Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Are you surprised to see another pumpkin recipe?  You shouldn't be.  As soon as these gems caught me eye on Pinterest, I knew I had to make them.  Fortunately, I had all the ingredients at home so I didn't have to wait.  My Mr. has a busy season at work that is starting this week and I always try to send in lots of goodies for that 12 week period.  This was my first treat that I sent.  I followed all directions but did add a tsp of pumpkin pie spice into the cookie dough mix.  I chilled my dough overnight.  You definitely want to chill the dough, it will make it easier to work with.  I used the Pampered Chef small scoop to make the cookies, so I ended up with over 4 dozen. Enjoy! 

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Yield: about 3-4 dozen cookies
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the coating:
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice

Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Whisk to blend and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.  Blend in the pumpkin puree.  Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated.  With the mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated.  Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.  Combine the sugar and spices for the coating in a bowl and mix to blend.  Scoop the dough (about 2½ tablespoons) and roll into a ball.  Coat the dough ball in the sugar-spice mixture and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart.  Dip the bottom of a flat, heavy-bottomed drinking glass in water, then in the sugar-spice mixture, and use the bottom to flatten the dough balls slightly.  Recoat the bottom of the glass in the sugar-spice mixture as needed.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until just set and baked through.  Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Repeat with the remaining dough.  Store in an airtight container.
From Annie's Eats. 

Fall Decor

Cinnamon Stick Candles 

I used a few bundles of cinnamon sticks and a tall white candle.  I had my hubs hold his hands open around the candle and I put the cinnamon sticks around it.  Once the candle was completely surrounded, I used twine to hold them together.  I did try to hot glue the cinnamon sticks together around the candle, but it didn't work.  It took 5 minutes to do once I had an extra set of hands.  

Filled Vases 

Popcorn seeds, split peas and red beans filled the vases in my dining room.  I used two bags of each.  I filled them and then placed a candle in the middle.  A quick and festive decoration.  

Taco Pizza

Ever since I received my new Pampered Chef bar pan, I've been obsessed with making pizza.  It's just so easy to make using the pan and takes less than 30 minutes for a complete meal.  The first creation was the buffalo chicken pizza. This week I decided to make a taco pizza.  I'm usually a big fan of many of the dinners I make, but this one takes the cake.  I went back for  seconds and enjoyed the left overs the next day just as much.  Add this recipe to your menu this week, you won't be disappointed! 

Ingredients: 

1 lb of ground mean (I used turkey)

1 package of taco seasoning

1 tomato chopped

1 avocado chopped

1 can of refried beans 

1 cup of mexican blend cheese

1 small can of sliced olives

1 tube of pizza dough (I used Pillsbury)

3/4 cup shredded lettuce

Directions: 

1.  Preheat oven to 400. Brush the Pampered Chef bar pan with olive oil.  Lay dough onto pan, make sure it's spread out and covering the whole thing.  

2.  Bake for 5-7 minutes or until the dough is slightly brown. 

3.  While the dough is baking, cook the meat.  Once meat is browned, mix in taco seasoning.  

4.  Take out dough from the oven.  Spread the beans over the cooked dough.  

5. Put the meat on top of the beans.  Cover as much of the dough as possible.  Sprinkle the cheese of top of the meat.  Put back in the over until cheese is melted.  Should only take a few minutes.  

6.  Once out of the oven again, top the pizza off with the lettuce, olives, tomatoes and avocado.  

Enjoy!

Mushroom Herb Chicken

Mushroom Herb Chicken  

Ingredients

• 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• Cooking spray
• 3 large shallots, peeled
• 1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms
• 1/3 cup dry sherry
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram, crushed
• Freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Preparation

• 1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/3-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; coat with cooking spray. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; cook 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until browned.
• 2. While chicken cooks, cut shallots vertically into thin slices. Remove chicken from pan. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add mushrooms and shallots to pan; coat vegetables with cooking spray. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in sherry and marjoram. Return chicken to pan; cover and cook 3 to 4 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and chicken is done. Transfer chicken to a platter. Pour mushroom mixture over chicken; sprinkle with freshly ground pepper, if desired. Serve immediately.

