Pumpkin Praline Bundt Cheesecake

Today was one of those very productive days, you know, one of those that you literally get everything done on your to-do list plus bake a cake. Those are good days if you ask me! I knew I wanted to make a bundt cake of some sort and of course pumpkin everything is currently still happening. So I combined a pumpkin cake and cheese cake together and then I had a fancy taste for pecans so I made a fun praline topping! Nothing too over the top but perfect for a Fall treat. Happy Baking!

Cake batter:

3 cups flour
1/2 sugar
1/2 light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 (15oz) can pumpkin puree

Cream cheese filling: 

1 (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp flour

Praline topping: 

3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2/3 cup pecans, chopped
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Generously butter and flour bundt pan and set aside.
In the standing mixer with a paddle attachment add cream cheese, butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Beat everything together until creamy. Add flour slowly and beat until smooth. Set aside.

In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. In the standing mixer add wet ingredients; egg, vegetable oil and pumpkin puree. Mix until well combined, at least a minute. Next, add dry ingredients slowly into wet ingredients.

Pour about 2/3 of the pumpkin batter into the bundt pan. Layer the cream cheese mixture on top of that and spread it evenly throughout. Try to leave an inch of the pumpkin batter bordering the sides. (Note: you can take a butter knife and give the cream cheese a little swirl in the batter. Do not over do the swirl though!) Lastly pour the remainder of the pumpkin batter on the top!

Bake for 50-60 minutes!

While it's baking, heat butter on low for the praline topping in a small sauce pan. Once butter has melted add the brown sugar. Whisk constantly for about a minute or until the mixture starts to thicken. Add pecans and pumpkin spice. Give it one last quick stir and remove from heat.

Pour over the cake once it's cooled and removed from the bundt pan. And ENJOY!

Kitchen Donut party

The kitchen. It's my happy place at home. I mean, I sort of already knew that but today was the day that I really realized that it's sort of the place I spend the most time at home. I feel safe and kind of get into the zone when I'm in the kitchen. I have my own system when it comes to my cooking and baking. I put things in certain places and I usually have a pretty good idea about when it's the right time to knock some dishes out.

Today was a day where I spent most of my day in the kitchen. I always seem to find myself there when I have too much on my mind or not enough on my mind. When I'm too busy and need to wind down or when I'm bored out of my mind and need to keep myself doing something. Lately, I find that I've been challenging myself with different recipes or things that I would have never really had the nerve to create. I'm lucky for having my dad and mom around who are pretty good cooks/bakers to give me guidance when making things out of my comfort zone. It's fun being able to learn to cook foods from my culture or bake delicious goodies that you'd find in a bakery in Hungary.

Yeasted donuts. That was my challenge today. Honestly, it was a challenge from yesterday that pretty much went wrong. I'll admit it. Yeast scares me. I'm not sure what it is. Actually I do! It's the uncertainty about it. Will it rise this time? Yeast seems very finicky.

This project started yesterday and I just about gave up but then my mom swooped in and gave me a hand by adding a few more things to the dough like more yeast (because she suspected the yeast I had used wasn't cutting it), a dash of sugar and a bit more flour. We let it sit and it starting growing.

They turned out beautifully! I whipped up a simple vanilla buttercream to fill some of the donuts. I made a simple chocolate frosting to top some of the donuts and then a bowl filled with granulated sugar to coat some of the donuts, which is my favorite. We had a little mini donut party in the kitchen after they were all deep fried, yes, they were deep fried because we only live once!

I used this recipes from Brown Eye Baker.  Now go have your own donut party!

Boston Cream Pie Cake

I love to be in the kitchen cooking and baking things from scratch but sometimes it's nice to make something delicious and not have to spend hours doing so. Whenever I make quick desserts like this Boston Cream Pie Cake I always have a tendency to feel a little guilty for not using a million ingredients. But honestly, when you have a to-do list a mile long but want to make a dessert to share with the family sometimes you just need to suck it up and go the quicker route. That's when I have to realize that it doesn't make it less tasty or make me less of a person. It's like a constant pep talk! 

