Pumpkin Orange Chocolate Chip Bread with Orange Glaze~ “Have a Grain Holiday” #Giveaway

December 7, 2012 By 55 Comments

Tis the season to be jolly. That is the saying, right?

Well, if that’s the saying, then why isn’t there more jolly people in the world this time of year? Is it the fact that you have to brave the crowds for a gift that the manufacturer only made 50 of? Or, is it because you were patiently waiting for a parking spot, with your blinker on clearly claiming the spot yours, when someone swoops in and takes it from you? Maybe it’s all the shoppers talking on their cell phones and not paying attention to where they’re walking, running right into you without so much as an apology. Could it be the rude shopper that pushes you out of her way with her cart while you were looking at a shirt, not bothering to say excuse me? Or, is it because your cat won’t stop ringing the bell on your Christmas tree at night while you’re trying to sleep and you wake up groggy and sleep deprived?

I have good news, friends. There’s no need to go out into the wilderness and brave the elements when you can give the gift of food. Instead of buying holiday gifts, bake them. My mom and I decided to make and give homemade treats for the holidays. No braving the crowds, finding parking spots, or being run into by chatty Cathy. We’re going to relax in the comforts of our own homes in our penguin pjs while we sip  hot cocoa and whip up chocolate dipped rice krispie treats and mini bread loaves.

Hodgson Mill contacted me a few months ago and asked if I’d like to participate in their “Have a Grain Holiday” recipe contest. I couldn’t refuse a chance to be creative and bake up something delicious to give as gifts for the holidays, so of course I said yes. I decided to bake mini loaves of pumpkin orange  bread studded with tons of creamy chocolate chips and topped with an orange glaze.

These mini loaves are an adaptation of my pumpkin banana bread recipe, and they are amazing. Not only are they delicious, they’re healthy too. I used Hodgson Mill’s whole wheat flour and some Greek yogurt to give the recipe a healthy boost.

I really enjoyed using Hodgson Mill’s whole grain flour products. Each bag of their whole wheat flour is stone ground to preserve nutrients and taste. When you open up a bag of their whole wheat flour, you can see the bits of natural grain running throughout in various shades of tan. I decided to use their whole wheat flour and loved the toasted nutty flavor it added to these little loaves.

After making these loaves and giving a few of them away,  I toasted the remaining slices for breakfast and added a smear of pumpkin butter for good measure. Talk about delicious!

I’m going to trim these loaves with ribbon and gift them to family and friends for the holidays. What says happy holidays better than a gift made from your own kitchen?

Hodgson Mill’s was nice enough to provide me with a $25 gift pack full of their stone ground, natural grain products to give away to one of my lucky readers!

This giveaway is for one $25 Hodgson Mill product packs, including free shipping directly to your door! The giveaway is open to US residents only and will run from Friday, December 7th  to 6:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday, December 12th. The winner will be chosen by random draw. I will notify the winner by email and they will have two days to respond before another winner is chosen.  

To Enter:  Leave a comment telling me what you would make with your Hodgson Mill whole grain products.

For additional entries: 

Like The Messy Baker on Facebook
Follow The Messy Baker on Twitter
Tweet this giveaway using the following: Enter to win an @HodgsonMillInc #giveaway from @MessyBakerBlog
Follow The Messy Baker on Pinterest
Follow The Messy Baker on StumbleUpon and stumble this post
Follow Hodgson Mill on Twitter
Follow Hodgson Mill on Facebook

Leave me a separate comment for each entry. That’s 8 chances to win!

Click here to receive a printable Hodgson Mill coupon for $1 off on any flour or cornmeal product. Hodgson Mill is also doing a holiday gift pack sweepstakes. Click here to sign up for a chance to win, but hurry, the contest ends on December 9th, 2012.

