Peanut Butter Pupcakes

At the bakery we make these pupcakes that Kirby is obsessed with. He will swallow them whole if I don't break them up for him. This is an at-home take on the treats with some healthy little twists for the pups. They'll love pretty much anything with peanut butter just like these peanut butter treats I made not too long ago. You can't really mess up dog treats :)

Tip for dog treats: if you keep them in a little jar on the counter like I do, only make a half batch of dog treats if you don't give them to your dog too frequently to avoid them getting moist or moldy in the jar. You can also keep them tightly packed in the fridge or freezer and pull them out as needed.

Just thought I'd share a funny video of the Kirb playing in the water from last summer at Lake Cumberland :) This was the little trip I made the lemon blossoms and s'more cookie bars for. Kirby had a blast, as you can see!

Peanut Butter Pupcakes
Adapted from Bakery Gingham

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup corn meal
1/4 cup wheat germ
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup skim milk

Directions:

Mix all the dry ingredients. Mix in the peanut butter until combined. Slowly add the milk until the mixture is moist but crumbly. Scoop into a greased mini muffin pan. Bake or about 20 minutes or until golden brown. This makes about 3 dozen pupcakes.

Pumpkin Pie Dip

I hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving! I sure did. Even now, I am still full. I tried to work out but felt like I was up to my ribs in food so I did what I could. Looks like that turkey weight is going to take some time to get off. I had a blast with my family. I hate how fast it goes. I feel like I never see them and there's always so much catching up to do.

As a family we all go out wednesday night to the bars where I grew up in Troy, Ohio. Shawn got to join in this time. I was so excited for him to come along and meet the family and see how crazy fun we can be. Apparently between taking shots, taking aspirin for a headache and not having dinner, I did not last too long. I was bummed because I feel like I missed out and was a bad hostess to Shawn. Usually, all of us cousins manage to do behave more than the adults and we make fun of how tipsy and funny they are....there's always next year.

I still have like 46839 pumpkin recipes and will be sharing them for those of you who have pumpkin leftover. Even though Thanksgiving is over, pumpkin is year-round for me. I love it. Of course, during the holidays I go a little overboard....

This is a dip recipe I found on a website I like to go to when I am looking for lighter yummy dishes. This is good with fruit or graham crackers. Warning: this stuff can be dangerous..... 0:)

Pumpkin Pie Dip
From Ginas Skinny Recipes

Ingredients:

15 oz can pumpkin

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
6 oz fat free Greek yogurt (3/4 cup)
8 oz cool whip free (1 cup)

Directions:

Mix pumpkin with brown sugar, vanilla and spices, blend well. Mix in yogurt. Fold in cool whip and chill in refrigerator until ready to eat.

Makes about 6 cups.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing

PUMPKIN CINNAMON ROLLS! I know right?! I freaked out when I saw pumpkin cinnamon roll recipes floating around. I just knew I had to try them. They turned out really good with one minor problem...I have 0 patience. Someone who likes baking and has no patience...unheard of...but it's true. Waiting for yeast to rise is amazingly difficult for me so unfortunately, my rolls were a tad too small. I recommend finding something productive to preoccupy yourself with while you wait and do not do what I did and stare at them while drooling at the mouth and imagining how absolutely amazing they are going to be.

In case I don't post again until then, I hope everyone hass a happy Thanksgiving! I am so excited! Last night some close friends and I had a pre-Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving practice potluck. We ate a ton and played cards. I had a blast and it only got me even more excited to spend the holiday with my family Thursday. Every year, the wednesday before Thanksgiving we all go out and catch-up and drink and have so much fun and then spend all day Thursday being lazy, hungover and of course...eating. Can't wait! :)

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Adapted from food.com

Ingredients:

Dough:
1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup canned pumpkin or 1/2 cup mashed cooked pumpkin
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1 (1/4 ounce) package dry yeast
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup bread flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice


Filling:
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed (or more if you like)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (or more if you like)
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons melted butter

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

In small saucepan, heat milk and 2 tablespoons butter just until warm (120-130 degrees) and butter is almost melted, stirring constantly. Dissolve yeast in warm milke In large mixer bowl, combine pumpkin, sugar, 1  teaspoon cinnamon,  1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice and salt. Add milk mixture and beat with electric mixer until well mixed. Beat in egg.