This cake was super simple to make and called for things like cake mix and instant vanilla pudding. Boy was I right about it not tasting less! It's like biting into those famous Boston Cream donuts what we all know and love. Not to mention the chocolate ganache brings all those ordinary ingredients together combining and leaving a lavish dessert to enjoy!

Ingredients: 

1 box of yellow cake mix + ingredients that are listed on the box

1 cup of cold milk

1 package instant vanilla pudding

1 1/2 cup Cool Whip 

2 (1 oz) squares of unsweetened bakers chocolate, chopped course

1 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons milk 

3/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions: 

Start out with mixing together the yellow cake mix, following the directions on the box. Split the batter into two equal parts and bake in two 8" round pans. Bake for recommended time. 

Meanwhile, mix together cold milk and instant vanilla pudding. Whisk together for about two minutes until it thickens. Add Cool Whip and set into fridge to help set the custard. 

In a sauce pan heat milk and butter for chocolate ganache on low heat. Once the butter has melted add chopped chocolate and constantly stir to enable chocolate to melt and prevent it from burning. Once chocolate has melted, slowly pour powdered sugar while whisking it into the ganache. As you start to add all the powdered sugar it will thicken. Transfer ganache to another bowl to let it cool while you construct the cake. 

Lay first round cake layer onto dish. Pour custard into the middle of layer and spread with a spatula. Use it all! Just pour that mound of custard on the cake! Do it! Gently put the next round layer on top of the custard. Simply pour the chocolate ganache on the very top and let it spread organically. It will drop off the sides and ooze over board but that's what makes it beautiful. 

Enjoy!

Nutella Brioche Flower

Just the other day someone on Facebook shared a killer time-lapse video of someone making an amazing dessert. The problem was it was all written in Italian. Even after using google translate it didn't really make sense so I set out to try to recreate what I saw in this video on my own. Essentially the dough is a brioche type of dough. After looking up multiple recipes I finally came up with a plan on how I was going to go about it all. I was pretty skeptical about it all with it being my first time attempting a brioche and because yeast is not my friend. I'm always a little nervous with with doughs that call for yeast. I was lucky because I had my dad for support and he helped me with little secrets on how to achieve the perfect dough. Of course I'm going to share those old-timer Hungarian secrets here so you all can try this at home. 

Brioche Recipes

makes 1 loaf or 2 Brioche Flowers

Ingredients;

1.10 pounds (500g) while flour 

1/4 cup (50g) sugar

1 packet (.75oz) dry yeast 

140ml warm milk

5 medium eggs 

Directions: 

1// In a mug warm up milk for about 1 minute. Pour in a whole packet of dry yeast into the warm milk. Stir milk and yeast together and set mug in a warm place to allow yeast to become active. I let it sit for about an hour. Once the yeast has grown you can start to make the dough. 

2// Put flour in a bowl fitted with a dough hook. Add sugar and soften butter. On the lowest setting mix that together. Once it's all incorporated then slowly start adding each egg. One at a time. Next start to pour the milky yeast, slowly. Now that everything is added into the mixing bowl let the dough hook work the dough on the lowest setting for about another 6-8 minutes. Dough will be soft, glossy and elastic. No worries! Tip dough into a glass bowl and cover with a towel. 

3// Time to let the dough sit in warm place to allow it to double in size and rise. This took about 2-3 hours for me. Patience is the key yet so very hard! I know. 

Tip: Keeping the milky yeast and dough in a warm place is very important. If you can't seem to find a warm place keep them in the microwave! I covered both the mug with the milky yeast and the dough with a thick dish towel and kept them in the microwave (of course not running!). Whatever works I say! 

Nutella Brioche Flower
(recipe makes two flowers)

Ingredients:
1 jar Nutella
flour for dusting
egg whites for brushing
non-stick spray

Directions:

1// Flour a working surface. Dump dough out and cut into 4 equal pieces. Starting with one piece take a rolling pin and flatten dough out pretty thin. Place a standard sized plate on top of dough and using a sharp knife cut out a circle shape. Discard excess dough into a separate pile. Layer a healthy amount of Nutella on top of dough. Gently pick up dough and transfer dough onto greased baking sheet. Follow same steps placing each pieces on top of each other layering them. The fourth and final pieces is the top and will not have Nutella spread on it. 