5.0 from 1 reviews

Pumpkin Orange Chocolate Chip Bread with Orange Glaze
 
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Recipe type: Bread

Ingredients
  • 1½ cups whole wheat flour (I used Hodgson Mill)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¾ tsp. baking soda
  • ½ tsp. kosher salt
  • 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 tsp. orange zest (approximately the zest of 2 oranges)
  • 1 15oz. can pumpkin puree
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 4 tbs. melted butter
  • ¼ cup fresh orange juice (approximately the juice of 1 orange)
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • Glaze:
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp. orange zest
  • 2 tbs. orange juice

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan or 4 mini loaf pans.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, kosher salt, and pumpkin pie spice.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, brown sugar, and Greek yogurt. Add the orange juice, orange zest, and melted butter. Whisk to combine. Whisk in eggs and vanilla extract until incorporated.
  4. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. Don’t over mix. Fold in the chocolate chips.
  5. Scoop the mixture into the prepared loaf or mini loaf pans. If you’re using a large loaf pan, bake for 50-60 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean. If you’re using a mini loaf pan, bake for 30-35 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes before. After removing, allow the loaf/loaves to cool completely on a wire rack.
  7. Glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, orange zest, and orange juice until smooth. If the glaze is too thick to drizzle, add a touch more orange juice.
  8. Drizzle the glaze over the warm loaf/loaves. Serve.

 

 

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Sponsor Spotlight~ Anita from Hungry Couple

October 31, 2012 By 8 Comments

Happy Halloween! I have a very special sponsor spotlight for all of you today.

Do you guys know Anita from Hungry Couple? Well, you should. Here’s why:  Her philosophy regarding food is on point. She loves good food! What do you know, we have a lot in common. I love good food, too. Anita doesn’t believe in junk food, however, she does believe in delicious food made from scratch, like this pumpkin bread with cream cheese filling, and these peach crumb bars, or this lemon coffee cake (drool).

I refer to Anita as the Cocktail Queen, because any time I need a mixed beverage for a party, bonfire, or just to sip on while reading a good book, I can count on Anita to provide me with a delicious cocktail. She has a cocktail for every season. Fall? Try this apple pie martini. I did, and it was delicious. It tastes like a pie, but bites like a cocktail. Winter? Try this ultimate chocolate martini. It’s made with chilled hot cocoa, chocolate liqueur, and grated chocolate. I’d say it deserves it’s ultimate title. Spring? Can you say strawberry basil martini? Yum! Last but not least, summer? How about a peach martini made with fresh peach juice? The lady knows how to represent a cocktail. She even celebrated National Vodka Month and has a total of 52 cocktail recipes on her blog.

Since it’s fall, I felt compelled to choose one of Anita’s pumpkin recipes to make and feature. I had a hard time choosing one of her many pumpkin recipes, but after careful consideration, I decided on her pumpkin pie smoothie. There’s something about slurping my dessert through a straw that makes me happy.

This smoothie tastes exactly like the custard of an unbaked pumpkin pie, but without all the extra calories, as Anita’s recipe calls for greek yogurt and frozen bananas. It’s so good! I prefer my pumpkin pie without the crust, so this worked out in my favor.

Want this recipe? Trust me, you want this recipe. You can get it here.

If you want to be like me and stalk Anita, you can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest.

 

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Sweet Cream Stuffed Pumpkin Muffins~ #MuffinMonday

October 29, 2012 By 25 Comments

What? It’s Monday again? Wasn’t it just Friday, and wasn’t I just sipping on a delicious caramel apple pie martini?

Don’t you just hate how the weekend flies by at lightening speed, while the dreaded work week creeps by at a snails pace? Would it help if I told you I had muffins for you today? Well, I do and they’re quite special.

This week, An let us loose into the wild. She only gave us one rule…make something using pumpkin. That’s it? No recipe? No guidelines? Freedom? As you can imagine, I went a bit wild at first. I love pumpkin, and I wanted to make something special. Something different. I decided to make a pumpkin muffin stuffed with sweet cream cheese and topped with toasted pumpkin seeds and a cinnamon sugar crust.

Hello, muffin!

As you read this post, I may be flapping in the wind from the hurricane force winds, soaked to the bones from the relentless rain, or floating down the street in our fishing boat. But, hey, I’ll have these muffins to snack on!

The grocery stores have been packed to the brim with desperate shoppers this weekend, stocking up on bread, toilet paper, and milk in preparation for Sandy. Me, I stocked up on martini and muffin supplies. I suppose our priorities are different.

