Pumpkin-Pecan Squares

A hungry ceramic pumpkin admires a holiday treat

Once upon a time, my cooking-addict mother and I happened upon the Disney of cooking stores: WILLIAMS-SONOMA. I about wet myself upon entering the store after smelling the delicious aroma pervading the surrounding atmosphere. I learned they were making Pumpkin-Pecan Squares and an angelic aproned grandma handed me a tiny taste. They were the most sophisticated treat I ever laid tongue on. A recipe was innocently laying beside the samples. I grabbed it, and clenched it in my hand, making sure no one would ever separate us. And no one ever did. The end.

If you make these, I give you my promise everyone who eats them will fall in love with you.

1 box yellow cake mix
1 stick (8 TBSP) unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs
1 jar pumpkin butter (see my recipe for pumpkin butter if you don't want to spend a fortune on Williams-Sonoma pumpkin butter)
2 TBSP milk
1 TBSP flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
4 TBSP cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350'. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking pan. Reserve 1 cup of cake mix in a small bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together remaining cake mix, melted butter and 1 egg. Pour into prepared pan. In another bowl, stir together pecan pumpkin butter, remaining 2 eggs, and milk. Spread mixture over cake batter. Add flour, sugar and cinnamon to bowl with reserved cake mix and stir to combine. Add cold butter pieces. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until pea-sized crumbles form. Crumble the mixture on top of cake. Bake 40 minutes or until cake is golden. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool. Cut into 36 squares.

Pumpkin Butter

'Ello my freshly canned and spicy pumpkin butta! 

If ever there was a food that captured Thanksgiving and Christmas at the same time, it's homemade spiced pumpkin butter. And before you question me on 'what the crap you are supposed to DO with pumpkin Nutella', let me correct your erroneous thought. Bread, cheesecake, pie, spread, muffins, marinade, soup, smoothies... only a fraction of the possibilities. (Click here for recipes!) The reason I'm SO excited about this, is because pumpkin butter is perhaps the most intense and most delicious thing I've ever made. The spices, and the lemon/orange zest bring out such flavor you would never find in a normal pumpkin sauce.

Zest of 1/2 orange and 1/2 lemon in wide strips

1 large can (29 oz) pumpkin puree plus 1/2 c water

2 cup brown sugar OR 1 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup mild honey or light corn syrup

3 TBSP fresh orange juice (strained)

3 TBSP fresh lemon juice (strained)

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp ginger

pinch of cloves

1/2 pecans or walnuts, VERY finely chopped

Simmer zest in 2 cups of water for 10 minutes. Drain and mince very finely, but only use 1 TBSP. Discard the rest. Combine zest in saucepan with all other ingredients except nuts. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, stirring often until thick. (About 15 minutes). Stir in nuts. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Ladle into jars and *pressure-can, or let cool and use in recipe.

*Note: Thanks to my mom for pointing this out... If you want to can your pumpkin butter, you MUST pressure-can it (vs. give it a boiling bath) or you'll die a horrible and gruesome death by that ole' killer: botchulism. Thanks mom.

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal

Why are pecans and pumpkin so good together!?

I'm kinda obsessed with pumpkin if you haven't noticed. I'm embracing the holidays and want my little apartment to smell like spices and pumpkin all the time! I didn't want to make another treat though, [see my increasingly fattening belly] so I settled on a breakfast food.

2 1/2 cups rolled oats

1/2 cup steel cut oats

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 cup packed brown sugar (more to taste)

2 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup cooking oil

1 cup pecans, lightly toasted and candied

Preheat oven to 400'. Lightly grease a baking dish, set aside. In large bowl, combine oats, powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and sugar. In another bowl, combine milk, pumpkin puree, and oil. Combine wet and dry mixtures. Place mixture into a baking dish and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and gently stir. Fold in 3/4 cup pecans. Bake for another 20 minutes or until top slightly browned. Serve warm with remaining pecans and maple syrup!

