Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream

My advice to you is don't make these. They are too good and you will eat more than one. Maybe even more than two. In anticipation of this occurrence I scaled the recipe down so that it would only make 12 cupcakes. If there is one thing I don't need it is 24 cupcakes (of any kind) in my house. I can't be trusted!

If you dare to make these even after my warning...

You will need:

1/2 of a can of pumpkin (just eyeball it)
3/4 cup King Arthur all-purpose flour (no white whole wheat this time)
1/2 cup + 2T brown sugar (light or dark)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg
6T oil
2 eggs
******************
Cinnamon Buttercream

1/2 cup butter (I used Smart Balance)
4 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla
4T whipping cream



Preheat your oven to 350. In a large mixer bowl add the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.



Mix thoroughly and then add the oil and eggs.



Beat on high for 2 minutes and then add your pumpkin.



Mix just until combined.



The batter now looks and smells like pumpkin pie. Grab some cute Halloween cupcake liners and line a 12-cup muffin pan.



I used a 1/3 measuring cup and got 12 full-to-the-brim cupcakes.



Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. When they are done, allow them to sit for no more than two minutes in the pan and then remove them to a wire rack to cool. I couldn't wait and put them on a tray table in front of an open window so they would cool faster. :)



Look how cute and wrinkly they are! Adorable and they taste amazing with no buttercream at all.



To make the buttercream: cream together the sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Then add the vanilla and whipping cream and beat on high for 4 minutes. Frost them however you like. I don't get fancy with my cupcakes.



These cupcakes are super moist and ridiculously delicious. Only make them if you can take them to someone's house or a bake sale. They are too dangerous to keep around if you are by yourself.



Enjoy!!

Shepherd's Pie

I am not a Rachael Ray fan. Maybe it is the nasally, raspy voice, the uber-annoying hand gestures, or the fact that she makes Italian food which I don't really like. But her 30 Minute Shepherd's Pie is awesome. True to her word, it takes only 30 minutes from start to finish. Less really, if you use leftover mashed potatoes like I do.

You will need:

2 cups mashed potatoes
1T oil
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 small onion, chopped
2T butter
2T flour
1 cup beef broth
2 shakes Worcestershire
1/2 cup frozen peas
sprinkle of paprika and parsley


(I didn't take a picture of all of the individual ingredients.)

Rachael suggest 2lbs of potatoes mashed with 2T sour cream, 1 egg yolk, and 1/2 cup cream or chicken broth. I don't bother with all that. I just use leftover mashed potatoes from dinner the night before. This dish is great after Thanksgiving and you can substitute leftover turkey for the beef.



If you used a fatty ground beef, don't use the oil, but I use 97% lean so when I brown my ground beef I add 1T of oil to the pan.



Turn the burner onto medium high heat, stirring often. Add the onions and carrots.



While it all cooks, add the Worcestershire sauce to the beef broth. (I use 3 beef bullion cubes added to boiling water.)





When that is done and your ground beef and veggies are still cooking away, add 2T butter to a small pan over medium heat. When it melts add 2T of flour. I used white whole wheat, but any flour is fine.



Whisk together, bring to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes. Whisk constantly.



Then stir in the beef broth mixture, keep stirring for one minute. The gravy will thicken, but won't be thick.






By now your ground beef is perfectly brown with no pink remaining.



Stir in your gravy...



and the frozen peas.



Stir to combine.



Pour into an 8-inch baking dish. Usually I use a rectangular one, per Rachael's instructions, but on this occasion I had cheesecake bars in my pan so I had to settle for round. Turned out just fine. :)



Spread the leftover spuds on top.



Sprinkle a little paprika and some parsley on top. Fancy it up.



Turn your broiler on high. I put my top rack three rungs down in the oven so that the potatoes are not too close to the broiler.



Broil for 3 minutes or until the potatoes have browned slightly.



Time to feast, as Tink always says.



This recipe will feed a family of four with about a portion leftover--unless you also have a Tink in the house. Skinny as a rail, but she can put away more food than Bubba!



Enjoy!