I just don’t understand the choice of storm staples. Toilet paper, I get (kind of). Bread and milk, not so much. If my power goes out, milk isn’t going to stay fresh. And, honestly, how many sandwiches are you really going to eat? I’m thinking water and canned goods are a better choice.

These muffins are the BEST muffins I have ever had. You get the crunch from the cinnamon sugar and pumpkin seed crust, then you bite into a moist, cakey muffin with the sweet cream filling. Oh, it’s good.

It’s dessert for breakfast.

Enjoy!

5.0 from 4 reviews

Sweet Cream Stuffed Pumpkin Muffins
 
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Serves: 12

Ingredients
  • Cream Cheese Filling:
  • 8 oz. cream cheese, cold
  • ¾ cup powdered sugar
  • ½ tsp. vanilla extract
  • Muffins:
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • 3 tbs. honey
  • ¼ cup canola oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup buttermilk
  • ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
  • Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ½ tsp. cinnamon

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with papers.
  2. Cream Cheese Filling:
  3. In a medium bowl, add cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Using a hand mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth. Place the mixture in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  4. Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
  5. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl, whisk to combine.
  6. Muffins:
  7. In a medium bowl, add whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix to combine.
  8. In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar, oil, honey, eggs, pumpkin, and vanilla. Slowly whisk in the buttermilk.
  9. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and whisk until just combined.
  10. Fill the prepared muffin cups about a third of the way with the batter. Add a half tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture to each tin, then top with the remaining batter.
  11. Top with pumpkin seeds and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar.
  12. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  13. Let cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

 

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Pumpkin & Apple Butter Granola

October 25, 2012 By 16 Comments

It’s officially fall in Baltimore. There’s a nip in the air, the leaves are a beautiful shade of bright red orange, the sky is cloudy and gray, I’ve busted out my hoodies and North Face jacket, and I’m still in flip-flops. I know that last bit doesn’t make much sense, but, because of my foot injury, I’m unable to wear my very favorite fall accessory…riding boots.

I own an unhealthy amount of riding boots (unhealthy for my hubs wallet, that is). There are 5 pair of riding boots just sitting in my closet staring me down every morning, pleading to be worn. If riding boots could talk, they’d be saying, “Uh, hello, we’re your favorite fall accessory. Why aren’t you sliding us on over a pair of skinny jeans?” They’re tormenting me. Of course I want to wear them, but my toes scream every time I put them in a pair of shoes. I’ve been walking the earth looking homely for the past few weeks- sweat pants, t-shirts, flip flops, ball cap, and bed head. It’s not a pretty site, people. Now, don’t get me wrong, I heart me some sweat pants and t-shirts, but not every day.

Yesterday was my first day back to work, and you know what I wore…bedroom slippers. That’s right. I wore bedroom slippers to work. We have a strict no flip flop policy at work, so I had to resort to bedroom slippers. I should have slipped on a moo moo to complete the ensemble.

By the way, I made you guys pumpkin and apple butter granola. I’ve done far too much donut snacking, ice cream snacking, and pie snacking while I was out of commission, so I felt it was time to make and eat a healthy snack.

This granola is full of pecans, pumpkin seeds, oats, and golden raisins. All the stuff that’s great for your waist line and good for your heart.

This granola requires little effort to make, but takes a considerable amount of effort to keep your hands out of the granola jar. Every time I walk past the jar, I find myself sneaking a taste.

This granola is very different from my maple nut granola. I like both of them for very different reasons. This granola is a chewier granola. It’s chunkier, making it easier to pluck a pinch and pop it into your mouth. It’s great for snacking.

I also sprinkled it over greek yogurt and drizzled it with some honey for breakfast the other day. Delicious and filling.

Happy Snacking!

5.0 from 2 reviews

Pumpkin & Apple Butter Granola
 
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Ingredients
  • 4 cups old-fashioned oats
  • 2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped
  • ½ cup pumpkin seeds
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
  • ½ tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 cup golden raisins
  • ½ cup pumpkin puree
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • ¼ cup apple butter
  • 1 tsp. vanilla

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, add oats, pecans, pumpkin seeds, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and raisins. Stir to combine.
  3. In a small saucepan, combine pumpkin puree, maple syrup, apple butter, and brown sugar. Cook over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla and stir to combine.
  4. Pour the mixture over the oat mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until all the oats are evenly coated.
  5. Divide the granola between the two sheet pans and spread evenly.
  6. Bake for 40-50 minutes, tossing with a spatula every 15-20 minutes, until the oats are golden brown.
  7. Place pans on a baking rack and cool completely.
  8. Break the mixture up with your hands and store in an airtight container.

