Fall Favorite – Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Jackie

Happy Friday! Today one of my best online friends is here sharing a delicious, warming recipe with you…. pumpkin spice hot cocoa! Perfect for these cold evenings that we’ve been having too.

I’ve know Jill almost as long as I’ve been blogging I think and we’ve been great friends almost the entire time. One of the best things about online friends is how quickly they can become the closest and best friends you ever had. This has to be one of my favorite reasons for blogging…. the friendships. They alone are worth all the time and effort that we put into blogging.

Jill is an awesome mom to three incredible boys (19, 17 and 10-going on 32). Two of whom still live at home. And fill her social calendar faster than she can… I can attest to this too! Just check out her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and see all of their travels, adventures, and of course the great money saving deals that she writes about on her blog, Single Mom on a Budget.

Temperatures are dropping, snow is starting to fall and the trees are near bare. Halloween candy is a distant memory and Thanksgiving and Christmas are on the mind.

Here in Colorado we have already had snow twice and because of that we had a beautiful fall season. The ‘pretty’ is over though, and the ground is covered in leaves. (And by covered I mean I’ve done the back-breaking job of bagging a total of nine trash bags full so far and it ain’t over yet.) The days are beautiful, but the nights are downright cold.

Something about that – the temps falling part, not the leaf bagging part – has gotten me in the holiday spirit early this year. And that never happens so I’m enjoying it.

As we settle in one chilly evening I had visions of cinnamon sticks and cans of pumpkin dancing in my head so I whipped up a pumpkin spice hot cocoa concoction and ooh la la it is delicious. Even my picky 10 year old liked it. And by picky I mean he won’t eat mac n cheese, peanut butter and jelly or cupcakes. I KNOW.

You can make your cocoa one of two ways, from a little packet or from a homemade hot cocoa recipe that we’ve used in my house for years. I make it and store it in a mason jar (recipe below).

Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa Directions (here is a printable version of the Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa recipe):

Ingredients:

Hot cocoa (make your own mix with 1 c. nonfat dry milk, 1 c. sugar and ¾ c. cocoa)
Milk
Canned pumpkin
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Cinnamon Stick
Whipped cream or marshmallows

Directions:

These directions are per cup of hot cocoa.

Heat milk on stove on medium-low and watch so that the milk doesn’t boil over, because speaking from experience that is a big mess. It can also be heated in the microwave.

I like to drop a cinnamon stick in it to infuse the milk with cinnamon.

Pour milk into your favorite mug and add about 2-3 tbsp of hot cocoa mix depending on how chocolaty you like it.

Add 1 tbsp of pumpkin and mix thoroughly. Add more/less to your taste.

Add a dash of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg.

Top of with a big dollop of whipped cream (or marshmallows) and sprinkle with nutmeg.

Curl up and enjoy.

Fall Favorite – Bacon, Egg and Leek Pizza

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Jackie

Hey there! Welcome to Wednesday and another Fall Favorite. Today I have fellow Michigander, Ashleigh, guest posting today! I have had the pleasure of meeting her and have to say that she is one of the sweetest gals ever. Sadly, even though we’re less than 2 hours away from one another, we don’t see each other all that often. I think that it’s time to remedy the meeting up with bloggers who live close by issue….

So what is her Fall Favorite? Bacon, egg, and leek pizza! Yum!

Aside from living in the great state of Michigan, Ashleigh is the mom to 3 little girls (toddler twins and a baby), wife to a great man, and a doggie mom too. She blogs at Being Cheap is Easy where she shares tips on how to save money online and in stores, reviews & giveaways, and food & recipes.

Follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest to get all the updates on the great deals she shares and Instagram for a glimpse into her life with 3 little ladies.

Hello! My name is Ashleigh and I blog over at Being Cheap is Easy. I am so excited to be guest posting over at Jackie’s blog…I’ve been a reader for quite some time now!

Since we have a family of 5 and a tight budget, we rarely go out to eat. It’s helpful that I love to cook! One of our favorite “make your own takeout” meals is pizza. My girls love the basic pepperoni, but I like to experiment. This pizza happened one day by accident and now it’s our favorite! If you’re not familiar with leeks, they have a sweet, mild flavor after cooking…there isn’t a strong onion taste.

During a hectic week, it’s great to have a store bought pizza crust on hand to get dinner on the table in a flash. My favorite: the Aldi thin crust. It is cheap, yet it doesn’t taste like cardboard. If you don’t have an Aldi in your area, any thin crust will do. You can even make one if you’re feeling ambitious!

