Pumpkin Cinnamon Chip Muffins

I just came across a favorite cookbook that's been hiding in my cupboard for far too long.  It has terrific recipes...perfect for those whose quest is better health.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!

The recipes are simple and enjoyable and very delicious!  You can get your own copy here. I'd say $10.95 is a darn good price!

I plan to focus on recipes from this cookbook for the next 2 weeks, so stay tuned for some healthier yummies for your tummies.

The recipe I'm sharing first is one of my all-time favorites!  A very similar recipe is in my cookbook, listed under 'lighter choices' in the "Bread & Rolls' section.

And I don't have to be counting calories or points to make and enjoy it! These taste like 'dessert'!

(I baked these while we're having a big snowstorm, so I thought the snowman peeking out on the placemat was perfect!)

MMM!  Melt in your mouth sweetness!!  You can hardly believe they're made from these simple ingredients!  It's so difficult to imagine they really are low in fat too!

My cookbook recipe doesn't call for the cinnamon chips, but they sure add a delicious zing to this tasty treat. (Cinnamon chips can be found in the chocolate chip aisle - sometimes only seasonally.  I had some left over in the freezer from the holidays.)

If you're not fond of spice cake, try chocolate.  I've made them many times using the chocolate, minus the cinnamon chips.

Folks cannot believe they have pumpkin in them!

The recipe says to make 24 regular sized muffins - I made 20 good sized ones....and filled the pans like this...(Oh how I need new muffin pans - these are SOOO old!)

PUMPKIN CINNAMON CHIP MUFFINS

(From Halfmysize.com)

1 (18 oz) spice cake mix

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin

1/2 c. water

1 (10 oz) bag cinnamon chips

(usually located near chocolate chips...sometimes only available seasonal)

{I had mine in the freezer}

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 24 muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Combine pumpkin, (I rinse out the can with a little bit of water and add that to the mix also) cake mix and water; mix well. (I stir with a wooden spoon or spatula). Stir in cinnamon chips. Fill muffin tins about 3/4 full. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until done. I allow to stand in pan a couple of minutes before removing to cool. Yield: 24 muffins

Nutritional info per muffin: Calories: 160; fat 4.8 gr; fiber: 0.7 gr

(I prefer a larger muffin and made 20 instead - and prebaked, mine were still about 3/4 full)

After cooled, I froze a few of these. It's so easy to get one out, wrap it in a paper towel, and 'zap' it in the microwave for a warm and quick part of your breakfast.  Great! with coffee too.

Enjoy!!!!!!!!! 

Have a nice weekend and stay safe & warm ~

I'll be doing lots of baking while snowed in!

This recipe is linked to Sweets for a Saturday

Also linked to Melt in your Mouth Monday

                       Gooseberry Patch Roundup

                 Ingredient Spotlight: Tea

Homestyle Creamy Tomato Soup...from Scratch

I LOVE creamy tomato soup! 

This is a hardy recipe that can be found in my cookbook - Recipes & Recollections from The Better Baker - because I love it so much. 

It's easy too. Can be easily doubled for larger families.  Takes only a few ingredients - use what you have on hand.

A dear friend fixed this for company once and told me 'That is the BEST tomato soup I have ever had'! *-*

(Hover over imagine to pin) 

I used low sodium canned tomato soup, 1/3 reduced fat cream cheese, and fat free 1/2 & 1/2 instead of milk. 

You could also use fat free cream cheese (just remember - it has more water, so when it is beaten {or food processed} it tends to make everything runnier).

A grilled cheese sandwich is the perfect accompaniment along side this yummy soup. MMMMMM!!

When tomatoes are in abundance in the summertime, I freeze them whole(washed but unpeeled)...put several in a freezer bag and throw them in. 

When I'm ready to use them for cooking, I let them thaw first, and the peel comes right off.

Because we had recently cleaned out our big freezer (OH how nice to know what's really in there!) we found a bag of tomatoes, I brought them to the kitchen to thaw and didn't even have to think of what I would make with them.

If using a can of tomatoes, I recommend saving the juice first, and adding it to the soup at the end for consistency. 

I like mine thick, so I only added a little bit of juice to the soup before serving.  But you can add more juice to stretch the soup too - just do your thing! 

Do hope you'll try this tummy-warming and tastebud-satisfying dish.

HOMESTYLE CREAMY TOMATO SOUP

1/2 onion, chopped

1 TB. butter or margarine

1 (14 ozs) can diced tomatoes

1/2 c. milk

1 (10 oz) can condensed tomato soup

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. dried basil

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

In large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion in butter until tender.  Place tomatoes, milk, soup and cream cheese in blender.  Whir until smooth (or not as long if you prefer chunky tomatoes) add to oniosn in pan.  Stir in remaining ingredients; heat until hot, stirring, being careful not to boil.  Serve immediately.  Makes 4 servings

Showers of Blessings!

  PSALM 34:8 - O TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD IS GOOD; BLESSED IS THE (WO)MAN WHO TRUSTS IN HIM.

I'm soo excited & blessed to have received an email this week informing me that I won an online dessert contest at The Book Club Network!

Here's what the email had to say...

The Just Desserts Contest update

The best recipe chosen was:

Cherry Chip Cheesecake Bars by Marsha J Baker. We have a WINNER and I will be letting her know and getting the gift card out to her today! Congratulations!


I got this message from them earlier this week...