2// Now for the cutting! Place a small glass in the middle of the circle. Solid lines are where you cut first. Then the second cut goes in between the solid lines which are represented by the dashed lines. Lastly, another cut in between the solid line and the dashed line which is represented by the circles. So in the end you should have 4 little pie shapes in the four quadrants of the solid lines. I hope that all makes sense! If not the diagram should help!

3// The last and final step. Within in the each quarter of the circle there will be four little pie shapes. Grab two pieces and twist them outward completing a full 360. Do this all around the circle. You should end up with eight pieces that will look as if they are the pedals of the flower! To finish it off grab the ends of the each pedal and pinch them together to join them. Make sure you really pinch to combine the two pieces together.

4// Brush flower with egg whites and bake in an oven that's been preheated to 250 degrees for about 50 minutes or until it has browned slightly.

Reminder: Depending on how big you are making your circles you should have enough dough from the excess to create another brioche flower. I used a standard plate for sizing my circles which allowed me to do so!

Here is the original video that I had seen on my Facebook which inspired all of this to happen. It will help to make all these directions come to life, a visual really helps especially when all the twisting starts happening. 

The recipe for the brioche yields two of these beautiful flowers. I got creative with the second one and added a layer of raspberry jam! Best decision ever!
I haven't had this much fun in the kitchen in a while! The anticipation of it coming together and seeing the flowers shape come alive is so thrilling. It looks like a lot of work but really it's not all the bad. Most of it is just time. Waiting for the dough to rise was the worst of it. Hope all of you will try this out! Please let me know who it goes, post photos or tag me on Instagram @anita.schuler

our favorite chocolate chip cookies...

Sebastian and I multitasked today, first we started out making crayons and then while they were cooling set out on a batch of our favorite chocolate chip cookies. There's a million ways to make chocolate chip cookies. There is so many recipes out there and I've tried more than a dozen different ways but never felt like I had the perfect chocolate chip cookie until a few months ago when I tried William Sonoma's Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies. Literally perfect! Sebastian loves to be in the kitchen and for Christmas he was gifted the cutest little boy apron and chef hat. Being in the kitchen gives me an excuse for him to wear it and I melt every time. 

Ingredients: William Sonoma Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour/wholewheat flour 

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

6 Tbs. (3 oz./90 g) granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups semisweet chocolate chunks 

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350°F . Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. 

In a bowl, combine together the flour, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and mix on low speed until blended. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir in the chocolate chips.

Using a heaping tablespoon, drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the dough mounds 2 inches apart.

Bake the cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until the bottoms and edges are lightly browned and the tops feel firm when lightly touched, 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

We love these cookies! There's something about using light brown sugar instead of all white sugar. These cookies are super chewy and soft, which we really love. They aren't those thick sort of cookies. They come out thinner yet gooey. We also prefer chocolate chunks instead of chocolate chips, the more chocolate the better. Try them out on another rainy day. Like...tomorrow. 

xoxo.

raspberry rhubarb crumble pie...

I made the most delicious Raspberry Rhubarb Crumble Pie! I've been making a pie each week thanks to my dad who has been requesting them. Although, he's only been urging me to bake blueberry pies (his favorite) I made a point to try something new. I've never baked with rhubarb and actually this pie was my first rhubarb experience, same goes with my father and everyone else. While I was super excited to make it and eat it my dad was a little weird about, not very surprising since he's really rooted in his ways. He loves blueberry pie and doesn't want anything else. Well, he had no choice and he was glad about it because after the fact he told me that now this pie has become his new favorite.

Whaddya know! I agree with him too! 

I decided to pair the rhubarb with raspberry. I know that there is lots of recipes that pair strawberry and rhubarb together so I decided to be a little different and I'm so happy I did. The simply sweetly tart combination of the two and the crumble topping it's like no other. Highly recommend this pie. 