Ingredients:

2 leeks, sliced and washed
- Here’s how to wash leeks. You can also find them cleaned in the produce section.
6 slices of bacon
2 teaspoons of pesto
½ cup to ¾ cup pizza sauce
1 ½ -2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 thin pizza crust
2 eggs (optional)

Let’s cook!

Preheat the oven to 425
Slice the bacon in thin pieces and cook in a pan, draining most of the grease. Remove from pan and add leeks. Cook until soft (3-5 minutes).
Mix pesto and pizza sauce, add to crust. Use more or less sauce, depending on taste.
Sprinkle cooked leeks onto pizza crust, and then add bacon. Top with cheese.
If you’re feeling adventurous: add 2 eggs before putting it in the oven (like a sunny side up egg). It sounds crazy, but it really does taste amazing!
Bake 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

What crazy toppings do you like on your pizza?

Fall Favorite – Pumpkin and Sage Pasta

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Jackie

Happy Friday! Today I have Amanda here from The Sunny Vegan sharing a tasty recipe. What I love about her pumpkin sage pasta is that it’s just like a pumpkin ravioli but made so much easier and much healthier than anything that you could get from the store or restaurant because it’s made fresh.

I first met Amanda through an incredible Facebook group that we belong to and from there started slowly stalking her blog because I love food and she takes some awesome food pics!

Amanda shares all sorts of delicious vegan recipes on her blog and you’ll love them… I know that I do. She is also a Certified Yoga Teacher and is pursuing Certification as a Fitness Nutritional Specialist and Holistic Life Coach. All that in addition to raising two beautiful little girls, Weimaraner and a cat.

After you read her blog check her out on Facebook, Twitter, and of course Pinterest too!

Think pumpkin is only for pie? Well think again!
Savory pumpkin recipes are a fun way to keep the flavors of autumn around throughout the holiday season. Pumpkin is low calorie and full of Vitamin A, C and K as well as iron, potassium and magnesium so adding more to your diet is certainly a good thing.
I ususally use whole wheat pasta but my daughter picked out the orecchiette because it reminded her of little pumpkins. It really held the sauce well which made me happy.

Pumpkin Sage Pasta

Fresh sage is so beautiful and flavorful, combining it with the slightly sweet pumpkin makes for a gorgeous, earthy and tasty sauce. So shake up your regular pasta routine and try this pumpkin and sage sauce. One of the best things I have ever made! ( and my daughter agreed )

Ingredients: 4-6 servings

1 pound pasta
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow onion – diced
3 cloves garlic – diced
1 15 ounce can organic pumpkin puree
2 cups plain almond milk
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast * optional
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish
salt and pepper

Method:

pasta – prepare as directed on package.
sauce – heat olive oil over medium-low heat, add onions and cook until translucent or approximately 5 minutes. add garlic and heat another 2 minutes. stir in pumpkin, almond milk, sage and nutritional yeast, salt and pepper to taste. heat over low heat for 5 minutes. serve over prepared pasta and garnish with additional fresh sage.

Fall Favorite – Mini Cinnamon Applesauce Muffin Recipe

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Jackie

Yay! It’s Fall Favorite time! Today is exciting because first it’s a recipe that doesn’t have pumpkin in it AND I have the super fun Tottums (Stephanie Totty) from The Froggy & The Mouse.

She really is a riot to hang out with and I know this because we spent some time together while at BlogHer this past summer. At home she spends her time wrangling two cute little boys, writing her tell it like it is blog, and working outside the home at a pretty cool job.

Of course you can find her hanging out at all the usual spaces & places online like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Go ahead… stalk her… she likes it.

I woke up this morning and seriously considered turning on our heat – it got down into the low 40s last night here in the DFW area. It’s Fall, y’all. Therefore, it’s definitely time to break out the mini cinnamon applesauce muffins. NOM.

You can blame my mother for this recipe. I have no idea where she found it, but it’s pretty much the most amazing thing ever. These little dudes are bite-sized and perfect when heated up and paired with coffee … which also means they’re terribly addictive. The recipe makes a TON of them – but the good news? You can freeze them and they do great. I’ve got mini muffins for miles in my freezer right about now.

Mini Cinnamon Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients
1 cup of butter, softened
2 cups of sugar
2 eggs
2 cups of applesauce
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tbs ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions
Preheat oven to 350*
Grease mini-muffin pans.
Cream butter, gradually add 2 cups of sugar – beating well at medium speed
Add eggs, one at a time.
Add applesauce, mixing well.
Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, cloves & nuts – add to creamed mixture, mixing well.
Fill muffin pans about 3/4 full.

Bake at 350* for 14 minutes.
Transfer to wire racks to cool.