This wasn't easy. We boiled it down (no pun intended) to 23 of the best recipes (I gained 5 lbs just reading them)

And then Nora and Hilary went through and picked the best 7

We then assigned our top culinary secret mission team the task of picking the best three. The latest results are on the site!

The top three recipes chosen were....brownies, apple cinnamon boston cream pie, and my cheesecake bars.

I'm sure hoping I can get those other competing recipes!

My 'blooming' author friend, Mesu Andrews (I will soon share more about her new book being published next week) knows how much I love recipes, and sent me the link for
this contest in January.

I paid no attention to the prize - I just love contests - and it wasn't until yesterday that I found the original email telling what the prize was....

OH MY!  I'm being sent a $100 gift card to spend at a high-end kitchen store online -

    
PLUS I get two books - the authors have already contacted me.  They are...

ALWAYS THE BAKER AND NEVER THE BRIDE - by Sandi Bricker and
DEADLY TIES - by Vicki Hinze

Coincidentally, I received my copy of Mesu's book just today, and long to find time to concentrate on getting it read. 

I'm able to read while on the road, so whenever we are out and about, I will be reading these books.

My winning recipe - Cherry Chip Cheesecake Bars - is in my cookbook.  And yes, I will be sharing it here in the near future too. *-*

Actually, it's a Betty Crocker recipe and you can often find the recipe on the back side of the Cherry Chip cake mixes.

You know how you sometimes get those email questionaires?  I am thinking of one in particular, that asks to name your favorite dessert.

EVERY TIME I answer CHERRY CHIIP CHEESECAKE BARS!  They are so rich and fantastic!

I often tell folks this is one of those desserts I need to serve to a crowd, otherwise, I eat waaaay too many of them myself!

Stay tuned - once you try them, you'll be hooked on them too!!

They're also very beautiful to look at too...(wiping the drool)

My Mom's Favorite - Granny Cake

What a wonderful and easy one-bowl cake!  I love moist cakes, and this one really 'takes the cake'....(OK - forgive me for that one)  

My mom loved this cake and I can't make it without thinking of her and her love of being in the kitchen..and how she showed us her love by the delicious creations she made there.  

You can't really see how wonderfully moist it is in this picture, but trust me, it is. The sauce that is poured over the top puts it 'over the top'....

If you prefer, frost the cooled cake with cream cheese frosting instead of using the liquid topping....then sprinkle with nuts.  

But it won't be nearly as moist. I'm a huge fan of cream cheese, but I do prefer the cooked topping instead.

GRANNY CAKE

2 c. sugar

(I cut it back to 1-1/2 and use 1/2 c. of that in Splenda)

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1 (20ozs) can crushed pineapple, undrained

TOPPING:

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/4 c. chopped nuts

1/4 c. sugar

1 stick margarine

1 c. evaporated milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9" X 13" baking dish.  Mix sugar, flour, baking soda, salt and eggs together.  Add pineapple and blend well.  Pour into prepared pan.  Combine brown sugar and nuts; sprinkle over top before baking. Bake about 30 - 40 minutes.

(If using Splenda - will bake faster)

TOPPING:

Combine remaining sugar, margarine, and evaporated milk; bring to a boil, then add vanilla.  Pour over hot cake and let stand.  Serve warm or cold.

This post has been linked to Melt in Your Mouth Monday

Sweets for Saturday #9

Lark's Spring Blog Hop

Ingredient Spotlight

Crazy Sweet Tuesday

Gooseberry Patch Roundup

Weekend Potluck

Meal Plan Monday

Chicken Broccoli Casserole

This is a wonderful one-dish meal. I quickly made this to take to my son's family for dinner, and didn't get many pictures...

But...

The day after I made this, I saw this post at Sweet as Sugar Cookies - and Lisa's picture there is GREAT!  So take a peek...she calls her dish Chicken Divan. Nice! Be sure to check out her Sweets for a Saturday 'party'. I have her new button at the button of my blog list. I do think she had more cheese in her tasty-looking dish than I did.  *-*

After I mixed the soup/mayo/egg/lemon juice, I poured it over the chicken & broccoli.

Since I didn't have seasoned stuffing mix, I used crushed crackers - mixed them with melted butter and sprinkled over the top.

What a tasty tasty combination of flavors! 

(Yes, I took a spoonful out before delivering it to our son's home! I HAD to...sometimes it's important to taste it before giving it away, right?=)

CHICKEN/BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

1 - 16 oz. pkg. frozen chopped broccoli

3 c. cooked, chopped chicken breasts

1 (10-3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup

1 (10 -3/4 oz) can cream of celery soup

2/3 c. mayonnaise (use real)

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 c. grated cheddar cheese

6 Tb. butter or margarine, melted

2 - 3 c. seasoned stuffing mix

Preheat oven to 350. Cook, drain and cool broccoli; place in bottom of greased 9" X 13" baking dish.  Put bite-sized pieces of chicken on top of broccoli.  Mix soups, mayo, egg and lemon juice.  Spread over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese. Melt butter; toss with stuffing mix; spread over cheese.  Cover with foil; bake 30 minutes; remove foil and bake another 30 minutes.

Dish can be made a day ahead and refrigerated, adding the crumb topping

just before baking. 

Enjoy a fabulous weekend!  Spring is only 30 days away!!!!

Linked to Recipe of the Week - Warm Casseroles