 

 

 

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#MuffinMonday~Nutella Swirl Pumpkin Chocolate Muffins

October 8, 2012 By 20 Comments

Happy #MuffinMonday!

Why should you make muffins? Um, they’re delicious! Need more convincing? Oh, alright.

  1. They’re individual, which means there’s no need to share and, as you all know, I don’t respond well to sharing. I’m like Joey on Friends… Jennie doesn’t share her food. Sorry!
  2. They only take a few minutes to whip up, and I’m a huge fan of instant gratification. When this girl wants something, she doesn’t like to wait for it.
  3. They’re extremely versatile. Like bananas? Throw some in. Chocolate fan? Add those, too. The list goes on.
  4. Did I mention that they’re delicious? Well, they are.

Convinced?

This week’s muffin recipe happened to be something I already have on the blog, a chocolate banana muffin. So, I decided to shake things up a bit and make a Nutella swirl pumpkin chocolate muffin, and it’s damn good!

I know I’m going a bit overboard with pumpkin, but, in my defense, it’s fall.

The chocolate really shines in this recipe. There’s a touch of cocoa powder in the batter, a generous amount of chocolate chips studded throughout, and a dollop of Nutella swirled in the center. Chocolate fans… You’re welcome.

The pumpkin is there to aid in the moist, cake-like texture of this cupcake. This may be the moistest muffin I’ve ever had.

Enjoy!

#MuffinMonday~Nutella Swirl Pumpkin Chocolate Muffins
 
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Serves: 16

Ingredients
  • Dry
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • ½ tsp. cinnamon
  • ¼ cup cocoa powder
  • Wet
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • ½ cup chocolate chips
  • ⅓ cup Nutella

Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 16 muffin tins with paper liners.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and cocoa powder. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk pumpkin puree and melted butter. Whisk in eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients until just combined, then gently fold in chocolate chips.
  4. Fill each of the tins half way. Using a ½ teaspoon, add a dollop of Nutella, then top with batter. Swirl with a knife. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

 

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Orange Pumpkin Pancakes

October 3, 2012 By 23 Comments

Happy Wednesday, all! Today is a good day. Why? Because I’m posting my very first breakfast food on the blog. I made pancakes, and not just any pancakes, orange pumpkin pancakes. I had some leftover pumpkin puree in the fridge, and you know how much I love pumpkin, so I couldn’t resist making a jumbo stack of fluffy pancakes.

Squirrel (my hubby) isn’t a huge fan of pancakes (weird, I know), so I had to take on the task of eating the entire stack myself. I don’t make pancakes too often (thank you, Squirrel), so I was able to rise to the occasion. A jumbo stack of pancakes is no match for this gal; I took them down like a champ.

Hungry for pancakes? These are a must make pancake for fall. The warm pumpkin spice, zested orange peel, pumpkin puree, and fresh squeezed orange juice create the perfect fall pancake. I enjoyed these on Sunday with a homemade pumpkin spice latte, and they were delicious.

These pancakes only took me 5 minutes to mix up and 3 minutes to cook. You know what else is good? Pancakes for dinner. Talk about a quick meal, and the kiddies will feel like they’re getting a treat.

I like my pancakes crispy around the edges and fluffy on the inside with a hefty drizzle of maple syrup.

Enjoy!

 

Orange Pumpkin Pancakes

Dry

1 cup white whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
3 tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. orange zest

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and orange zest. Whisk to combine.

Wet

3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tbs. unsalted butter, melted
4 tbs. pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine milk, orange juice, melted butter, pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, whisk to combine.

Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat and add a drizzle of canola oil. Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, pour batter onto the pan (if you like your pancakes smaller, use less batter). Cook until the top of the pancakes are full of bubbles and the bottom is golden brown. Turn with a spatula and brown the other sides. Serve with butter and a drizzle of maple syrup.