Cooking Light Fresh Food Fast, Oxmoor House 
2009

Skinny Pumpkin Cupcakes

If you haven't visited Skinny Taste, you have to check it out.  It's where I go to find healthy, low fat recipes.  I made these cupcakes for hubs to take to work. The pumpkin icing is what had me sold.  I've made pumpkin cupcakes time and time again, but never before with pumpkin icing. Of course, I taste tested and they are pumpkin lover approved! Enjoy!

Pumpkin Cupcakes 

Ingredients:

• 18.25 oz Betty Crocker Golden Vanilla Super Moist Cake Mix*
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 cup canned 100% pure pumpkin
• 1 cup water

For the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 8 oz Philadelphia 1/3 fat cream cheese (do not use fat free)
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin (canned is fine)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 5 tbsp packed brown sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a cupcake tin with cupcake wrappers.
Combine cake mix and pumpkin spice in a large bowl. Add pumpkin puree and water, mix about 2 minutes.
Fill

 cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake about 20 - 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

 For the frosting, 

combine

 the cream cheese, pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and brown sugar until smooth. You can use a spatula to ice the cupcakes or pipe them which may require making more frosting.

Makes 24
*Betty Crocker has reduced their cake mixes, so read the labels on your box. Dunkin Hines still carries 18.25 oz boxes.

Honey Barbeque Meatloaf

I made the following recipe for our Sunday dinner this week.  Hubs and I usually cook together on Sundays so I prepared the meatloaf and he was responsible for the veggies.  I found the recipe on Pinterest, it comes from Can you stay for dinner? It's been a few months since I've made meatloaf and I had all of the ingredients for this one at home.  The meatloaf was quick to make.  The only thing I would change next time is add more breadcrumbs.  Other than that, it was delicious.  I served it with roasted veggies (zucchini, carrots, sweet potatoes and potatoes).  We coated the veggies with 1 tsp olive oil, a tsp of garlic and a few dashes of salt, pepper and oregano.  I baked them under the meatloaf for the full 45 minutes.  About 10 minutes before I took them out, I sprinkled parmesan cheese on top. 

Honey Barbecue Meatloaf

1. serves 4
   1 lb 90% lean ground beef
   1 slice white bread, ground to crumbs in food processor -or- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
   2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
   1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
   3/4 cup smoky barbecue sauce, divided
   2 tablespoons honey, divided
   1 teaspoon salt
   1 teaspoon black pepper
   Toss one slice of soft white bread in your food processor and grind it into crumbs.
   In a large bowl, use your hands to mix together the ground beef, fresh bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce, the spicy brown mustard, 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, salt, and black pepper.
   Shape the mixture into a long, thick log and place in an oiled baking dish. Be careful not to pack the meat too tightly or you’ll end up with a very dense, tough loaf.
   In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, and 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce. Spread half of this mixture evenly all over the meatloaf. Reserve the other half for serving.
   Bake for 45 minutes. Slice and drizzle with reserved honey barbecue sauce.
   

Ribbon Wreath

Ribbon wreaths have been popping up all over Pinterest lately.  I made this ribbon wreath about a month ago for the start of football season.  I never got around to post it, which is why it's just coming to you now. There are tons of tutorials out there for ribbon wreaths.  I didn't use just one, I searched for a while and used bits and pieces from many tutorials.  The difference between mine and many others is that I didn't use as much ribbon.  My pieces are wide and thick.  Doing it this way saved me money on ribbon and time.  For this wreath I used 2 spools of the yellow and green satin ribbon and 1 spool of the football ribbon.  I cut everything in 3-4inch pieces.  Then, I hot glued the ends together to form a circle.   After the glue was dried, I pinned them onto my styrofoam wreath.  I used a lot of little pins for this project.  I also tried my best to line up the ribbon in rows, it made it easier to pin. 

