Halloween Ghosts: Pumpkins Muffins with Crumble Topping

Happy Halloween!!
Today, my husband has "goodie day" at his work. I was undecided about what to make, and he had no suggestions. Previously, I had made these "ghosts" and they were screaming to come off the cupboard shelf and be used. They are a simple way to make any goodie festive with today's holiday. I glued 2 plastic craft eyes onto a Texas sized muffin paper, made my muffins, and put them in their costume. Be proactive, and make it a great day!

Pumpkins Muffins with Crumble Topping

1 ½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
3/8 tsp. ground gloves
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 egg
3 T soft butter

I lazily toss dry ingredients and then add the wet. As a muffin, don’t over mix.
Bake them at 350 degrees. Time depends on size of baking cup. I prefer Texas size muffins.
Variations:
Mom always added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts and 6 oz. chocolate chips, omitting the cloves. Then she would glaze the cooled bread with a clove infused powdered sugar glaze.
I often substitute some whole wheat flour, scant the cup of sugar, use skim milk instead of buttermilk, and skip the nuts and chocolate inside. This way, I feel okay about having two!

I do like to pretty it up with a simple crumble on top:
1T cold butter
¼ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup oatmeal.
I pulse it in the Cusinart for a bit and throw in a few tablespoons of mini chocolate chips and chopped pecans.
Mix-Bake-Share

Coconut Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

The sun is shining brightly today. I gathered my shoes and socks and found the little 2'x2' space in my family room where the sun was coming in through the windows. I sat down in that little space and soaked up some warmth from the sun.
It just so happens, my calendar is pretty empty today. So I chose to linger on that sunny spot on the floor of my family room.
As I closed my eyes, enjoying the quiet calm (indirect) sunlight, my imagination took me to the beaches of Hawaii. I imagined the sound of waves gently crashing on the nearby rocks at Hukilau Beach. And lost in my day dream, I decided to have lunch at Kahuku Grill. Today I'll order the Terriyaki Chicken plate. For dessert, I'll have the only item on the menu: Coconut Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Sundae!
Well- guilt from lack of progression woke me from my day dream, but my Kitchenaid was calling, and I heeded the call. I may not be able to lunch at Kahuku Grill today, but I think I'll try my hand at that banana bread.
It's a tropical treat. That said, the flavors need to complement each other, and the texture needs to be a bit lighter than my typical banana bread. I think I'll begin with a banana cake recipe from B's friend Saydi, tweaking it just a bit. Next I'll add chocolate chips and coconut. Topping the finished product with a lot of tropical love ;)
Wanna escape for a moment? Give this a try-

Coconut Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Cream:
1 cup of sugar
6 T softened butter
Beat in 2 eggs
Stir in:
1 1/4 cups mashed bananas
1/4 cup buttermilk
Add:
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. salt
Mix until well incorporated.
Stir in:
½ cup chocolate chips (I use mini)
¾ cup flaked sweetened coconut
Divide batter between two 3” x 7” aluminum bread pans.
Bake at 350degrees for 50-60 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes clean.
Let cool.

Topping:
Coconut Glaze
1 can of Coco Lopez coconut cream
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
Put both ingredients in the food processor until smooth. (This will top six loaves. Refrigerate or freeze leftovers.)
Mini chocolate chips
Toasted coconut
For the topping, layer glaze followed by chocolate chips and then toasted coconut. Repeat layer again ending with toasted coconut.

Everything tastes better with ocean breezes and warm sun, but this isn't a bad momentary escape for the middle of winter!
Go the distance making it a Sundae by adding vanilla ice cream and warm hot fudge!

Banana Bread

We never had banana bread growing up. If the fruit or vegetable wasn't grown in our garden, it never graced the kitchen table. Apparently, Iowa is the wrong climate for growing bananas. In my adulthood, bananas were purchased and eaten quickly. Until B left for college a few months ago, I was buying 2-3 bunches per week. They never seemed to stay around long enough to turn brown with the tiny giraffe spots, making them sweet and ideal for banana bread.
In the weeks after B (the family banana eater) left, I struggled making the necessary adjustments at the grocery store and during meal prep. We endured a lot of leftovers throughout September, and I have had plenty of bananas to try out a variety of banana bread recipes. In my quest, I turned where I normally turn- to my sisters. My eldest sister has a great recipe. In fact, I had banana bread for the first time in my adulthood at her home. I was reluctant to try it. But after my first slice, I kept returning to the loaf, hoping nobody noticed my over indulgence through a house full of kids and company. Her recipe is great, however, another sister introduced me to the hearty wholesome Williams-Sonoma recipe. I've tweaked it a little, and have used it ever since:

