumpkins with her cookies, I decided to do something different to mine!

Stuffed Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies
recipe adapted from this recipe on Culinary Concoctions by Peabody


1 package sugar cookie mix (I used Betty Crocker)
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie Spice
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Frosting, of your choice (I made this recipe for another recipe coming soon!)


Mix sugar cookie mix according to directions on package. While mixing add in pumpkin pie spice and vanilla extract. Bake according to directions on package.


Once cooled, put frosting onto one side of a cookie and place an unfrosted cookie on top. Enjoy!

Tortellini Soup

Today was one of those fall days where you don't even want to get out of bed. It rained all day long and not a hard rain but one of those drizzling rains that is just annoying enough to get things wet and be annoying and cause traffic issues. It was definitely a soup day and I was so happy that I had bought all of the ingredients for this soup over the weekend!

This soup comes together very quickly and is perfect for one of those nights where you will don't think you can cook but you know you have to cook! Even my sister commented on how good it was!! I used just a basic cheese tortellini but can imagine even more varieties being used during the fall and winter!

Tortellini Soup

recipe adapted from Annie's Eats

Ingredients

1 tbsp. olive oil
½ cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp. dried oregano
1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes, un-drained
4 cups chicken broth
9 oz. tortellini, fresh or frozen
3 cups fresh baby spinach, loosely packed
Salt and pepper, to taste
Grated Parmesan, for serving

                                            1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. 

2. Add the chopped onions to the pot and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.  

3. Add in the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute. 

4. Add in the oregano and diced tomatoes.  

5. Add the broth to the pot.  Bring the broth mixture to a boil.  

6. Add the tortellini to the pot and cook according to the package directions. 

7. One minute before the tortellini is fully cooked, stir in the spinach.  

8. Remove from the heat.  

9. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

(You will not need much salt as the broth will provide a lot of salt to the dish!)

10. Serve warm with grated Parmesan.

12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies- Andes Mint Brownies

So last week we started with my boys favorite cookie! And this week a favorite of mine!

One of my favorite combinations is chocolate and mint and I absolutely love Andes Mints! Chocolate Mint hot cocoa is one of my favorite drinks during the holidays and now I have that same flavor but it in a brownie form. While I normally use a box mix, I did use a homemade brownie mix for this recipe. While looking through a cookbook the title stated this was the Best Cocoa Brownie and I really have to agree.
The brownie was the perfect combination of fudge and not too cakey.

Andes Mint Brownies
recipe adapted from Dining with Pioneers II

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa (I used Hershey's Special Dark)
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup chopped Andes mints (I found a bag of andes mints chips and used those)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease and lightly flour a square 9x9 pan.
3. Mix butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well blended.
4. Sift dry ingredients together and stir into butter mixture.
5. Stir in chopped andes mints until well blended.
6. Pour mixture into pan and cook for about 20 minutes.
7.  Cool and Enjoy!