 About 2 weeks after I hung this on my front door, I decided it needed more.  So I painted wooden letters green, hot glued them to a wooden football (already painted) and glued the football to leftover ribbon.  GO BULLS!  

Happy Football Season! 

Crock Pot Hawaiian Barbeque Chicken

This recipe comes to you from Cookbook Jungle.  I pinned it a while back, waiting for the start of fall to make it.  This year I"m attempting Crock Pot Monday's.  My goal is to make a crock pot mean every Monday. I never feel like cooking on Monday because they are usually stress filled days.  This would take one thing off my plate.  Plus crock pot meals always provide great leftovers, which means I don't have to worry about lunch the next day.  Win win for me.  If you're in need of more crock pot recipes, check out my Pinterest board.  

Ingredients:
4-6 Boneless Chicken Breasts (can still be frozen)
1 Bottle Archer Farms Hawaiian Style Barbecue Sauce (from Target)
1 20 oz. can Pineapple Chunks, drained

Directions:
1. Spray the inside of your crock pot with cooking spray.
2. Place chicken breasts in the crock pot and cover with sauce. Empty can of drained pineapple chunks on top.
3. Cook on High for 2-3 hours or Low for 4-6 hours.
4. Shred chicken with two forks while still in the crock pot so the chicken will be well coated with sauce. Serve over rice.

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

This recipe comes from Gimme Some Oven.

Cake Batter Rice Krispies Recipe(From How Sweet Eats)

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 1 (10 oz.) bag of mini-marshmallows
• 1/4 cup yellow cake mix
• 6 cups crispy rice cereal
• 1 (1.75 oz.) container of sprinkles

Method:

Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat and add marshmallows. Stir until they begin to melt, adding in cake mix one spoonful at a time so its combined. Stir in cereal so it is completely coated with marshmallow mixture. Sprinkle in half of the sprinkles and mix. Press into a baking dish (any size will do) and top with remaining sprinkles. Let sit for about 30 minutes before cutting. I find spraying a knife with nonstick spray helps to cut them.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Brownies

This recipe was one of my Pinterest pins, originally from Pennies on a Platter. I should probably have my own pin board devoted to pumpkin with all that I pin.  Honestly, if it says pumpkin there's a 95% chance I've already pinned it or I will pin it.  I picked up 3 large cans of pumpkin from Target this past weekend just to make sure I didn't run out this year.  It was so hard to find last year and I was not going to let that happen again.  I made this recipe for hubs to bring to work with him.  His team is long overdue for sweet treats and since it's now officially fall I had to celebrate with a pumpkin recipe.  


This recipe is AMAZING.  I wish I could keep the entire pan for myself.  They are so light, moist and fluffy. The pumpkin is there but not overpowering.  Just simply amazing.  I used white chocolate chips in this mix instead of chocolate.  I wanted to change things up a bit.  Do yourself a favor and add this to your list of things to make.  Your friends and tummy with thank you! HAPPY FALL!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Brownies Yield: 24 small brownies 1/2 cup pumpkin puree 1 whole egg 2 egg whites 1 tbsp vegetable or canola oil 1 cup flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground allspice 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg 1/4 tsp salt 2/3 cup brown sugar, packed 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used white chocolate chips) Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Line an 11″- x 7″-inch pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine pumpkin puree, eggs and oil until smooth.  Set aside. In a separate medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and brown sugar.  Add to the wet ingredients and mix until thoroughly incorporated.  Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly.  Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until passes toothpick test.  Cool completely before cutting.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Ingredients: 

1 tube of refrigerated pizza dough 

1/3 cup wing sauce

1/3 cup blue cheese dressing

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

2 tsp. Pampered Chef Buffalo Rub

2-3 cups shredded cooked chicken 

Directions: 

Unroll pizza dough and spread on your Pampered Chef large bar pan.  If you don't have a bar pan, you can use a cookie sheet.   