It’s easiest if you have at least 2 muffin pans, although when I make it, I usually tend to have three and a half pans worth of mix. Enjoy your muffins, and don’t say I didn’t warn you about them being addictive!

Fall Favorite- Pumpkin Pie Bars

Posted on October 30, 2013 by Jackie

Welcome to Wednesday! Today’s Fall Favorite is another sweet treat that is full of pumpkin flavor… you know what? I think that after all these delicious sweets we’re going to need a a diet plan to fight all the weight we’ll gain trying these. But then again it is the beginning of the holiday season and if I remember correctly all sweets during this time are calorie free.

Today’s Fall Favorite is pumpkin pie bars and they come to you from a great friend and blogger, Natalie!

Natalie is a wife, mom of a six year old son and four year old twin girls, wannabe foodie, lover of wine and of all things social media. She blogs at Mommy of a Monster and Twins and also works as a freelance writer and virtual assistant. You can find her tweeting as @NatalieHoage, Facebooking all day long, and pinning more recipes than she can ever possibly try.

One of my favorite things to bake during the fall season is this recipe for Pumpkin Pie Bars. The reason I love them so much is because they are so versatile – you can add nuts, cranberries, chocolate chips (or a combination of the three!)

These Pumpkin Pie Bars can be made in just one bowl, which makes them both easy to make and to clean up. I know it looks like a lot of ingredients, but I bet you already have most of them in your pantry. Enjoy!

Ingredients

8 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 light brown sugar, packed

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1-1/3 cups pumpkin puree

1-2/3 cups of flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1-1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup of chocolate chips, cranberries, or nuts, if desired.

Preheat the oven to 375. Spray an 8×8 baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, stir first 4 ingredients until combined. Whisk in the eggs and oil, then stir in the pumpkin. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until combined.

Spoon mixture into the baking dish. Bake for 20-23 minutes, until the top is springy. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before cutting into bars. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I hope that you’re enjoying this little series that I have put together for all of you and I would LOVE it if you’d guest post too! Just drop me an email, or tweet, or message on Facebook and I’ll get you added to the list of amazing bloggers.

Fall Favorite – Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies

Posted on October 28, 2013 by Jackie

How could I let another week go by without another pumpkin recipe? Hopefully, you’re not getting tired of them. I mean there has been a pretty decent variety of pumpkin recipes and this week it’s a little unique. It’s a brown butter pumpkin blondie recipe topped with a rich & creamy cream cheese frosting. I dare you to try and eat more than one of these and not get a stomach ache!

I made mine very simply and left out all of the various extras that you could put in them like nuts, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips. Besides I really wanted to add the cream cheese frosting and I didn’t have any of the extras.

So are you wondering about brown butter? Brown butter is butter that has been slowly warmed until it is a light brown color and has a nutty flavor to it. The butter is cooked long enough to turn the milk solids and salt particles brown while cooking out any water present. It has a more complex flavor than melted or clarified butter. Brown butter can replace the butter in just about any dish and gives it an extra layer of depth. Honestly, in this recipe you can use regular butter if you want.

This was my first attempt at making brown butter even though I’ve known about it forever. I was always to chicken to try it and didn’t want to ruin it. It was so easy and I’m glad that I added it to the blondies.

Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies

Ingredients

2½ cups all-purpose flour
2½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 cup brown butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup brown sugar - dark or light
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree (about 2 cups)

Instructions

Brown Butter

In a heavy bottom pan heat, whisk sliced butter occasionally while it warms over medium heat. As it heats it will foam a little bit... just remember to keep whisking and don't let it burn.
Cook, stirring constantly, until the butter becomes a light tan color. Remove the pan from the heat. The butter will continue cooking even after you remove it from the burner. I poured mine into a small bowl to cool.

Blondies

Sift the flour and pumpkin pie spice together and set aside.
Whisk the brown butter and sugar together until smooth and then add in the egg and vanilla. Mix well.
Whisk in the pumpkin.
Stir in the flour. At this point you can stir in some of the extras I mentioned before if you want.
Pour into a prepared 13x9 pan and bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for 30 - 35 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean when inserted into the middle.
Let cool before frosting if you're want them frosted.

https://withjustabitofmagic.com/brown-butter-pumpkin-blondies

Now grab a cup of coffee and enjoy!

Don’t forget… if you have a favorite fall recipe that you’d like to share here I would love to have you guest post here.

Fall Favorites – Ooey Gooey Pumpkin and Chocolate Cake

Posted on October 25, 2013 by Jackie

It’s Friday and we’re rounding out this week with an awesome Fall Favorite! Ooey gooey pumpkin and chocolate cake from Amber of Amber Page Writes. This cake sounds sinfully rich, delicious, and full of flavor and I’m sure that it’s something that I’d want to eat all of in one sitting if I could. I’ve been waiting all week to share this with you… and now you have something to do on Saturday!

