Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, so you’ll need something appropriate to eat for breakfast right?

Try this Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. It’s delicious…and easy to make too!

Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz.) can Pumpkin Puree
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
• 2 large Eggs
• 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice*
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/2 cups Milk
• 2 1/2 cups Dry Old-Fashioned Oats

*1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice:

• 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon Ground Allspice or Cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

PREHEAT to 350 degrees. WHISK pumpkin puree, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking powder. WHISK in milk.

 

MIX in dry oats. COAT 8 x 8 dish with non-stick spray. POUR in mixture. COVER with foil and BAKE 45 minutes. REMOVE foil after 35 minutes.

 

Enjoy!

It’s an easy breakfast treat for a cool fall day. As an added bonus, the recipe makes about 9 servings, so you’ll have enough for your whole family (or for leftovers!).

Credit: Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal recipe adapted from Budget Bytes. Photos taken by me.

Bacon Pumpkin Pie Truffles

Anyone planning on going non-traditional this Thanksgiving?

These truffles are the perfect way to ease away from the traditional and surprise your guests.

I found this recipe for Bacon Pumpkin Pie Truffles on FOODBEAST that basically takes a good old regular pumpkin pie, with addition of brown sugar-baked bacon thrown in the batter, and deconstructs it. The idea is simply amazing and I wish I thought of it.

For the full recipe, please visit FOODBEAST. If you make them, please comment and let me know how they turn out.

What other recipes are on your Thanksgiving menu this year?

Credit: Photo and recipe by FOODBEAST.

Helpful Household Hints

Everyone has their own household tips and tricks that they’ve picked up over the years. Well, I have a few tricks up my sleeve too and I’m continuing my little series of Helpful Household Hints to share them with you guys.

Helpful Household Hint #2: Keeping Brown Sugar Soft and Fresh

Has this ever happened to you? You find a great cookie recipe. You pull out all of the ingredients from your pantry. When you get to the brown sugar, you find that it has hardened into an unusable rock.

Hey, it’s happened to me. Brown sugar is finicky.

Instead of going out to buy more sugar or trying to save what you have at the last minute, here’s how you can prevent it from happening in the first place.

It’s simple. Your brown sugar needs moisture. You need to store it properly.

You’ll need four things:

1. A container big enough to fit your bag of brown sugar (I use a 12 oz. container that once housed frozen cool whip).
2. A small “cup” (I use a plastic measuring scoop with the handle cut off & my mom uses an old school medicine bottle with no cap).
3. A cotton ball.
4. Water.

That’s it. Nothing fancy.

Simply pour your brown sugar into the container. Place your cotton ball into the small “cup” and moisten it with a little water. Make a small indent so that small “cup” can fit in the sugar with the lid still being able to close. Seal your container tightly. Re-moisten your cotton ball ever so often.

Wha-la! No more crunchy brown sugar!

What tricks do you use around your household to make life a little easier or to fix the boo boos once they happen? Please share!

Credit: Photo taken by me.

{Roundup}: Some Lovelies for the Day

Brighten your Thursday with some pretty things!

Credit: (1) At Your Beak and Call Media Case in Penguin via ModCloth, (2) Pink colored diamond in a rose gold setting via TLC Weddings, (3) From fallen tree to end table via apartment therapy, (4) Great table arrangement via elizabeth anne designs, (5) Old San Juan, Puerto Rico via White on Rice Couple, (6) Adorable collar on Dexter the Miniature Australian Shepherd via Daily Puppy, (7) Gluten Free Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rolls via Our Best Bites, (8) Vintage 50s/60s Travel Trailer Bird House by BirdhousesByGlenn via Etsy, (9) Dior eyeliner patches via Lash Card

Enjoy!

Helpful Household Hints

Everyone has their own household tips and tricks that they’ve picked up over the years. Maybe you’ve learned a great way to do something from your mother or your grandmother. Maybe you read a handy tip in Good Housekeeping that you’ve kept in your arsenal.

Well, I have a few tricks up my sleeve too and I thought I’d do a little series of Helpful Household Hints to share them with you guys.

Helpful Household Hint #1: Extending the Shelf-life of Nuts

Nuts are expensive and I usually take awhile to finish a package. I don’t want them to go to waste by going rancid. So, to keep nuts fresher a little longer, I put my nuts in the freezer. The great thing about freezing nuts, is they don’t freeze like liquids do. Just take the bags out of the freezer and the nuts are ready to go. No defrosting needed.

What tricks do you use around your household to make life a little easier or to fix the boo boos once they happen? Please share!

Credit: Photo taken by me.

My Second Favorite Cookie

Ah, to finally have coconut in my cabinet meant I finally got to make one of my very favorite cookie recipes (only second to these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies). I stumbled upon this recipe in some magazine or newspaper long, long ago. Over 10 years ago. And it has been in my recipe clipping book ever since.

