mini pumpkin nutella swirl cakes

Every Fall I make something pumpkin.  I am not a crazy - pumpkin-in-everything kind of person, but I do like it.  Originally, I wanted to make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins but I was out of chocolate chips so I went with the one thing I rarely neglect to restock - nutella. I decided to make mini pumpkin bundt cakes (a muffin tin is fine too) swirled with nutella.  They were perfect - I want to swirl nutella into all my baked goods :).

mini pumpkin nutella swirl cakes (makes 12 mini bundt cakes or 12 muffins)
-2 cups all purpose flour
-3 teaspoons baking powder
-1 teaspoon salt
-3/4 cup white sugar
-one can of pumpkin puree
-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
-1 large egg
-1/2 cup of nutella

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer, mix together the pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg until well combined.  Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Heat the nutella in the microwave for about 20 second (you don't want it to be hot, just slightly pourable) and stir into the batter.  Don't stir until it is completely mixed in.  Just do a few turns of the spoon so that it is swirled into the pumpkin batter.
5. Spray a muffin pan or mini bunt pan (I got one at Target and love it) with non-stick spray and fill with the batter.
6. Cook for about 25 minutes.  Allow the cakes to cool in the pan for about ten minutes before removing.  Store in an air tight container for up to three days.  

apple-cinnamon-sugar pancakes

I made these last weekend and they're my new favorite pancake.  Super easy, quick, and perfect for Fall.  

apple-cinnamon-sugar pancakes (this recipe will make about 12 pancakes)

-1 cup of four

-1/2 teaspoon baking soda

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1 egg

-3/4 cup of milk

-1 apple (grated with a cheese grater)

-2 tablespoons of melted butter (cooled)

-cinnamon and sugar (for dusting the pancakes)

1. In a bowl, whisk together all the flour, baking soda, and salt.  

2. Stir in the remaining ingredients (except the cinnamon and sugar for dusting).

3. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and rub with butter or spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Pour 1/4 cup of the pancake batter in the pan (I did three pancakes at a time).  Wait for bubbles to form, flip, and cook for another minute.  Remove from pan and repeat until all the batter is gone.

4. Fill a small bowl with 1/4 cup white sugar and cinnamon (I used about two teaspoons).  Mix the sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle over the pancakes.  This cinnamon-sugar coating gives the pancakes the nicest, sweetest crunch.  It's so perfect.

Enjoy!

weekly snapshots: 3

1 - Finally pulled out my moccasins this week.  Feels like Fall.

2 - Tortellini soup.  So good.

3 - My little monkey.

4 - Sweet potato donuts.  Nothing wrong with fried dough.

5 - Unmade bed, covered in clothes, and Finn makes himself comfortable.

I hope you guys all had a good week :).

mini monkey bread

To me, monkey bread is a total 1980s dessert. I think this is because the first time I had it was in the 80s. I was maybe in kindergarten?  I don't remember but for some reason, I was sent home with a little book of recipes and a recipe for monkey bread was in the book.

This recipe is so sweet and buttery and not a health food at all. It's also incredibly easy.  If I made it when I was five....you can easily make it now.  It's a hard one to screw up ;).

I used a mini bundt pan because I just thought it was so much cuter than an average bundt pan, but either will work.  You can even make this in a square baking dish or muffin tin.

mini monkey bread
-one package of store bought biscuits (if you are using a standard sized bundt pan, you can make this with two packages of store bought biscuits)
-3/4 cup sugar
-a few teaspoons of cinnamon (use more or less depending on how cinnamon-ey you want the bread)
-a stick of butter, melted

1. Heat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Pull the biscuits apart and cut each in quarters.  I used whole wheat biscuits but it doesn't matter. Whatever kind you use, they will just end up tasting like delicious pieces of butter, cinnamon, and sugar.

3. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in a large bowl and toss in the biscuit pieces until well coated.  Press the sugar coated biscuit pieces in the bundt or mini bundt pan.  If you use the mini one, only put in about three pieces.  I over stuffed a few of them and there wasn't enough room for the butter to coat each piece.  

4. Pour melted butter over the top and bake for about 30 minutes.  If you do minis, 30 minutes is enough time.  A whole cake will likely take about ten minutes longer.  You will know this recipe is done when the biscuit pieces have puffed up and are golden brown.  This dessert is best served warm.

You have been warned - these little guys are addicting.  I ate at least five of them.  What can I say?  I'm a sucker for cinnamon-sugar :).