So who’s Amber? She is the mommy of one sweet, sassy toddler. Wife of a handsome, kind and very, very patient man. Copywriter for an ad agency. And blogger, of course. You can follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Some foods beg to be made in front of an audience. Delicious-smelling, yeasty breads, perfectly-charred steaks, fancy cocktails… the list goes on. And then there are those that should be made in private. Not because they’re not delicious, but because you don’t want anyone to see what goes into them. The recipe I’m about to share you is one of the latter. How do I know? Because this was the conversation I had with my husband this evening.

“Is that a whole stick of butter?”

“Yep.”

“And a whole cake mix?”

“Uh huh.”

“And that’s just the crust?”

“Yep. Now go away.” (He didn’t)

“Oh my god. A whole package of cream cheese?”

“You better believe it.”

“And another stick of butter?”

“Didn’t I tell you to go away?”

“Tell me you didn’t just put that whole package of powdered sugar in there.” (I did)

“Are you trying to kill me?”

“…”

In other words, this cake, it’s not good for you. At all. Although it does have pumpkin it. So you know. There’s fiber. And vitamin A. And beta carotene. Oh, and calcium from the cream cheese.

Hey, it’s a regular health bonanza!

Healthy or no, it is 100 percent delicious.

This is the conversation we had after he took a bite.

“Wow.”

“Wow good, or wow bad?”

“Wow, you should take this to work so I don’t eat it all in two days.”

So there you go. Bake it in private. Share it with everyone you love (or don’t. It’s up to you).

Ingredients

Crust:

1 chocolate cake mix

1 stick of butter (melted)

1 egg

Filling:

1 15 oz. can of pumpkin (plain, not the pie mix)

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese (room temperature)

1 stick of butter (melted)

3 eggs

1 tbsp. vanilla

Pumpkin pie spice (to taste)

1 16 oz. package of powdered sugar (about 4 cups or so)

.5 cup of chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Crust:

Dump cake mix, melted butter and egg in a bowl
Mix until well combined
Empty into 9 X 13 pan and press down until it forms a smooth crust along the bottom and sides of pan
Set aside

Filling:

Cream together the pumpkin and cream cheese
Add butter, eggs, vanilla and spice, then mix until well-combined
Slowly add powdered sugar (while you continue to mix) until it’s all combined
Pour on top of crust and smooth it out
Top with chocolate chips (optional)

Bake for 45-50 minutes. The sides should be set, but the middle will look more like pudding (it is a gooey cake, after all).

Enjoy!

Fall Favorite – Indian Potato and Spinach Soup

Posted on October 23, 2013 by Jackie

It’s Wednesday and that means it’s time for another Fall Favorite! Today Erica is here sharing her recipe for an Indian Potato and Spinach soup that is sure to warm you on the coldest fall evening and paired with some fresh from the oven bread and a glass of your favorite drink dinner will be perfect.

I hope that you’re enjoying this series and finding some delicious recipes to try out. Remember… if you’re interested in sharing one of your own fall favorite here just let me know.

Erica Voll is a freelance writer, blogger, marketing maven, content creator and social media consultant. She writes a parenting blog, No Sleep ’til College, and is co-founder of Girls’ Lunch Out . Erica rarely sleeps. Connect with Erica on Twitter,YouTube, Facebook, and Google+.

There are days when I think I might as well cook an elaborate meal, and throw it directly in the trash because inevitably, my kids and husband will hate it.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with “1” being “Ick, gross, I’m calling for take-out” and a “10” being “Make this again!” I’ve observed the following:

30 seconds to throw chicken fingers in the oven + 5 minutes to heat up canned corn + 1 minute to scoop applesauce on a plate = 10
60 minutes chopping, searing, boiling and simmering for a chicken dinner = 5
90 minutes chopping, boiling, cleaning, clearing, plating, topping and serving pork chops, homemade mashed potatoes, fresh brussels sprouts = 1

Look, I am not a foodie. I do not “enjoy” cooking, nor do I enjoy the prep and clean-up that comes with cooking. But I the thought of Indian potato soup just kind of warmed my soul one chilly fall day…

So I thought I would take a chance and make it for my family.
So, this weekend, when I dared to bust out the Indian spices and create a pot of soup, I knew I was treading in dangerous waters. This conversation foreshadowed what happened…

“The kids will never eat that,” said my husband.

“How do you know??” I asked.

“Erica, the kids will not eat Indian food,” he replied.

