Sunday, November 20, 2011

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones

To finish off Pumpkin Weekend, here's a recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones!



Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
2 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup mini chocolate chips
2/3 cup canned pumpkin
milk for brushing
sugar for sprinkling

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice.
2. Add in the cold butter. Note: Cold, cut butter is the secret to good scones! Your butter needs to be in small pea-sized pieces. If you have a pastry cutter, use it! If you're like me and you don't have a pastry cutter, a couple of forks or a food processor will work just fine. Do not use your hands - the warmth will melt the butter! 
3. Add in the chocolate chips and lightly mix it all together.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the pumpkin and eggs until well-blended.
5. Add the pumpkin/egg mixture to the dry ingredients and use a spatula to mix everything together. Use your hands if necessary!
6. Put a sheet of parchment paper (or a Silpat) on a baking sheet. Form the dough into two round disks on the parchment paper. Flatten each disk until it is about 3/4 inch thick, and use a knife or pizza cutter to separate it into six slices. Spread the slices apart.
7. Preheat the oven to 425. While oven is preheating, put the scones into the freezer to set.
8. Brush milk over the tops of the scones, and sprinkle some sugar on each one.
9. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a scone comes out clean).

Dry Ingredients

Butter!

With butter added...

Adding chocolate chips...

Pumpkin + Eggs

All mixed up...

Adding pumpkin mixture...

The Dough

Two Discs

Cut into 6 slices...

In the freezer...

In the oven!

Ta-da!

Yummm!

 

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Icing

Happy Day 3 of Pumpkin Weekend!


These cookies are DEE-licious. They're a fluffy cake-like cookie, and they tend to get eaten up really quickly!



Recipe adapted from here (cookies) and here (icing).

COOKIES:
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, & salt. Set aside.
2. In a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla, and mix until smooth. Gradually add in dry ingredients and mix until combined.
3. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

ICING:
Ingredients:
1 8oz block cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup (half a stick) of butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. Beat cream cheese and butter together in a mixer until well blended.
2. Add in vanilla and stir. Add in powdered sugar one cup at a time, mixing until blended.
3. After cookies have cooled, use a knife or icing bag to spread/pipe the icing onto the cookies.

Dry Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

Cookie Dough!

Ready for the oven!

Ta-da!

Icing!

I put the icing in a Ziploc and cut the corner of the bag to create a makeshift piping bag.

Yummm!!


Delicious!

Enjoy!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Gran-mom's Pumpkin Pie

To finish up Day Two of Pumpkin Weekend, here's a tried-and-true family recipe!


When I was in fifth or sixth grade, my Gran-mom taught me how to make the pumpkin pie that she serves every Thanksgiving. Ever since then, pumpkin pies have been my job for the holidays, and it's a job I take very seriously!

Last year's pies!

My sister, my Gran-mom, my mom, and me!

We brought a pie to every Thanksgiving last year... we just spent the day driving pies around the Dallas /Ft. Worth area! Haha!

I know there are some people who just don't like pumpkin pie, but among those who do, this one is generally loved by all!


Recipe from my Gran-mom.

Ingredients:
1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (I use the Pillsbury rolled ones... they're delicious!)
1 15oz can pumpkin puree
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
1. Mix the pumpkin, condensed milk, eggs, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon in a bowl until well-blended.
2. Place the pie crust in a pie dish, and pour the pumpkin filling into it. Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top, and roll down the edges of the pie shell to form a crust.
3. Bake at 375 for 50-55 minutes
4. Serve alone, or with Cool Whip, vanilla ice cream, or even Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream!

Filling ingredients

Pie crust

Filling in!

(sides of the crust rolled down)


I tried something fancy this time and tried to do the cute pie crust braid thing that's going around Pinterest. I took an extra pie crust and sliced thin strips with a pizza cutter, then braided them and put them around the edges of the pie:





It actually turned out pretty well, although they did slip off and into the filling a bit. 



Ta-da!

Enjoy!

Pumpkin "Dump" Cake

It's Day 2 of Pumpkin Weekend!!!


I love pumpkin! Actually, I don't really. I don't like pumpkin spice milkshakes or pumpkin spice lattes (I know, I know, I'm crazy). But I love pumpkin in any sort of baked goods! I was a little wary of a recipe with the word "dump" in it, but it's called a dump cake because you pretty much just have to dump everything in the pan, and it turned out really yummy! It's got more of a "pudding cake" consistency... somewhere between pumpkin pie and pumpkin cake. Delicious!

Perfect in a bowl with vanilla ice cream!

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
1 15oz can pumpkin
1 10oz can evaporated milk
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix the pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, eggs, and pumpkin pie spice. 
2. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray, and pour the pumpkin mixture in it.
3. Sprinkle the entire box of cake mix over the pumpkin mixture. Then, sprinkle on the pecans.
4. Drizzle the butter evenly on top.
5. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes until the center is set and the edges are lightly browned.

Ingredients!

Mix, mix, mix!

Pumpkin Mixture

Pumpkin mixture in the pan...

Cake mix goes on top... 

Then the pecans...

Then the butter...

Ready for the oven!

Mmmm!

Enjoy!