 

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#MuffinMonday | Brown Butter Orange Pumpkin Muffins

September 24, 2012 By 26 Comments

Happy Monday, all!

It’s time for another #MuffinMonday. I was extremely excited when I received this week’s recipe, an orange pumpkin muffin. You know how I feel about pumpkin, and I’ll take any excuse to bake with it.

At first glance, I wasn’t sure how I was going to change this recipe to make it my own. Quite frankly, the muffin recipe sounded perfect with its combination of orange and pumpkin, so I was a tad stumped. I kept coming back to it, and then it hit me. Why not add some brown butter and maybe a sprinkling of white chocolate chips and toasted pecans? That’s just what I did, and they turned out beautifully.

The muffin by itself is amazing, but top it with an orange glaze, and it’s over-the-top delicious!

The flavor of this muffin is extraordinary. Imagine an extremely moist muffin studded with the perfect amount of white chocolate chips and toasted pecans. When you take the first bite, you get the warm flavor from the pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, then the subtle sweetness of the orange forms on your palate as you continue to devour the muffin. And, if all of those flavors weren’t enough, you’re hit with the nutty flavor of the brown butter and toasted pecans, then, to top it all off, the sweet orange glaze adds a burst of orange flavor.

Like I said, this is one scrumptious muffin.

Enjoy!

 

Brown Butter Orange Pumpkin Muffins

Dry:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Wet:
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup pureed pumpkin
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tsp. orange zest
1 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbs. orange juice
1 tsp. orange zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 muffin tins with paper baking cups.

In a small saucepan, add the unsalted butter and let simmer until it becomes brown and gives off a nutty scent, about 5-8 minutes. Take off the heat and let cool.

In a medium-sized bowl, add all of the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.

In a large bowl, add both sugars and eggs. Whisk to combine. Drizzle in cooled brown butter and whisk to combine. Add the pumpkin, orange juice, and orange zest, whisk to combine. Fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips and pecans. Spoon batter into prepared tins, filling each cup 2/3 of the way full.

Bake for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Drizzle with glaze.

For the glaze: In a small bowl, add powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest. Whisk until smooth.

 

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Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Banana Bread

September 21, 2012 By 29 Comments

Stress is real life, and I happen to be an active participant in this dreadful reality on a daily basis… No choice of my own, of course.

Here’s how stress works: 1.) It arrives at the most inconvenient time. 2.) It makes itself comfortable, then proceeds to drag you around by your feet for a few hours. 3.) And, if that weren’t enough, it leaves you tattered with your hair astray, feeling like you’ve just been run over by a Hummer (which is the worst, and dumbest, vehicle ever made).

Stress blows!

Here’s a list of things I like to do when stress rears its ugly head:

  • Take a jog around the neighborhood- pounding the pavement calms my nerves a bit, and the pretty sights distract me from my thoughts.
  • Paint my nails- the pretty colors put me in a better mood.
  • Beat some chicken or beef- I get out my meat mallet and take out my frustration on the meat.
  • Bake- I bust out my whisk and whip up a sweet treat, then proceed to eat it. This is by far my favorite way to relieve some stress.

I decided to bake you bread, today.  It’s a win-win situation. You get bread, and I get to say sayonara to stress. Everybody’s happy!

This bread is good plain, but it’s really good slathered with butter.

Got pumpkin butter? If so, smear a healthy dollop on top. Or, you could do what  Sarah from Baking Serendipity did, and make Pumpkin Bread French Toast with it. Um, yum! I choose the french toast.

Stress? What stress?

I found this bread recipe on Sally’s Baking Addiction, and as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to make it. My family and I loved it so much that I’ve already made it twice.

See that gorgeous dark line running through the center? That’s the cinnamon swirl center, and it happens to be the best part of this bread. The cinnamon sugar mixture caramelizes in the center, creating a sweet, moist center. It’s so good.

I added some pecans for crunch and pumpkin pie spice for a rich boost of warm pumpkin flavor. You need this bread in your life…Trust me!

I hope you like pumpkin, because this is just first of many pumpkin recipes on the blog. Happy Fall!