Ingredients: 
pie filling: 
pie dough (my favorite recipe) 
3 cups rhubarb, chopped
3 cups raspberry, frozen or fresh
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons cornstarch 

crumble topping:
3/4 cup flour 
1/3 cup light brown sugar
3 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold cut into pieces

1// Roll out dough. Place it into a 9 inch pie dish. Mold it to the dish and put a fancy edge on it. Take a fork and poke the bottom of the dough. Refrigerate dough while you make the filling. 

2// Preheat oven 375. In a large bowl add the rhubarb and raspberries together. Combine the sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch. Mix everything together. 

3// In a separate bowl combine flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and cinnamon together. Add cold butter and using your hands incorporate butter into dry ingredients creating clumps or crumbles. Sprinkle crumb topping on top of the raspberry & rhubarb evenly. Place pie in a heated oven and bake for about 1-1 1/2 hours or until it's bubbly and brown. If you feel like the crumb topping or the edges are getting too brown and the pie itself isn't baked all the the way through simply put a loose foil cover the pie. 

Ps: Try to wait until the pie is completely cooled down, all the flavors infused together! And ENJOY!

xoxo!

on new traditions...

Tradition are such a fun part of this time of year. I love to think about all the different ways people celebrate the Holidays. It's so cool that our society (for the most part) accepts each others family traditions. For us, we ended up splitting the all American Christmas tradition with my own Hungarian family tradition to create something that is special and unique to us. I love it!

Growing up we celebrated Christmas on the twenty-fourth. For my family the Christmas tree was never put up until Christmas day since Jesus was the one that gifted us with a beautiful tree. It was always such an amazing feeling walking out from my room to our glorious tall bright tree in the living room with all our wrapped gifts underneath. I still remember those feelings!

Right now we still celebrate on the twenty-fourth but usually put our Christmas tree up along with everyone else. As a kid I always sort of envied all my friends that were able to help decorate and enjoy their tree all the way up until Christmas so I wanted to bring that into our tradition. I'm happy we did so because hanging ornaments with Sebastian is one of my favorite things!

I love to adapt and add new tradition every year. Big or small they just make this time of year even more cheery when you have neat things to look forward to. This year I decided to try baking homemade cinnamon rolls. I've always told myself that I want to make homemade cinnamon rolls more often but I never do so I made it my mission to bake fresh buns on Christmas morning and establish a new tradition to carry on every year!

These cinnamon rolls aren't just any cinnamon rolls, they are Cappie's Cinnamon Rolls from Sandra Claus…A South Pole Santa Adventure! Cappie herself made these gems for Sandra and all her friend (including elves!). They are the most gooey cinnamon rolls you'll ever eat and the cream cheese glaze is to die for.

Best part is the author of The Search for South Pole Santa series is gifting all of us with both books on Amazon TOMORROW! So, don't forget to skip on over to here & here and download both books to enjoy on Christmas Day. Thanks JingleBelle Jackson. If you would like to get your hands on this recipe well, buy book two the recipe is right inside at the end of the book!

What are some of our family traditions? Any new ones this year??

xoxo.

on the best pumpkin bread...

We are extreme pumpkin everything lovers. This season wouldn't be the same if I don't bake yummy pumpkin treats. Although I haven't created as much as I usually do during this time it's still the best when I do. Sebastian was the one that inspired this Wholewheat Pumpkin Bread after he begged me to make some yesterday morning. It's quick and easy too!

Ingredients: 
1 1/2 wholewheat flour
1 cup sugar 
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin spice 
2 eggs 
1 (15oz) can pumpkin 
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a loaf pan, set aside. 
2. Mix together all the dry ingredients. Flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin spice. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl combine sugar, eggs, pumpkin, oil and vanilla. Mix everything together. 
4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and stir until completely incorporated.
5. Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until tooth pick is clean. 
6. Let it cool and serve! 

Enjoy!

on chocolate chip cheesecake bars...

