Rum Spiced Soft Pumpkin Muffins

Okay, I have two pretty neat and equally exciting things to share today. Number one, we have over 500 likes on Facebook! Must be all those Alaskan pics. Cool beans, huh? Sometimes it's fun to get excited about such little things. Number two, Swiftype is finally working again! Hurray! Swiftype populates the search bar, which I love. So if you type in "muffins" it will population a list of all my muffin recipes. Or if you type in "spinach" it will populate a list of all my recipes including spinach! I was driven utterly bonkers while it wasn't working. So, anyways, both are...preh-tee, preh-tee, preh-TEE exciting.  Happy New Years! I must confess; New Years is my absolute least favorite holiday. Truly, it's the worst. What do I hate more than rambunctious parties? Fireworks. I'm like a dog in that regard, I suppose. Bailey hates them as well. We have to make him a bomb shelter in tub. Plus, staying up until midnight!? Not for this ol' gal. Yes, I'm the The Grinch Whole Stole...New Years. This is not to dispute the fact that I did, however, have a lovely New Years eve.

Todd and I went to a low-key, sit-around-table and talk with the lights low while soft music plays in the background type of party. There may have been vegan spring rolls and oreos and vegan caramel corn involved. I would like to take a moment to thank that special person in my life who made all that possible! Thank you! And I didn't even have to drink or stay up until midnight, either. Man, what a party pooper! We were the youngest there and the first to leave. In bed by 11:30pm, it was all pretty pathetic of us to be honest. Two childless, mid-twenty somethings should definitely be able to do better than that. I'll put it on the list of New Years resolutions. Just kidding...I don't do those...

Any who, to this geriatric little shindig, I brought some fabulous pumpkin muffins! I whipped them right up after work, all in a snap and let me tell you , they are absolutely one of the best muffins I've ever had, truly. 

These guys are so incredibly soft and borderline gooey. They almost melt in your mouth! You may think they need a little more time in the oven, but they're supposed to be very moist. With just a whisper of rum, and deliciously spiced these fluffy, sweet muffins are kindred to a perfect pumpkin pie and will be a total hit at any party.

Rum Spiced Soft Pumpkin Muffins

Makes 12

• Dry:
• 1 3/4 cup whole wheat white flour
• 1 cup vegan sugar (I like Zulka)
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
• Wet:
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup cartoned coconut milk
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. molasses
• 2 Tbsp. spiced dark rum (optional)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. 

In a medium bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Do you adore my sweet little measuring spoons? I love them!

Preheat the oven to 400 F and coat a regular muffin pan with a nonstick cooking spray. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. I got The Flavor Bible for Christmas and pretty much died on the spot. 

Divide batter evenly in the muffin pan and bake at 400 F for about 20 minutes. The edges should begin brown slightly and the top of the muffin should bounce back when gently poked with a finger.

Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan, before popping them out. My god! Look how gooey and soft!

I couldn't of pulled it off without my kitchen helpers. Okay, that's not true, they are mostly a hindrance. Like furry, oddly-shaped movable rugs that are constantly tripping me and trying to snatch things off the table when my head's turned. Not pictured: Todd.

Swaying to Ane Brun – Halo

See the Go Dairy Free contest page.

See the So Delicious facebook page

[yumprint-recipe id='58']Inspired by IsaChandra

Maple Ginger Pancakes

Friday night I wasn't feeling so good. Now, I see it was a precursor to what would be an absolutely horrid weekend (non-work related ER trip, broken car, lady burdens, etc). The only beacons of light were these pancakes and wedding dress shopping with my best bud. Not necessarily in that order, but just, you know. Well anyways, on Saturday morning I woke up, rolled over and what is the first thing I see? The jar of crystallized ginger slices that made their way to bed with me because my tummy was feeling sad. "Yum, ginger!" 

I knew two things during that moment of ignorant bliss with regards of what was to come. We should have pancakes for breakfast and these ginger slices definitely needed to be incorporated. 

These. Pancakes. Are. So. Good. I might make them for dinner tonight. Seriously. Except, I'm out of flour and I have no car...so...maybe not.

Some of my prior pancake-scapades were pretty lackluster (you didn't get to see them), but these pancakes are perfect. They are so light and fluffy and have the absolute perfect texture. Sweetened with maple syrup and speckled with chewy bits of candied ginger, these pancakes will be the highlight of your weekend! My new favorite breakfast! 

