pumpkin

Crash, Bang, Good Morning

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Good Morning! It’s been a bit of a messy morning over here but all is well and cleaned up now. I picked up pumpkin yesterday to make pumpkin pie oats for breakfast today and everything was going so well until I went to get the flaxmeal out of the freezer. I bumped my elbow and it was crash, bang, flaxmeal and glass all over the kitchen floor.

After a big sweep of the kitchen, which needed it anyways, everything was cleaned up and it was time for Pumpkin Pie Oats!

Pumpkin Pie Oats for two
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 3/4 cup water
1/2 cup pumpkin pie puree
1/4 cup unsweetened hemp milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp coconut sugar
2 tbsp flax meal (that I saved)
1 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp almond butter
4 tbsp raisins

Combine the oats and water in a small pot over high heat; bring to a boil then turn down to low and cook for 3-5 minutes. Once the oats are cooked stir in the pumpkin pie puree, hemp milk, cinnamon, coconut sugar, flax, and chia seeds. Divide into two bowls and top each with half of the almond butter and half of the raisins.

With my oats I swapped out my normal cup of coffee for a mug of Awake tea. I love this tea since I have been working on reducing my coffee intake to 1-3 cups per week.

Past weekend trip photos
When I was uploading the photos of breakfast I found photos from when we went to Northampton for the night back on the last weekend of August. Check out the these ones from breakfast at Cafe Esselon.

hubba, hubba


Hot Cocoa Pumpkin Chip Cookies

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The Hubz and I both at a craving for something sweet last night, however we are trying to watch our sweet intake as well as sugar in general. However it is the time of year for sweet treats so I decided to create something slighly lower in sugar and oil but still really tasty.

Makes 18-20 cookies

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup vegan margarine, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup raw sugar
  • 1/4 cup vegan hot chocolate mix
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 cup spelt flour (could substitute white flour)
  • 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven 350F

  • With a stand mixer or electric beaters, cream the vegan margarine, pumpkin puree, peanut butter, sugar and vanilla for 4 minutes.
  • In a medium bowl stir together the baking powder, baking soda, salt, whole wheat flour, and spelt four.  In the stand mixer on low or with a wooden spoon slowly add in the dry mixture until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
  • Using a measuring spoon scoop out heaping tablespoons of dough and place on a parchment lined baking sheet, bake for 14-16 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before removing and placing on a cooling rack. The cookies may seem slightly soft but once they cool on the baking sheet they will begin to firm up.

Slow Cooker Smoky Pumpkin Chili

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As soon as the snow comes so do the chilis at our house. Yesterday was going to be a busy afternoon so I decided to get a head start on dinner before I went to work. I honestly rarely use our slow cooker and it has been in a box for the last year, however I decided that I would give it another try. Besides slow cooked food is always better especially when it comes to soups and chilis.
I have to say I used to be a little lost about how the slow cooker worked and years ago i decided I wanted to make chili in the slow cooker so I chopped everything up and placed it in the slow cooker, turned it on and then thought it was just going to cook everything perfectly…including the uncooked rice I had added to the chili. Boy did I learn my lesson- there are certain things that need to be cooked prior to being placed in the slow cooker (like uncooked rice).

That being said I learned my lesson and this chili turned out really delicious.

Slow Cooker Smoky Pumpkin Chili

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 3 carrots, diced
  • 3 celery stalks, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder or you can use 2 chipotles in adobo diced**
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoons pepper
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 (15oz) can of low sodium vegetable broth, reserve 2 tablespoons
  • 1  (15oz) can no-salt added diced tomatoes
  • 1 (15oz) can brown lentils, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (150z) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon lite soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon umeboshi plum vinegar (optional)*
  • 2 teaspoons cocoa powder (make sure it’s unsweetened)
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add in the onions, carrots and celery; saute for 10 minutes.
  2. Stir in the garlic, spices and 2 tablespoons of vegetable broth into the onion mixture, cook for 1 minute.
  3. Add the pumpkin, vegetable broth, tomatoes, lentils, chickpeas, lite soy, umeboshi plum vinegar, cocoa powder and onion mixture to the slow cooker.  Stir to combine and then cover and turn the slow cooker onto low for 6 to 8 hours.
  4. After 5-6 hours stir in the corn and taste for salt and pepper.

*You could use red wine vinegar.