This recipe makes a no-fail chewy chocolate chip cookie. The chewiness is what I like most about these cookies. I think it is the coconut that helps them stay chewy. If you are not a coconut lover like me, and I know there are a lot of you guys out there, I have been told that you can’t taste the coconut in them. If you are worried about seeing the coconut, you can purchase the really shredded kind or try omitting it completely.

Four-Star Chocolate Chip Cookies {Adapted by MissJillian from recipe below}

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup (packed) light-brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (12-ounce package) milk chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup shredded coconut

PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees.

MIX flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

CREAM butter, sugars, and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer.

ADD the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

BEAT in the flour mixture gradually.

STIR in the chocolate chips, walnuts, and coconut.

 

DROP the dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. I use a Silpat.

BAKE 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.

PULL from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before removing with a spatula to a wire cooling rack.

Recipe makes about 54 cookies.

Enjoy!

Credit: Recipe from an unknown source adapted by me. All photos taken by me.

Nut & Berry Granola

{Homemade Nut & Berry Granola}

I’ve been on a granola kick lately. It happened on a recent trip to Trader Joe’s when I spotted some yummy Pecan Praline Granola. From that point on, it was all history and I’ve been eating and craving granola ever since.

{Trader Joe’s Pecan Praline Granola}

Last week, my friend Jessica whipped up a batch of her favorite granola recipe and it did not disappoint. In fact, I liked it so much that this weekend I made my own personal batch.

And because we were attending a dinner party that same evening, I was able to package some in a pretty canister and bring it as a homemade hostess gift.

Now on to the recipe!

NUT & BERRY GRANOLA

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of Rolled Oats
• 2/3 cup Raw Slice Almonds
• 2/3 cup Roasted Unsalted Cashews
• 2/3 cup California Walnut Baking Pieces
• 3/4 cup Shredded Sweet Coconut
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons Brown Sugar
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons Maple Syrup
• 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
• 3/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Dried Cranberries

Instructions:

1. PREHEAT your oven to 250 degrees.
2. MIX oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar in a large bowl.
3. MIX syrup, oil, and salt in a small bowl.
4. COMBINE dry and wet ingredients thoroughly.
5. SPREAD mixture on a large ungreased rimmed baking sheet.
6. BAKE for 1 hour and 15 minutes stirring with a spatula at 15 minute intervals.
7. ADD dried cranberries for the last 15 minute interval.
8. COOL, then package and eat!

*I added a little more coconut after the granola cooled just because I like coconut and wanted a bit more.

{See all the nuts, cranberries, and coconut? Yum!}

Credit: Recipe adapted from my friend Jessica’s adaptation of Alton Brown’s Granola recipe on Food Network. Granola pictured was made by me. Photos taken by me as well.

Creamy Lemon Dessert

I have a sweet tooth.

A major sweet tooth.

I’ll pretty much eat almost any dessert. It’s kind of a problem.

My love is the opposite though. He doesn’t like sweets very much at all. Well, with the exception of any dessert his mother makes. Apparently her sweets don’t count.

This is well and good, except I like to bake. Since it’s just the two of us, if I bake, I’m left to eat all of baked goods myself. There in lies the problem. Well, that combined with my utter lack of willpower when it comes to sweets of almost any kind.

This dessert I’m going to share with you is one of the few desserts that my love likes and will actually eat.

Creamy Lemon Dessert

Ingredients:

• 9-inch square pan
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• Few drops yellow food coloring (optional)
• 16 graham cracker squares
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted margarine or butter

POUR heavy whipping cream into a large bowl.

CHILL in the refrigerator. Whipping cream will whip better in a cold bowl.

In the meantime, PREPARE the graham cracker crust.

HEAT oven to 350 degrees.

PLACE a few crackers in a plastic bag and CRUSH into fine crumbs using a rolling pin or can.

REPEAT until all crackers are crushed.

MIX cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter/margarine in a medium bowl.

PRESS mixture firmly and evenly along the bottom of a 9-inch square pan.

BAKE 10 minutes.

COOL. While crust is cooling, continue with the rest of the recipe.

MIX sweetened condensed milk and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside.

ADD a few drops of yellow food coloring to the chilled heavy whipping cream (optional). This is purely to achieve that “lemon” color. I omit this step and my dessert turns out more of a white than a yellow, but that’s fine with me.

BEAT the whipping cream with an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. This usually takes 5 or 6 minutes.

Gently POUR the lemon mixture over the whipped cream.

FOLD together using a rubber spatula. Continue mixing until ingredients are blended.

POUR the folded mixture over the cooled graham cracker crust.

SPREAD evenly.