 

I'm not a huge cheesecake fan but every now and again I'll get a craving for some. This time I sat down and wanted to think of making cheesecake but different. And these Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars were the best idea. I like how there's cheesecake yet at the same time I get a little chocolate fix. These little bars are easy to make and when they are done in the oven you can hardly wait to get your hands on them. My family will have the pleasure of sampling these tomorrow at Easter. What are you making for Easter? Any sweets? I'm always one to bring the baked goods to any family gathering! Enjoy.

Ingredients:

chocolate chip crust:

3/4 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup flour 

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 tablespoon baking soda

1 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

cheesecake filling:

2-8oz packages cream cheese, room temperature 

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Directions: 

preheat oven to 350°

1// Start with chocolate chip crust by creaming together sugar and butter. Then add egg and vanilla. Mix until combined. 

2// In a separate medium bowl combine flour, salt and baking soda. Add flour mixture to creamed butter mixture and mix until everything blended. Lastly fold in chocolate chips.

3// In a 13x9 baking pan press chocolate chip dough to the bottom leaving 1/2 cup dough for topping. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. 

4// For the cream cheese filling grab a mixing bowl add cream cheese and sugar. Blending until creamy. Add egg and vanilla. 

5// Once the crust is down, pour it the cream cheese over the crust and spread evenly. Next using a teaspoon drop the remaining dough right on top of the cream cheese filling. Set back in the oven and bake another 35-40 minutes. Let it cool and then cut into the bars!

 xoxo.

on blueberry cornmeal cake...

I originally saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Bleubird. Jame's introduced the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman, to me. She actually made this exact recipe and shared it on her blog. Once I saw it I went right to Amazon and bought me a copy. I mean, come on, the book on it's own is just gorgeous to look at. I had to have it! It was decided way before I even had the cookbook in my hands that this Blueberry Cornmeal Cake would be the first thing I try from it. I was toying with the  idea of making some sort of blueberry desert for a while now so this was perfect. Recipe as follows via Smitten Kitchens Cookbook. 

Ingredients: 

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest (I didn't have zest so I used 1 teaspoon lemon juice)
1/3 cup sour cream
2 cups blueberries, rinsed and patted dry 

streusel:
1/2 cup sugar
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornmeal
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon pinch of table salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (I used frozen and worked just fine!)

Cake directions:

1// Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder & salt. Set aside. 

2// Beat together sugar and butter until fluffy with mixer. Add one at at a time. Make sure you scrape sides while doing all this mixing. Add vanilla and lemon zest. 

3// Alternate by adding sour cream and flour mixture in with the butter mixture. Add a little bit of each until everything is combined. Next fold in the blueberries with a spatula gently. 
4// Spread batter in to a buttered or sprayed cake pan. 

streusel directions:
In the same bowl as your dry ingredients combine all the dry ingredients for the streusel. Add the cut up butter and either use a fork, pastry blender or even your hand (which is what I did) and mash everything together to create the crumb consistency. Sprinkle it evenly over the cake. 

Bake for about 35 minutes so that the edges are golden brown. Poke it in the middle to make sure it is done. I just use a toothpicks. As long as it comes out clean you should be set! Let it cool and indulge. 

The only thing that I did different was use lemon juice instead of lemon zest but only because I didn't have a lemon on hand and then also I sprinkle extra cinnamon on the top right before baking it. Only because I loooove cinnamon!!!

Yes, it's as good as it looks! Oh my. I brought it with me to my in laws for Sunday dinner yesterday and it was gone in an instant. Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee. Enjoy!

xoxo.

on a buttermilk cake...

Sometimes you just need to bake a cake. I've been wanting to make more sweet things lately and so a cake sounded like a good idea. I love using buttermilk when baking. I use it quick frequently. It gives cakes and pastries a nice texture & taste. This is my favorite Buttermilk Chocolate Cake recipe and has become my to go whenever we are in the mood for some chocolate. It's really great because there are endless ways to dress up this cake. I totally recommend this next time you bake a cake! 