**Chipotle is essential to make this chili smoky

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Whole Wheat- Masa Pumpkin Muffins

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I don’t bake often because all the recipes I find are usually filled with sugar and/or oil; both of which make me cringe at thinking about putting all of that in 12 little muffins.  I was thinking yesterday what can I do to make a yummy baked good without all the sugar and oil and I came up with these yummy little things.

For these muffins I used pumpkin puree instead of oil and I used a little bit of agave nectar to add a touch of sweetness.

Whole Wheat-Masa Pumpkin Muffins

Makes a dozen muffins

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10-12 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 cups masa harina or fine yellow cornmeal
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 2/3 cups unsweetened almond milk or other non-dairy milk
  • 2 teaspoons coconut vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon agave nectar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400F and either lightly grease or line a cupcake pan

  1. In a medium bowl stir together the almond milk and coconut vinegar, set to the side for 10 minutes.
  2. In a large bowl mix together the whole wheat flour, masa harina, baking powder and salt.
  3. Whisk the pumpkin puree and agave into the almond milk.
  4. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined.
  5. Fill a 12 cup muffin pan and bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned.

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Thanksgiving Vegan Style

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The Hubz and I were lucky to be invited to a wonderful vegan Thanksgiving potluck on Saturday night at some (hopefully) new friends home.  We were a little nervous at first since we didn’t know anyone and I am a bit shy (yes me) when I first meet people but it ended up being a really wonderful experience.  Everyone was super friendly and we felt completely welcomed.  For the potluck I made my Thanksgiving Tart with a few twist- I actually made the crust and I added mushrooms to the mix. I had leftover crust so I made a rustic tart with roasted pear, apples and cranberries as well.

Along with my Thanksgiving Tart we had stuffed tomatoes, whipped sweet potatoes, shredded Brussels sprouts with candied pecans, stuffing, mushroom gravy and rolls- everything was really delicious.  For dessert we had cupcakes, pumpkin cheezecake, cranberry apple crisp and my rustic tart- I split a little bit of everything except the cupcake (which I am sure were delicious). I’m looking forward to the next potluck!

Table of Goodies

Heather's Plate

Payton's Plate

Payton's Dessert Plate

How are you celebrating Thanksgiving this year? What will you be making?

Pumpkin Love

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After hearing that the Starbuck’s Pumpkin Spiced Lattes aren’t vegan I have been wanting to make an “at home” version which is honestly way better on my wallet anyways.  I haven’t been out to the market to get non-dairy creamer so I was excited to come home and find a sample from Mimiccreme.

Well I saw that Mama Pea had come up with a wonderful pumpkin latte creation I had to try it. Unfortunately I only had the poser pumpkin (the good stuff is Libby’s) I decided to try it anyways.

My variation of Mama Pea’s Love In a Cup aka Pumpkin Latte

1 cup stove top espresso

3/4 cup non-dairy creamer

1/2 t pumpkin pie spice and more for garnish

2 T canned pumpkin pie filling

5 drops of liquid stevia

In a food processor blend the creamer through stevia.  Pour into a mug and then pour the espresso on top and sprinkle with more pumpkin pie spice

It was decadent and delicious and the Hubz is crying at work because he doesn’t have one so I guess I’ll have to make him one later when he gets home. Thank You Mama Pea!

You can read why the Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte ISN’T vegan here.

Falling in Love

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It’s Fall my favorite time of year and I am so excited to get back in the kitchen.  Lately most of my time has been spent in the kitchen working on recipes for my upcoming soup e-book but this morning I decided that I would try out a new recipe.

I have had a hankering for pumpkin and finally made myself some pumpkin pie oatmeal. It was delicious!

Ingredients:

  • For the Oatmeal:
    • 1&3/4 cup water
    • 1 cup rolled oats
    • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie puree)
    • 1/8 tsp ground ginger
    • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
    • 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 2 tsp chia seeds
  • For the Topping:
    • 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
    • 1 tablespoon pecan pieces
    • 2 teaspoons brown sugar

Directions:

In a small pot over high heat bring the water to a boil; stir in the oats and reduce to a simmer.  Simmer for 5-7 minutes until most/all of the water has cooked away.

While the oats are cooking place the pumpkin puree in a small bowl and combine with the spices and vanilla extract.  Place the pumpkin seeds and pecans in a small sauce pan and toast over medium heat until just lightly browned and aromatic.

Over the heat stir in the pumpkin mixture.  Turn the heat off and stir in the chia seeds.  Divide into two bowls. Top the oatmeal with 1 teaspoon each of brown sugar and half of the pecans and pumpkin seeds.