Banana Bread

2 large ripe bananas
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 eggs
3/4 cup brown sugar
6 T soft butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)

Mash bananas. They should total about 1 1/3 cups. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl (except for brown sugar). Mix wet ingredients together with brown sugar. Add bananas. Stir in dry ingredients. Don't over mix. Fold in walnuts.
Bake 50-60 minutes at 350 degrees.

In a few days, I will head out for my weekly grocery shopping venture. I will get to buy bananas in bunches because my banana eater will soon return from college for Christmas break. And- because it's the simple things in life, that seem to bring great joy; in anticipation of B's arrival, I will take great delight in that grocery trip!

Mom's Holiday Pumpkin Bread--Mom's Way

In church today, they announced that there were empty boxes in the foyer so those who were interested could participate in the Salvation Army Food Drive. I know that many receiving those boxes also receive in a sense a bit of hope- for better times. My thoughts wandered a bit to the Christmas of 1986. And in honor of such I made Mom’s Holiday Pumpkin Bread – the way Mom makes it..

I grew up in a somewhat large family of six children. Each Christmas our family would carol to friends and neighbors and upon leaving with our parting tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” my little brother would give a loaf of Mom’s Holiday Pumpkin Bead to our friends. Many of the friends and neighbors we caroled to considered our visit one of the highlights of their season. Money was always tight in our home, but one Christmas in particular things were especially tough. My parents called the children together to discuss the caroling plans and to let us know that there just wasn’t enough money for both ingredients for the holiday pumpkin bread for caroling and for our traditional Christmas meal of ham, rolls, Jell-O, and pies. My parents let us know the decision was up to us to choose between making the bread and having our Christmas feast. My parents left the room to allow for free discussion amongst us children. It wasn’t but a moment until my older sister announced our unanimous decision to our parents. We wanted the bread!
We caroled on several nights in the weeks preceding Christmas. With our last batch of holiday bread, our final night of caroling was Christmas Eve. It was cold and we were tired, but as a teenager, when I saw a tear fall down the face of a lady we caroled to, I knew it was all worth the effort. Our family returned home that evening to find our front porch lined with numerous stuffed grocery bags filled with Christmas ham and trimmings and much, much, more. Those people, who had gone out of their way to our home, tended to our immediate needs, but also left a testimony to children, teen-agers and a couple of struggling parents of a sense of love, compassion, hope and a desire to serve.

Cobblestone Muffins

New snow fell this morning. We live in a region where we don't typically get very much, so the kids were constantly happily distracted during “family cleaning" with the activity going on outside
A week into this snow coverage, I'm feeling a little trapped in my home. So I try to distract myself with a new idea in the kitchen. Much of what I bake is inspired by something I've seen or tasted before.
A trip to Seattle means a stop at Panera Bread. I always want one of everything, but am content with a french toast bagel. Last time, my husband ordered a cobblestone muffin. Today I attempted to copy the idea for a sledding snack.

Cobblestone Muffins

Make your favorite biscuit recipe, or use refrigerated, or defrost frozen ones. My favorites are Schwann’s Country Biscuits.
Roll out 1/2 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter, cut into 1/2 inch squares. Give each piece a light squeeze to form it into an irregular rounded shape. Dip in melted butter then roll into a mixture of:
1 cup brown sugar
4 tsp. Cinnamon
Fill each muffin cup heaping full and bake at 350 degrees. Time depends on size. Let cool somewhat before drizzling with glaze.