Poppy Seed Dressing

O the sweet goodness of poppyseed

 My poppyseed dressing is inspired by...Panera. I visited the restaurant in California this summer and ordered their awesome poppyseed dressing with hand-tossed salad, strawberries, blueberries, mandarin oranges, and chicken. It was delicious to say the least. And now that I'm spoiled with the sugary goodness, my palette won't accept balsamic vinegar, ranch, asiago, or any other "disgrace" to the name of dressing. Sigh. What am I going to do with him?

3/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 onion, grated, juice reserved (or 1/4 tsp onion powder)
1 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 TBSP poppy seeds

Blend all ingredients in a blender. Cover, refrigerate, and toss with a fresh fruit-and-Romaine salad!

Italian Pizza (Pizza Napoletana)

Fresh. Flavorful. Fabulous.

This stuff is authentic Italian. No meat, (especially no pepperoni), no tomato sauce, lots of tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and olive oil. It's so fresh and yummy you can probably eat the whole pizza yourself. Cuz I do.

Pizza dough (thin)

6 TBSP olive oil

1 1/3 cups mozzarella

3 Roma tomatoes cut into 1/4-inch slices

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1 large garlic clove, minced

10 fresh basil leaves + extra for garnish

1 tsp salt

Drizzle 3 TBSP of oil over dough. In order, sprinkle cheese, tomatoes, Parmesan, basil, another 2 TBSP olive oil, and garlic on pizza. Bake at 500' for 10 minutes. Drizzle 1 TBSP oil over cooked pizza. Sprinkle with basil garnish and salt.

PF Chang's Lettuce Wraps

Crunchy veggies atop crispy lettuce...what could be better.

You know...I've actually never been to PF Chang's. WHAT?! Travesty, I know. Yet, I know how to create to-die-for lettuce wraps that rival the restaurant's. Wrap your head around THAT one you overpriced Chinese bistro!!! Meh heh hehhhhh. :)

3 TBSP oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 cup water chestnut

2/3 cup mushroom

3 TBSP chopped onions

1 tsp minced garlic

1 head of iceberg lettuce

Stir Fry Sauce

3 TBSP soy sauce

3 TBSP brown sugar

3/4 tsp rice wine (or red wine) vinegar

Special Sauce

1/8 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 TBSP soy sauce

1 TBSP rice wine (or red wine) vinegar

1 TBSP ketchup

1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp hot mustard

1 tsp water

1 tsp garlic

Make the special sauce by combining ingredients in a lidded Tupperware and shaking profusely. Set aside. Bring oil to high heat in a frying pan and saute breasts for 4-5 minutes. Remove from pan. Mince chicken, chestnuts and mushrooms to the size of small peas. Add another TBSP of vegetable oil to the pan. Whisk all stir-fry sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Add chicken, garlic, onions, chestnuts, and mushrooms to the pan. Add stir-fry sauce and saute the mixture for 3 minutes. Serve in lettuce cups and top with special sauce.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I'm gonna eat choo!

Halloween is pretty much the funnest cooking holiday. Boy does my roommate get sick of the pumpkin I manage to integrate into breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. :) Her scream of delight when she saw these little breakfast jack-o-lanterns probably scared me more than anything else on Halloween. These are super fun to make and have an amazing pumpkin spice flavor too! Make 'em for your kids. Make them WITH your kids!

2 cups flour

3 TBSP brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

2 TBSP vegetable oil

2 TBSP vinegar

*1/4 cup chocolate chips (depending on how you want to decorate)

*Green and orange food coloring

Combine all ingredients but pumpkin, chocolate chips, and food coloring. Mix well. Add pumpkin and mix just until combined. Take 1/4 cup of batter in a small bowl and mix in desired amount of green food coloring for the pumpkin stems. Mix in orange food coloring in the big bowl. Prepare your griddle. Take 1/4 cup of orange batter and immediately place about 1/2 tsp of green stem on top. Creatively place your chocolate chips and fry until golden brown on both sides!