In separate mixing bowl, combine flours. Add half of flour mixture to pumpkin mixture. Beat mixture on low speed 5 minutes, scraping sides of bowl frequently. Add remaining flour and mix thoroughly (dough will be very soft). Turn into lightly greased bowl, then grease surface of dough lightly.

Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Turn onto floured surface. Knead a few turns to form a smooth dough, sprinkling with enough additional flour to make dough easy to handle. On lightly floured surface, roll dough into 12x10 inch rectangle.

In small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Brush surface of dough with melted butter. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. Beginning with long side of dough, roll up jellyroll style. Pinch seam to seal. With sharp knife, cut roll into 12 1- inch slices. Place rolls, cut side up, in greased 9 inch square baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, 30 to 45 minutes.

Bake rolls at 350 degrees about 20 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan to waxed paper-lined wire rack. Cool 10 to 15 minutes.

In a food processor, mix all frosting ingredients until smooth. Wait until rolls have cooled somewhat to frost.

Cherry Oatmeal Bars

Some time ago I posted a stone fruit bar thinking it was the closest thing to this bar from the bakery that I am obsessed with. At the bakery we have this Cherry Oat bar and it is one of my most favorite things we make (among many others). Little did I know I had this little recipe saved that is very similar (sharing our recipe would just be mean). I lightened the recipe just a tad so I could allow myself more than one bar (I'm sick I know). These are probably the closest thing there is out there to satisfy my craving of the cherry oat bar and can't get them at the bakery. Trust me, they're good.

Cherry Oatmeal Bars
Adapted from myrecipes.com

Ingredients:

Crust:
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4whole wheat flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, melted
3 tablespoons reduced-sugar orange juice
Cooking spray

Filling:
1 1/3 cups dried cherries (about 6 ounces)
3/4 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325°.

 To prepare crust, weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through cinnamon) in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle butter and juice over flour mixture, stirring until moistened (mixture will be crumbly). Reserve 1/2 cup oat mixture. Press remaining oat mixture into the bottom of an 8–inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray.

To prepare filling, combine cherries, sour cream, granulated sugar, and remaining ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well. Spread cherry mixture over prepared crust; sprinkle reserved oat mixture evenly over filling. Bake at 325° for 40 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

Pumpkin Spice Granola

I love granola. It is so great in the morning with vanilla yogurt and fresh berries or simply on its own with a little milk. My only problem with it is buying it and finding out it is loaded with uneccesary sugar. I prefer the Bear Naked Granola but even some of those have a lot of sugar. I was pleased to find some promising recipes online with room to tweak the recipes and make it my own. Making granola at home is easy, makes your house smell amazing and you can control what goes in it and how much sugar there is. This is just the perfect fall granola recipe...I'm kind of in love with it.

Pumpkin Spice Granola
Adapted from petitchef.com & Greens and Chocolate

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup brown sugar/splenda blend
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup applesauce
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (not salted), chopped (food processor helps)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In large bowl, combine spices, salt, brown sugar, pumpkin, applesauce, maple syrup, and vanilla. Whisk to combine. Add oats and stir to combine.

Spread onto prepared baking sheet.

Bake 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, stir granola around on baking sheet. Sprinkle with nuts and bake 15 more minutes. If the granola is not completely done (most likely the middle of the sheet depending on the size of your baking sheet) stir around a little more and bake 5-10 more minutes. Keep close eye if baking the extra 5-10 minutes.

Cool on pan. After cool, add in dried fruit.