Winters in the town I grew up in Iowa were very harsh. When it snowed, it was often measured in feet, not inches. Oft times, I was the daughter selected to go out and help my Dad shovel the walks. As winter skies darken in late afternoon, by the time dad returned from work, the light from the street lamp reflected on the snow to give a strange luminating light to the task. The sounds of the shovel scraping the sidewalk and Dad’s breath as he worked hard and quick became sounds of comfort to me. I remember a particular evening that Dad had assigned me to help shovel the walks. I was eight years old, short and scrawny. There had been at least a foot and a half of new snow that day. As I tried to walk down the front steps to the sidewalk, trying to catch up to Dad, I could barely move. Every time I put my foot down, it sank up past my knee in the fresh snow. My Dad kept turning around and calling for me to catch up. I was trying to be tough (certainly a trait I was known for) and move quickly towards Dad; but I was truly having a tough time moving at all. I began to get frustrated and tears fell down my cheeks. Dad turned around again to call to me, and saw me crying. He came back to where I was struggling in the snow and pointed to his footsteps. He told me that if I walked in his footsteps, I wouldn’t get stuck. He had paved the way with his larger boot. We were both headed to the same place and all I needed to do was follow him. And I did. Not just in the snow that night, but throughout my life, I’ve recognized that when I follow in the wisdom that has gone before me, I have found peace, safety joy, and even a few smiles from the contents of the oven.

Pumpkin Bread/Bars

This morning, I head out to visit some ladies from church. I have been asked to check in on them to see how they and their families are doing, making sure all of their immediate needs are being met. I already know they are all doing well- however, today I will go and not go-empty handed.
This recipe can be compared to Mom’s Holiday Pumpkin Bread. The biggest difference is texture. The original recipe called for 1 cup of oil- it seemed heavy to me. I immediately cut it in half, and added more pumpkin to offset the moisture imbalance. This is the recipe I use when I want to make pumpkin bread or bars:
Pumpkin Bread/Bars
3 cups sugar
½ cup oil
3 eggs
2 ¼ cups canned pumpkin
3 cups flour
1 tsp. cloves
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
I blend the first four ingredients in the Kitchenaid. The eggs can tolerate a little more beating since the desired end product is more cake like. Dry ingredients all at once and then mix until smooth. Divide batter into loaf pans or spread it in a jelly roll pan baking at 350 degrees. Time depends on size of pan.
Once the bread/bars are cool, frost with cream cheese frosting, or Steve’s choice of a ground clove infused powdered sugar glaze.
Mix.Bake.Share.
My message to the ladies today is about work. Just like the ground cloves in Steve’s glaze, it is infused throughout our lives- and it’s a good thing that it is.
I am extending a message of hope regarding the work that drives our everyday lives- I recently heard that “ a consecrated life is filled with work, sometimes repetitive, sometimes menial, sometimes unappreciated but always work that improves, orders, sustains, lifts, ministers, aspires.”
So maybe we can find strength to continue the work we are asked and invited to do that leads us to progression in this life and throughout the next.

Pumpkin Muffin with Crumble Top (Mom's Holiday Pumpkin Bread)

Today is the first of three basketball tryouts for Y, my middle child. The tryouts are in 7 hours and I'm already nervous for him. I remember tryouts my junior year. I remember sitting under the basket at the end of the gym, up against the cold concrete block wall. I was completely unsure in my abilities. I couldn't even lift my head as the coach called out the Varsity roster. I kept starring at the hardwood in front of me. That flashback early this morning sent me to my Kitchenaid. The weather is cloudy, with a little wind and rain. My thoughts have briefly returned me to my childhood, and one of the only things my mama used to bake (although only once a year- and for the neighbors). I've tweaked the recipe a little and exchanged a crumble top for the spice glaze. Based on texture, I prefer this recipe as muffins instead of bread, nevertheless, I call it:
Mom's Holiday Pumpkin Bread
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
3/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 egg
3 T soft butter
I lazily toss dry ingredients and then add the wet. As a muffin, don’t over mix.
Bake them at 350 degrees. Time depends on size of baking cup. I prefer Texas size muffins.
Variations:
Mom always added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts and 6 oz. chocolate chips, omitting the cloves. Then she would glaze the cooled bread with a clove infused powdered sugar glaze.
I often substitute some whole wheat flour, scant the cup of sugar, use skim milk instead of buttermilk, and skip the nuts and chocolate inside. This way, I feel okay about having two!
I do like to pretty it up with a simple crumble on top:
1T cold butter
¼ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup oatmeal.
I pulse it in the Cusinart for a bit and throw in a few tablespoons of mini chocolate chips and chopped pecans.
Mix-Bake-Share
Good luck today Y! Your dad says to play smart, your mama says to play with your heart!