In a small bowl, mix together wing sauce and blue cheese dressing.  Brush some of the mixture over the top of the dough.  Put the dough in the over for 7 minutes at 425 (or whatever is directed on the dough package).

Then mix the chicken with the remaining wing/dressing mixture.  

Take out the dough at about 7 minutes or when the dough begins to bubble.  

Spread the chicken mixture over the dough.  Top with mozzarella cheese and 2 tsp of the Buffalo Rub.  

Bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until cheese is melted.  

Cut & Serve.  

ENJOY!

Pampered Chef Three Cheese Garden Pizza

Three-Cheese Garden Pizza

Ingredients:
1   package (10 ounces) refrigerated pizza crust 1   small onion, sliced into rings 1   medium zucchini, sliced 2   plum tomatoes, sliced 1   cup mushrooms, sliced		2   garlic cloves, pressed 1   cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese 1   cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese 1/4   cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese 1   teaspoon Pantry Italian Seasoning Mix

Directions:
1.	Preheat oven to 400°F. Using lightly floured Baker's Roller™, roll pizza crust into a 14-inch circle on Large Round Stone. Bake crust 7 minutes. Remove from oven; place on Stackable Cooling Rack.
2.	Using Ultimate Slice & Grate fitted with v-shaped blade, slice onion, zucchini and tomatoes. Slice mushrooms using Egg Slicer Plus®.
3.	Using Garlic Press, press garlic over crust; spread evenly. Sprinkle mozzarella and cheddar cheeses evenly over crust; top evenly with onion, zucchini, mushrooms and tomatoes. Grate Parmesan cheese over vegetables using Deluxe Cheese Grater. Sprinkle with seasoning mix. Bake 15-18 minutes or until crust is golden brown; remove from oven. Cut into wedges using Pizza Cutter.
Yield: 8 servings

Pencil Vase

This is another classroom creation that was inspired by Pinterest.  All you need is an empty (and clean) soup can, pencils (3-4 packs of 12), hot glue and some embellishments.  To make it, just take the paper off of the can.  Hot glue the pencils to the can.  I made sure (tried my best) to glue them all in the same spot.  You want them to be lined up with the bottom of the can, not shorter or longer.  When you're done gluing the pencils you can use your creativity to design the outside.  I decided to use ribbon and a wood apple that was already painted.  I just added my name with a sharpie paint pen and hot glued it on.  It's as simple as that!  These would be great and inexpensive gifts for teacher appreciation gifts!

Pampered Chef: Artichoke Tapanade

As soon as I got my new manual food processor, I could not wait to use it.  There are tons of new fall and winter recipes using the processor that I have on my list to make.  I decided on this one first because I love artichokes and green olives.  I made it for our football party and couldn't believe how easy it was.  It took less than 10 minutes and made a good amount of dip.  I served it with pita chips and had the leftovers for the next week.  Delish!

Ingredients:

1  lemon

1  can (14 oz or 398 mL) artichoke hearts in water

1/4  cup (50 mL) loosely packed fresh parsley

1  garlic clove, peeled

1/2  cup (125 mL) pitted green olives

1  tbsp (15 mL) capers

5  tbsp (75 mL) olive oil

Toasted Baguette Slices (optional, see below)

Directions:

1.  Zest lemon using Microplane(R) Zester to measure 1/2 tsp (2 mL). Juice lemon using Citrus Press to measure 1 tbsp (15 mL) juice. Drain artichokes using small Stainless Mesh Colander; pat dry using paper towels.

2.  Combine parsley, garlic, lemon zest, juice, artichokes, olives, capers and oil in Manual Food Processor. Cover and pump handle to process to desired consistency, removing lid and scraping down sides of bowl as necessary using Mini Mix 'N Scraper(R). Serve with Toasted Baguette Slices, if desired.

Yield: 10 servings (about 2 cups/500 mL)

Toasted Baguette Slices

20  slices French bread, cut 1/4 in. (6 mm) thick

2  tbsp (30 ml) olive oil