Tequila Berry's Salad

I've mentioned once or twice that my dad's side of the family lives in Minnesota. I was born there but was too young to remember when we moved to Ohio. Sure Minnesota is freezing cold and starts having blizzards in August but in the Summer, it is beautiful. With all the lakes, there is so much to do. The summer weather is perfect...not too hot and you just really come to appreciate the great outdoors. I also love going up there for Christmas because it really is like a winter wonderland...of course I can only do it for a week because I detest the cold.

Every summer, for as long as I could remember, we would drive the 13 hour drive to Minnesota to celebrate the 4th of July with family. We always ate a lot, watched a ton of movies and had the craziest water balloon fights. One year, my aunt Donna made this salad for a cookout. I've always remembered that odd salad fondly. It was sweet, but had mayonnaise and bacon...very strange but oh-so-good. Apparently, this salad recipe comes from a restaraunt called Tequila Berry that is no longer around but was once enjoyed in Minneapolis and well-known for this salad.

After a pretty quick google search I found an endless list of Tequila Berrys salad recipes. They were all different so I pick and chose from several and put the salad together the best I could from memory. It turned out just like I remembered.

Tequila Berry's Salad
From...all over google :)

Ingredients:

Salad:
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
1/2 pound of bacon, cooked and chopped
1/4 head of cauliflour, chopped
1/3 cup parmesan, grated
1/3 cup frozen peas, thawed (I added this for fun)

Dressing:
2 tablespoons buttermilk
1/2 cup mayo
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions:

Combine all the salad ingredients and. Combine all of the dressing ingredients. Then combine the salad and dressing until well mixed. Serve immediately.

Maple Oatmeal Scones

My blog has finally reached 100 followers! How exciting! YAY! :)

I was never really into scones until I tried the sour lemon one we make at the bakery and decided I had them all wrong. I was watching The Food Network one afternoon (I know, it's shocking) and Ina Garten was making these maple oatmeal scones. They looked farely easy and reminded me of fall and I love maple so I decided to give them a try.

They're not bad. I felt like they were missing something...maybe a little vanilla extract or spice or something but they were satisfying enough. I changed the recipe slightly to make up for what I felt was missing and perhaps I shall try again :)

Maple Oatmeal Scones
From foodnetwork.com

Ingredients:

For the Scones:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats, plus additional for sprinkling
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup cold buttermilk
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
4 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk or water, for egg wash
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

For the Glaze:
1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flours, oats, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Blend the cold butter in at the lowest speed and mix until the butter is in pea-size pieces. Combine the buttermilk, maple syrup, vanilla and eggs and add quickly to the flour-and-butter mixture. Mix until just blended. The dough may be sticky.

Dump the dough out onto a well-floured surface and be sure it is combined. Flour your hands and a rolling pin and roll the dough 3/4 to 1 inch thick. You should see lumps of butter in the dough. Cut into 3-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Brush the tops with egg wash. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are crisp and the insides are done.

To make the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar, maple syrup and vanilla. When the scones are done, cool for 5 minutes and drizzle each scone with 1 tablespoon of the glaze. I like to sprinkle some uncooked oats on the top, for garnish. The warmer the scones are when you glaze them, the thinner the glaze will be.

Pumpkin Butter

I've always heard about pumpkin butter and was actually reluctant about it. I know as a pumpkin lover that sounds crazy right? I think I just couldn't get the pairing of pumpkin and butter out of my head. It's actually more comparable to apple butter and reminds me of a jam almost.

It is actually delicious and can be used for things other than putting on top of toast. If you heat a tablespoon or so of it with some skim milk until the two are combined and add that to your coffee with some pumpkin pie spice and a dallop of fat free cool-whip you can have yourself a homemade pumpkin spice latte! I will have to come up with a recipe and post it sometime here before my favorite season is long gone.