Well, he was sort of right. My almost-4-year-old told me she didn’t like the way it smelled, and my 18-month-old ate it up. My husband hated it, and I loved it.

I loved it so much, in fact, I wanted to share the recipe with you.

Indian Potato Spinach Soup with Chicken

Serves: 1. Your family will hate it, and you will be forced to eat it for a week because you made it from scratch, damnit!

Ingredients

2 tsp canola or corn oil
2 medium size chicken breast halves, diced
1 large onion chopped
1/2 tsp caraway seeds ( I used sesame seeds since I didn’t have caraway seeds)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 TBSP curry powder
2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
6 cups fat free chicken broth
1 cup chopped canned tomatoes with juice
3 cups coarsely chopped potatoes (about 2 large)
1 10 ounce thawed spinach

Directions

Over medium heat in large pot, combine oil, chicken, onion and caraway seeds. Cook, stirring frequently until onion is limp and browns (about 5 minutes)
Add garlic and cook one minute longer.
Stir in coriander, curry and cardamom, cook for additional 30 seconds.
Stir in broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil.
Adjust heat so it simmers.
Cook until potatoes are tender
Add spinach, tomatoes. Simmer 10 minutes

Per cup: 187 cals 2.7 g fat, 15 g of protein

Sounds delicious, right?

Fall Favorites – Amy’s Festive Warm Wassail Recipe

Posted on October 18, 2013 by Jackie

Today our special guest poster is Amy from Beloved Atmosphere and I met her not that long ago through an incredible Facebook group that I belong to. She is leading what I consider an exciting life! She recently moved to Europe and spends her free time traveling to incredible places (I’m a tad jealous).

Amy is a devoted wife, a dedicated mommy to the Three Little Mermaids, a savvy traveller, an educator, and a darn good cook. When she’s not busy dining out at local hot spots or whisking her kiddos off to fun discoveries, Amy writes for Beloved Atmosphere, her blog that focuses on Travel with Kids, Parenting, Education, DIY and Crafting projects, Cooking and other Topics du Jour. Amy also manages Sunset Vacation Rental, her family’s vacation rental business for their house at the Beach. In whatever spare time she finds, Amy loves reading, sewing, cooking, and connecting on Social Media.

You can find her all over the internet sharing pictures and videos of her family’s travel experiences, too. Check her out on Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Now…. on to the good stuff. Amy’s Fall Favorite!

Doesn’t Autumn bring such comforting aromas and warm feelings?

Watching as the leaves change into brilliant scarlet, tangerine, mustard and plum always brings peace to my heart. As you cozy up in anticipation of Winter’s chill, simmer a pot of this delightful warm spiced cider and you’ll soon be feeling warm and spicy, too. A festive treat on a slow afternoon or a treat to enjoy as you prepare your Autumn and Winter holiday feasts, this Warm Wassail will be a tradition for years to come.

Grab your mug and your song book. Here we go a-wassailing!

If you’re a history buff, here is a link to the historical origins of wassail.

Side note: Where I’m from, a Hot Toddy is what we call any warm beverage spiked with alcohol. This Warm Wassail recipe is delicious both without alcohol and with a bit of Hot Toddy-ness. Our favorite add-ins include: Sandeman tawny port wine, cognac, brandy, bourbon, and red wine.

Amy’s Warm Wassail

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 6-8 hours Servings: 16 cups

Ingredients:

2 quarts fresh apple cider

2 cups fresh no-pulp orange juice

2 cups cranberry juice

¼ cup fresh lemon juice (optional)

20 whole cloves

20 cinnamon sticks, separated into 4 for recipe + 16 for garnish

1 pinch ground ginger (optional)

1 pinch ground nutmeg (optional)

1 pinch ground allspice (optional)

Garnishes: serve on the side of the pot next to the mugs…

Honey

Sugar cubes

Cinnamon sticks

Whole cloves

If you wish to “spice things up” and make this spiced cider a Hot Toddy (alcoholic)…

1 bottle bourbon, cognac or brandy

1 bottle red wine (Madeira, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot) or mulled wine

1 bottle tawny Port wine

Instructions:

In a large pot over low heat, combine apple cider, fresh orange juice, cranberry juice, and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer.
Add whole cloves and 4 cinnamon sticks. Then sprinkle in to taste: ground ginger, ground nutmeg and ground allspice (each spice is optional).
Allow to simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
After one hour, transfer to a slow cooker, and allow to simmer on the keep warm or low setting for 5-7 more hours before serving.
Serve hot in mugs. Garnish each mug with a cinnamon stick.
If you prefer a Hot Toddy, add your preferred alcohol to your warm wassail.