COVER and REFRIGERATE at least 2 hours but no longer than 48 hours.

SERVE by cutting into 3-inch squares.

COVER and REFRIGERATE any leftover dessert.

Credit: Photos taken by me.  Dessert in the photo was made by me as well.  Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker’s Cooking Basics.

Oh So Very Lovely Cake Pops!

What better way to resurrect a blog that has been lacking attention lately, than with Cake Pops!

Cake Pops are relatively easy to make and have a certain “WOW” factor to them, it’s just a matter of mastering a technique that works for you. Working with melted chocolate is a skill.

CAKE POPS

What you need:

• Box of chocolate cake mix (plus ingredients required by the box’s instructions)
• Can of ready-made chocolate frosting
• Lollipop sticks
• Semi-sweet chocolate chips (2 bags)
• Sprinkles

Notes:

You can substitute the chocolate cake mix and chocolate frosting with whatever flavor tickles your fancy. I found my lollipop sticks at Michael’s Arts & Crafts and a package of the shorter size was relatively affordable for 50 sticks. You could use your imagination though and use other items in place of the sticks (i.e. sturdy straws, pretzel sticks, toothpicks will work in a pinch, etc.). The type of chocolate you use for dipping is a matter or personal preference too. For different colored cake pops you can go with white chocolate and add food coloring, or simply use colored baking chips. I start with one bag of chocolate, melt it, and have the second bag handy to add if I need more chocolate for dipping.

Instructions:

1. BAKE the cake mix according to ingredients required and instructions on the box.
2. COOL cake until about room temperature.
3. BREAK up cake until it is broken into fine cake pieces. You don’t want any big chunks.
4. In a bowl, ADD about half a can of ready-made frosting to cake crumbles. You are looking for a doughy consistency. Mix until frosting is worked throughout and you have an even texture.
5. FORM into balls (about 1 1/2 tablespoons in size).
6. PLACE cake balls onto a wax paper or Silpat-lined baking sheet and FREEZE for about 5 minutes.
7. ADD lollipop sticks.
8. FREEZE for about 10 minutes (just to make the pops more manageable for dipping in the melted chocolate).
9. In the meantime, start to MELT your chocolate chips. A double-boiler is the way to go and will ensure you do not scorch your chocolate giving you more time to dip without feeling rushed.
10. DIP your pops in the melted chocolate. I have found that using a spoon and pouring the chocolate onto the pops works best for me.
11. Lightly SHAKE off excess chocolate and DECORATE with your choice of sprinkles before replacing the pop back on the lined baking sheet.
12. After all pops have been dipped and decorated, put pops back in the freezer for about 20 minutes so chocolate can set. Then you can feel freeze to package them however you’d like. If you are going to put them into a tupperware, it’s best to line between the layers with waxed paper.

I made these one day for a pot luck for work…work, is why I have not been paying nearly enough attention to this blog lately. A full-time position took me away from my daily blogging. But alas, it was only a temporary position and I am back again searching for that ever-elusive dream job.

As I was saying, I made these for a pot luck and they were a hit. I mean, who doesn’t want to eat a cake pop. Am I right or am I right? I also made some Peeps Pops for the same pot luck, but I will post that recipe at another time. You’ll want to make those for sure because they are complete and utter deliciousness, so keep an eye out for that upcoming post.

Credit: Photo taken by me.  Pops pictured in the photo were made by me as well.  Recipe adapted from Love From The Oven.

Glad to be back!

Thanksgiving 2010

I figured before Thanksgiving was too far in the past (and it’s already been a week), I should post about it and the cooking I did for the holiday.  My love and I were lucky enough to be invited to our friends’ house to celebrate and we had a really wonderful time.  Thanksgiving is one of my very favorite holidays.  I mean, what’s not to like about a holiday centered around getting together with family, friends, football, and food?

What was really great too, was that I got assigned food to bring.  Yay!  Since I live so far away from my family, I long for the parties I miss and the food I don’t get to bring to them.  I get jealous when I hear of the cupcakes and dessert my cousin got to make.  :(

Back to Thanksgiving though…I got assigned dessert, but I kind of got carried away reading my recipe book and ended up making an appetizer and side too.  I’ll post recipes later, but here’s what I brought to the festivities: Deviled Eggs, Mini Cornbread Muffins, Peanut Butter Marshmallow Crunch Brownies (which are always a hit), Creamy Lemon Dessert, and I picked up a store-bought Pumpkin Pie.

Thanksgiving was wonderful and our hosts were beyond gracious.  There was so much yummy food (delicious crab dip, tasty turkey, succulent honey baked ham, yummy spiced cider, and so much other great stuff) that my tummy is still recovering from the over indulging.  I LOVE THANKSGIVING!!!

     

Credit: All food pictured make by me and all photos taken by me as well.