Ingredients: 

2 cups flour

1 cup cocoa

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

1 1/2 cup buttermilk

2 teaspoon vanilla

1 3/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 stick unsalted butter

3 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

Directions: Preheat oven to 350

1//Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and set aside. 

2// In small bowl mix together buttermilk, vanilla and sour cream. Set aside.

3// Add butter and brown sugar in the mixing bowl and mix together. Beat until it becomes creamy. Add eggs one at a time on low speed. 

4//Next add dry ingredients and buttermilk mixture alternatively. A little bit of dry and then a little bit of the buttermilk mixture. Do this until all of both are in the mixing bowl. Mix together until smooth. 

5// Butter and sprinkle pans with cocoa so that the cake doesn't stick. Pour batter in either two 8 inch round baking pans or one 13 by 9 baking dish. I used the 13 by 9.  

two 8 inch baking pans bake for 25-30

one 13 by 9 baking pan bake for 35-40

You can use whatever frosting you love best. I used a simple chocolate glaze that I just poured on the top. I figured if I was doing this thing I'd go all the way man!

Chocolate Glaze-

Ingredients: 

3/4 cup heavy cream

6 oz semisweet chocolate 

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Directions: 

1//heat heavy cream over the stove. Once it starts to bubble turn heat down and add semisweet chocolate and whisk until it's all melted. Add powdered sugar. Mix well and pour over the cake evenly. Give it a half and hour to sit so that the glaze hardens slightly. 

Top it with some whipped cream and enjoy! If that doesn't make you do a happy dance then I don't know what will :) 

Happy baking!

xoxo.

on cinnamon chip & zucchini muffins...

I literally just made these scrumptious muffins and they are all gone! The boys love them and of course, so do I. Very simple and they're a great source of getting in some extra veggies. Really you can grate anything into your muffins and it comes out tasting spectacular. Zucchini is one of my favorite veggies to put in muffins and some times I'll even put some grated carrot. Sebastian is an extreme picky eater but heck he'll eat these bad boys like nobodies business. It's my best kept secret however just the other day my cover was almost blown when Sebastian asked me Mommy what's that green stuff? Let's just say I panicked and may have told him that it's green chocolate! What? It worked, he bought it :) Try these out, the family will eat them right up. 

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cinnamon

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup grated zucchini

1 cup Hershey's Cinnamon Chips

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350.

First peel and grate zucchini. I just used my cheese grater since I only needed one cup, it was really quick to just hand grate it. You can always use your food processor though. Set zucchini aside. 

Next combine the first six ingredients. In another medium mixing bowl mix eggs and oil together. Then fold in the dry ingredients. After that take the zucchini and squeeze out any water that it has let out and add it to the mixture stirring it evenly. Lastly add cinnamon chips!

Spray muffin tins and fill with batter 3/4 of the way. Bake for 22-25 minutes.

Enjoy!

xoxo. 

on cinnamon sugar pecans...

These sugary confections are soooooo easy to make and you'll be eating them by the handfuls. You will just have to trust me on this one. I swear I've been saying I want to make a batch of these for like 2749283647 years and it felt like today was the perfect day. I really don't understand why it took me this long because honestly, these tiny bits of heaven are super addicting and because they're so simple to make they are equally dangerous!
How nice would this be for a little Holiday gift? Make a few batches, fill up mason jars, slap a bow on it and call it a sweet gift for the lovely host of Thanksgiving dinner. Believe me that person will be thanking you at the end of the day when they curl up on the couch with a hand full of cinnamon sugar pecans.

Ingredients: 
2 egg whites
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract 
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
4 cups pecans

Directions:
1// Heat oven at 350 degrees
2// Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Pour melted butter over paper evenly.
3// In a large bowl mix together egg whites, vanilla, sugar, cinnamon, maple syrup. Whisk all ingredients well.
4// Add pecans and toss until fully coated.
5// Spread pecans across baking sheet. Bake them for about 30 minutes while stirring them every 10 minutes. Once done let them sit for 15 minutes until cool.

Enjoy!
xoxo.