Maple Ginger Pancakes

Inspired by my freakish obsession with ginger

Serves 2 (7 medium pancakes)

• 1 cup flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp. crystallized ginger slices, minced (plus a little extra for garnish)

In a medium bowl whisk together the first five ingredients. 

Make a little hole within the flour mixture and add in the syrup and the water. Stir gently a few times, then add in the chopped ginger and stir until just combined. There might be sprays of flour and that's okay. Do not overmix. 

Over low, heat a large frying pan. Coat with a nonstick cooking spray. Once the pan is heated, pour in 1/4 cup of the batter. Allow to cook until it starts to form bubbles, then coat the top of the pancake with the nonstick cooking spray and flip. Allow to cook until browned and cooked through.

Repeat with the remainder of the batter. This will make about seven medium pancakes. 

Serve warm and topped with a slathering of vegan butter, a splash of maple syrup and garnished with chopped candied ginger. 

And here is bob just taking in the morning...before the bummer-storm.

Let he without sin cast the first stone, or something like that. Britney Spears – Perfume Maybe I'll have a meltdown, too. BRecipe Card

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Healthy Caramel Oat Bran Muffins

Happy Halloween everyone! Today I am not Katie, but Deb, from Napoleon Dynamite. I have a super scary, super spooky, super Halloweenie recipe for you today...Caramel Oat Bran Muffins! Muah-ha-ha-ha-haaa. Okay, so they aren't scary, spooky, or particularly Halloweenie. I didn't even make like a white icing to render mummies on the top or anything. I know, I know. I am the worst. I just never get into the whole Holiday food decorating thing. I wish I could, but I just can't. If you want cutesy recipes (and who doesn't?) there are tons, upon tons of recipes on the world wide web that can satisfy. I'm like the food Scrooge of Halloween. I realize that makes no sense.

Anyways, I made these Caramelesc Oat Bran Muffins for a little family Halloween get together tonight. Perhaps they are a bit of a treat and a trick, though. A treat because they are obviously delicious. I am a huge fan of oat bran muffins. Quaker has the best recipe, hands down. And they are a bit of a trick because there's actually no caramel in them. Hah HAH! Yes. It's true. I'm evil...or wonderful?

So here's the story. I really wanted to put pumpkin chips in these. You know...like the little pumpkin flavored chocolate chip things? Yea, the store didn't have them. Did I imagine that these were a thing? I suppose it's possible. Anyway, without any pumpkin chips available, I decided I could put little caramel bits in them! Perfect right? Um...no. There are no vegan caramels at the Wasilla Fred Meyer. I could possibly have made some, but I didn't really have the time.

Saddened, I stood in the candy aisle all distressed and morose. Then, in my wallowing, I thought about a caramel dip I made last year with dates and how much everyone loved it. Realizing that dates pretty much equal caramel, I had my answer! I guess a more appropriate and accurate name for these muffins would be Date Studded Oat Bran Muffins, but that sound much too boring. Besides it's Halloween, so here's your trick and your treat! 

These dense, wholesome oat bran muffins are infused with caramelly sweetness and studded with soft and chewy "caramel" bits...aka...dates.

Healthy Caramel Oat Bran Muffins

Inspired by Quaker Oats (okay yes, I used the recipe from the photo of the back of the box on Amazon)

Makes 12 muffins

• 2 Tbsp. ground flaxseed
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 2 cups oat bran hot cereal, uncooked
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla butter & nut extract (or caramel extract)
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil (or coconut or canola)
• 1/2 cup dates, de-pitted and chopped (about 5)

Preheat oven to 425 F and spray a regular muffin pan with a non-stick cooking spray. 

Whisk together the flax and water in a small bowl and place in the fridge until ready to use. 

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

Whisk the wet ingredients together, including the flax eggs but not the dates, in a medium bowl.

Now, gently stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture until just combined. Fold in the chopped dates. 

Place about 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin cup and bake at 425 F for 15 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. 

Remove from pan with the edge of a knife and set on a cooling rack. Sprinkle with a bit of brown sugar if you like. 

Also, West Elm has free shipping today and...well, I did a bad, bad thing. This was me when I told Todd what I did. Heh heh heh. Source: mrwgifs.com

Listening to Gerygone & Twig – Kind of Leaving(That Is Not) (They are from my hometown!)

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