Zucchini Muffins

I don't make these very often, but when I do they don't last a day--which leaves me to wonder why I don't make them more often. If you make these and have leftovers, they freeze beautifully for up to a month. Just take one out of the freezer on your way out the door in the morning and by the time you get to work it will be thawed. Paired with a cup of coffee, you have the perfect breakfast full of whole grains.

You will need:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup applesauce (all-natural, no sugar added)
1T oil
1/4 cup milk (skim is fine)
1T lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup shredded zucchini (1 medium zucchini)
1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)



First, prepare your zucchini. I put two zucchinis in the picture, but only ended up needing the larger of the two. I used my food processor to shred the zucchini...



but then used the blade to chop it up even finer. You can omit this step, unless you are trying to sneak the zucchini by kids. :)



In your mixer bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.



Combine thoroughly.



Then add your egg, applesauce, oil, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. (*note: if you use whole milk or cream you can omit the oil altogether. Whenever I replace oil with applesauce I like to add one tablespoon of oil to keep my baked goods moist. They need at least a little bit of fat.)



Mix well.



Now add the zucchini and mix until just combined.



And if your kids have been particularly well-behaved, or done something super cute, or you just want to treat yourself, add the chocolate chips. But these muffins are great without the chocolate, too.



Find some cute muffin papers and line 12 muffin cups.



Fill the cups about 2/3 of the way full. You will get 12 muffins this way.



Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Check them after 18 minutes.



The zucchini keeps the muffins so moist. With only one tablespoon of oil and natural applesauce you don't have to feel guilty when you wolf down two muffins!



They don't really need butter, but...mmmmmmm.



Enjoy!

Graveyard Cake

This cake is easy, quick, fun, and kid-friendly. Let your kids help you crush up the Oreos to make graveyard dirt, shape the gravestones, write the epitaphs, and add the decorations. I used cupcake toppers for decorations, but candy corn pumpkins would be even better. Peep marshmallow ghosts, gummy worms, fake blood, the possibilities are endless. Let your kids decide!

I made my go-to quick and easy chocolate cake. I halved the recipe to make enough for one 8-inch square pan. I topped the cake with Cookies 'n' Cream buttercream icing and then added another layer of crushed cookies (without the filling) to simulate dirt. The gravestones are sugar cookies with two drops of black coloring so they would look aged. You can make them from scratch, like I did, or just use the tube sugar cookie dough in the refrigerated biscuit section of the grocery store.

You will need:

1 cup sugar
3/4 cup and 2T all-purpose flour
1/4 cup and 2T unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup whole milk (important that you use whole and not skim)
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tsp instant coffee

(I forgot to add the cocoa powder when I took the picture. I used Hershey's Special Dark.)



Mix the dry ingredients (sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt) in a large mixer bowl and thoroughly combine.



Add the egg, milk, oil, and vanilla.



Mix for two minutes on medium speed.



Dissolve the coffee in the boiling water.



Pour into the cake batter and mix until just combined. Batter will be thin.



Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.



To make the buttercream you will need:

1/4 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 T whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla
6 crushed Oreos (with filling)



This buttercream recipe is my all-time favorite. I use it exclusively whenever I make buttercream. It's not too sweet, not too thick, holds up beautifully for my sculpted cakes, and has NO shortening flavor. Nothing worse than taking a big bite of beautiful buttercream and getting a mouthful of Crisco. (Nice alliteration in that sentence!)

Mix together the butter and sugar. Then add the cream and vanilla and beat on high for 3 minutes.



Add the crushed up Oreos (I used generic cookies) and mix until combined.



I added about a half a tablespoon more cream because the icing got a little too thick after adding the cookies.



After the cake has cooled completely, spread the Oreo buttercream on top.



I used my mini chopper to crush up 8 more Oreos without their filling. I thought that the graveyard needed more "dirt."



Shape and bake your cookies according to package (or recipe) directions. When they are cool write on them with a food-safe food coloring pen or with a bit of icing or gel. I had such fun thinking up epitaphs to write on the stones! There is one in the back that is hard to read. "Dracula--Fangs for the Memories" I used mini popsicle sticks to hold up the gravestones.



Have fun!!