Pumpkin Muffins

borrowed from Smitten Kitchen

Pumpkin Muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin (from a 15 ounce can)**
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice
1 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Put oven in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Put liners in muffin cups.

Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

Stir together cinnamon and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in another bowl.

Divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about three-fourths full), then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake until puffed and golden brown and wooden pick or skewer inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.

Cool in pan on a rack five minutes, then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.


**I substitute homemade pumpkin puree for the canned pumpkin.

Pumpkin Puree

Pie or sweet pumpkins

Cut stem off of pumpkin. Cut pumpkin in half and remove seeds and "guts". Save seeds for roasting.

Place pumpkin open side down on baking sheet, bake at 350 F for 90 minutes. Allow pumpkin to cool, then remove skin.

Put pumpkin in food processor to puree.

I freeze in 1 cup portions as that is the amount generally needed for recipes. Pumpkin can be kept in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Pumpkin Pie

This recipe came off of a sticker on the bottom of a pie pumpkin. Adding to blog so I will be able to find the recipe in the future.

1-1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1 (14 oz)can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 cup hot water
Single crust pie shell

Preheat oven 375 F.

Mix together first 8 ingredients. Pour into pie crust. Bake 55-65 minutes. Filling will still move slightly when done. Cool before serving with whipped cream.

Greek Pita Bread

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1-1/2 cup of warm water
4 cups of bread flour
2 teaspoons of salt
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon of sugar

Place ingredients in bread machine. Start on dough cycle, will take approximately 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 F and oil baking sheets.

Take pieces of dough slightly larger than an egg and roll out on a floured surface to a thickness of 3/8 to 1/4 inch. Prick the bread with a fork in several places.

Place on baking sheets and bake on the lowest oven rack for 2-3 minutes, then turn the pitas over and bake for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a tray covered with a clean dishtowel, with another clean towel on top. When thoroughly cooled, pitas can be stored in plastic bags in the refrigerator, or frozen.

Before using, brown in a lightly oiled frying pan for a few minutes until browned on both sides. Also reheats well in the toaster.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

1-1/2 to 2 cups pumpkin seeds
2-3 Tablespoons melted butter
1-2 pinches garlic salt

Toss together. Bake at 325 F for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Store at room temperature in a sealed container.

Chocolate Caramel Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

1 cup milk
1/4 cup caramel syrup
1/4 cup chocolate syrup
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

In large liquid measuring cup, measure 1 cup milk. Add syrups and whisk well until blended. Whisk in sugar, then vanilla extract, then cream. Mixture should measure 3 cups. Start ice cream maker and slowly add the ice cream mixture. Allow machine to process for 35 minutes, add in mini chocolate chips. *

*My ice cream maker has a maximum liquid capacity of 3 cups. It also requires the machine to be running before adding ingredients.

Yummy Chocolate Cake

1-3/4 cups boiling water
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1-1/2 cups flour
5 Tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups milk chocolate chips, divided
1 cup caramel bits, divided
1/2 - 1 cup chopped walnuts

In a small bowl mix boiling water and oatmeal. Let sit 10 minutes. Melt butter in a large bowl, add sugars and blend well. Add vanilla and eggs, mixing well. Stir in oatmeal mixture. In a small bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Gradually stir flour-cocoa mixture in oat-sugar mixture. Stir in 1 cup milk chocolate chips and 1/2 cup caramel bits. Pour batter into a greased 13" x 9" x 2" pan. Sprinkle top with remaining milk chocolate chips, caramel bits and walnuts. Bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes until pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Allow to cool before serving. Excellent with vanilla ice cream.

Honey Cornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup self-rising flour
1 egg
1/4 cup corn oil
1 cup milk
1 tsp pepper
1/8 cup honey

Mix all ingredients. Let rest 5 minutes. Pour into greased 8" x 8" pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Aeranthes's Stupid-Easy Tzatziki Sauce

Marie's recipe is the best!

1 quart greek yogurt (whole fat tastes best)
1 English cucumber, finely shredded, then squeeze all of the liquid out
2-6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. fresh dill, minced (or 1 tsp. dried)
1 Tbsp. good olive oil
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
pinch of salt and fresh ground black pepper

Mix it all up in a bowl, then spoon back into the yogurt container. Refrigerate for at least one hour, then eat with big wedges of pita bread (not that pocket pita nonsense, the real pita)

Chicken Pitas

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into strips
2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon allspice
Tzatkiki Sauce
lettuce
tomatoes
Greek pitas

Saute onion, garlic, chicken and spices in olive oil. Serve with tzatkiki sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes in greek pitas.