 

Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Banana Bread

Dry:

2 cups white whole wheat flour (or 1 cup all-purpose and 1 cup whole wheat)
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Wet:

3/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 ripe bananas
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup plain or vanilla greek yogurt
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Cinnamon Swirl:

1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan.

In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.

In a large bowl, add pumpkin puree and bananas, mash together with a fork or, my favorite, a potato masher. Add brown sugar, melted butter, and yogurt, whisk to combine. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk.

Fold dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. Fold in chopped pecans.

For cinnamon swirl: Stir together sugar and cinnamon

Add half of the batter to the bread pan and top with cinnamon swirl mixture. Top with the remaining batter and place in the oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

 

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Pumpkin Lovin’

January 30, 2012 By 6 Comments

Pumpkin has to be my favorite fall flavor! I know it’s no longer fall, but I miss pumpkin, so I decided to bake with it today. I couldn’t resist making this pumpkin scone recipe after drooling over the pictures in one of my newest cookbooks. The scones were plump and dripping with gooey caramel sauce. What can I say, I’m weak. Scones + caramel= no will power.

During the months of October and November, I tend to go a bit overboard with pumpkin. I put it in everything. There’s something about the flavor of pumpkin that makes me feel warm and toasty inside- it’s probably the warm spices that are associated with pumpkin that enhance its warm qualities. I’m not even going to tell you how many pumpkin lattes I drank over the course of the fall/winter season; it’s embarrassing.

Look at that dreamy caramel dripping off the scones. Who could resist? The thought of these scones sitting in your kitchen will cause you to wake up in the middle of the night, put your robe on, then wander to the kitchen to sneak a nibble.

One of the greatest rewards of baking is the rich smell that fills your house when you have something sweet in the oven. No candle, air freshener, plugin, or potpourri can come close to the sweet, spicy aromas that will fill your house while these pumpkin scones are baking in the oven. It’s a smell that will cause you to stop what ever it is you’re doing in the house to take a big whiff of the fragrant air that surrounds you.

Buttermilk, pumpkin, butter, and cream cheese assist in making this scone moist and cakey. This scone recipe is very different from a typical buttermilk scone. It’s tender, but not flakey, like most scones. These scones take on more of a cake quality. It’s moist and slightly dense, like a cake. The outside is crunchy, while the inside is soft and chewy.

The dough for this scone recipe is on the wet side. I suggest taking an ice-cream scooper and scooping the dough right out of the bowl and onto a greased sheet pan. I did it the hard way and tried to roll out the dough and use a biscuit cutter, but the dough was much to wet for that. I ended up resorting to an ice-cream scoop. I think I actually like the scoop method better. Less of a mess to clean up in the end.

The end result is a beautiful, rich, spicy, cakey, gooey scone. Definitely rewarding. Enjoy!

Love and sweet treats,

The Messy Baker

Recipe:

adapted from Alice’s Tea Cup

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 tbs ginger

1 tbs cinnamon

1 stick unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes

4 oz. cream cheese, cold and chunked (1/2 an 80z. brick)

1 1/4 cups buttermilk, cold

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

2 tbs vanilla extract

1 cup cinnamon chips

1 recipe caramel sauce, for glazing

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Prepare the caramel sauce recipe. For this recipe, you will not need to let the caramel sauce cool for the full 2-4 hours. After making the sauce, place in heat proof container to cool while you make and bake the scones.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ginger, and cinnamon. Using a pastry cutter, or your hands, cut the butter and cream cheese into the dry mixture until it is incorporated and has the consistency of bread crumbs.

Make a well in he center of the dry ingredients and pour the buttermilk, pumpkin puree, and vanilla into the well. Using a rubber spatula, or your hands, combine the ingredients until the dry mixture is wet. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the cinnamon chips.

Using an ice-cream scoop, scoop out the dough and place on a greased sheet pan. Bake the scones for about 20 minutes, or until lightly brown on top. Let the scones cool on the baking sheet for about 2o minutes before drizzling them with the caramel. By this time, the caramel sauce will have cooled long enough in order to glaze the scones. By the way, don’t be shy with the caramel sauce.

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