Pumpkin Butter
From danicasdaily.com

Ingredients:

1 15-oz can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup agave syrup or honey
1 Tbsp Pure Maple Syrup
1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Cinnamon
3/4 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
Pinch of salt

Directions:

Combine the pumpkin, agave nectar, maple syrup and vanilla extract in a small saucepan over medium heat, mixing until well combined. Stirring constantly, cook for about 15 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in the spices and salt, and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Remove the pan from heat, and transfer your pumpkin butter to a small bowl or jar. Let cool completely before covering and refrigerating. Pumpkin butter will keep for about 2 weeks in a covered air tight container in the refrigerator.

Bierock Casserole

Bierocks are a traditional German dish. They're usually pastry or rolls stuffed with beef and sauerkraut or cabbage. I noticed a recipe once that was a bierock casserole and I loved that idea but noticed the recipe seemed bland and needed more oomph. So I took the idea and ran with it and decided to make it for my German potluck where I made the German Pumpkin Cheesecake and Pumpkin Cream Puffs.

I think it is safe to say that a lot of people are turned off by sauerkraut. I know it does not smell the best but I love it. I think it is delicious, especially on a brat with brown mustard and onions. I expected that my potluck guests would be reluctant to try this dish because of the sauerkraut but they all tried it and proclaimed that they actually liked it and barely noticed the sauerkraut. Yay! I love surprising people with food!

Some fun facts about German food and drink (for fun thats why!)

You would have to try one kind of German bread per day for almost a whole year in order to be able to taste them all! There are over 300 different kinds of bread in Germany.

Germans really do love beer; they rank second in world-wide beer consumption per person after Ireland.

Betcha didn't know one of those! ;)

Bierock Casserole

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

3 (8 oz) cans refrigerated reduced-fat crescent rolls
3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb turkey sausage
2 cups sauerkraut, drained
1 (1 oz) package dry onion soup mix
2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/2 cup dark german beer (such as becks or st paulis girl)
1 1/2 cups pepperjack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Brown onion, ground beef and sausage in a large skillet over medium high heat. Drain fat then stir in beer, sauerkraut, onion soup mix, caraway seeds, and garlic powder and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Press one and a half packages of crescent roll dough in the bottom of a lightly greased casserole dish (9x13). Spread the meat and sauerkraut mixture on top. Sprinkle with pepperjack. Then layer the rest of the crescent roll dough on top of the beef mixture, overlapping just a little. Sprinkle with the parmesan.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

This weekend, Shawn (my boyfriend) and I decided that our relationship revolves around food. We are always eating and if we're not eating we're talking about food. All of my favorite moments with him are usually involving food somehow. I am not sure if this is sad or pathetic or what but thats what we decided...that was just a sidenote.

To dogs! Kirby (my dog) loves food as much, if not more than Shawn and I. Okay so maybe it's not possible to like food more than we do but he's a pug so the little fatty will eat anything. Perhaps he gets it from his mama. He actually eats tomatos and grapes and snatched up a generous chunk of a poblano pepper that I dropped on the kitchen floor while making soup the other day.

Clearly, Kirby is special but he, like probably every dog on the face of the earth, looooves peanut butter. It makes him crazy. There's no point of even putting effort into trying to get him to do a trick with peanut butter involved because he fricken loses his mind and will do every trick he knows in one sloppy series of frantic movement regardless of what you tell him. You just know if he could talk he would yell "There! I did them all now give me the treat already!"

Speaking of tricks, Kirbs got a few good ones down...given that they aren't peanut butter treats. I am still working on some but this one is a work in progress but it is my favorite. :) (I pretend to shoot him and he "plays dead")

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

From all-natural-dog-treat.com

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups white flour

1/2 cup peanut butter (all-natural or organic)

1 cup water

2 tablespoons oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Combine oil, peanut butter and water. Add flour, one cup at a time, forming a dough. Knead dough into firm ball and roll to 1/4 inch thickness.

Cut into 3 to 4 inch pieces. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes. Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies.