Pumpkin Cravings! | Muffins w/ Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting |

If you're a regular around these parts, you'd know this recipe was comin'! As part of my Musings of The Week I decided to try my hand at making these bad boys + they turned out delicious! I found the recipe for them on VeryBestBaking.com. The result of the recipe are muffins that are spongy on the outside + have a nice soft center on the inside, bottom line they are hella good! Wanted to share it with ya as is, although I did include a few little notes of what I plan on doing different next time I make them. Get your ingredients together + let's make some muffins! 

Ingredients 

* 3 C. Flour

* 1 T. + 1 t. Pumpkin Pie Spices

* 2 t. Baking Soda

* 1 1/2 t. Salt

* 3 C. Sugar

* 1 15oz. Can Pumpkin  

* 4 Eggs

* 1/2 C. Vegetable Oil

* 1/2 C. Water

How To 

- Preheat oven to 350

- Grease/line muffin tin

-Combine flour, Pumpkin Pie Spice, baking soda + salt

-In separate bowl combine sugar, pumpkin, eggs, oil + water, mix well 

(will be runny but don't fret)

- Slowly add flour mix to pumpkin mix, stir well

- Spoon batter into cups filling them about 3/4 full

- Bake 25 minutes

- Cool + enjoy as is or...

-Add some frosting!

Tips: I'm one of those people who are constantly wanting to improve things. Like I said these are delicious as is, but next time I make these I'm going to add a little more Pumpkin Pie Spice + some Nutmeg to add a little more flavor. I would also like to add raisins + nuts next time I make these, as I think they would just put these muffins over the top!

Now the Cream Cheese frosting wasn't part of the original recipe I looked up, but after eating a muffin plain I decided they needed a little more kick of sweetness to them. (I am a confirmed sugar-holic after all)

Cream Cheese Frosting

This was my first time making Cream Cheese frosting from scratch, but as there are very few ingredients needed it was super easy + quick to make. I found the recipe for this frosting here. As this is not commercial cream cheese frosting the muffins will need to be refrigerated after being frosted. 

Ingredients:

* 1/2 C. Unsalted Butter, softened
* 1/2 C. Cream Cheese, softened
* 2 C. Powdered Sugar
* 1 t. Vanilla Extract

How To:

- In a large bowl combine butter + cream cheese together with a mixer
- Slowly add powered sugar until smooth
- Beat in vanilla extract

- Frost your favorite dessert! In this case the muffins :)

They taste great both cold + warmed up! 

Hope you enjoy these bad boys as much as my family + I have! :) 

Until next time friends...Cheers!!!

<3 Noonie

Gobble! Gobble!

This photo does NOT do this
dessert justice! :)

Well Thanksgiving has come and gone but I did want to share my little Turkey day creation. It is the season for pumpkin recipes after all. This was my boyfriend and I's 3rd Thanksgiving together, and just like many couples out there we have a split, run around, kind of day as we wanted to spend the day together and with our families. As typical this year we got to lounge around in the morning and spend some time together before we headed off to his uncle and aunt's home in Folsom, dessert in tote. After a delicious meal and dessert we headed to my mom's for "Dessert Round 2", which included pumpkin and cherry pies, as well as this delicious ambrosia salad that my mom makes for every holiday. It's one of those "I don't feel right if I don't eat it on a holiday" type desserts, that I truly look forward to. After all that grubbin', it was of course right to bed when we arrived home later that night. All in all a good turkey day.

So back to that "Turkey day creation" aka "Layered Pumpkin Dessert" that I mentioned earlier. I knew I wanted to make some sort of dessert that incorporated pumpkin. I also knew I wanted to make a dessert that I had never eaten before, or seen at a holiday function, and this is where this awesome recipe comes into play. I initially found this recipe on Pinterest, it immediately caught my eye because not only did it look good, but it sounded out of this world! So without further adieu.....

Layered Pumpkin Dessert

Prep Time: 3-4 Hours

Bake Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

25 Ginger Snaps, finely crushed (1 1/3 Cup)

1/4 Cup Butter, melted

2 pkg. 8 oz. Cream Cheese,softened

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 1/2 Cup Canned Pumpkin

1/2 t. Ground Cinnamon

1/4 t. Ground Nutmeg

2 Eggs

2 pkg. Vanilla Instant Pudding

1 Tub Whipped Cream

1/2 Cup Pecans,chopped

Method:

Heat oven to 350

Mix cookie crumbs and butter, press onto bottom of 13x9 pan, bake 10 mins

Beat cream cheese and sugar with mixer until well blended

Add pumpkin and spices mix, then add eggs 1 at a time blend all well, pour onto crust

Bake for 30 mins, then cool for 1 hour

Beat pudding mixes and milk with whisk for 2 mins, stir in 1/2 of your whipped cream, spread over dessert

Spread remaining whipped cream on top and refrigerate 3 hours or until firm

Sprinkle with nuts before serving.

I didn't change the recipe much except when I made it I opted to use Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of the cinnamon and nutmeg as it contained both of these spices. The other thing I did do different was use a muffin tin instead of a 13x9 pan as I wanted to make individual servings, this really pumped up the dessert's appeal! This recipe was pretty straightforward and the dessert turned out delicious! 

Hope everyone had a nice Turkey day! Heerrreee comes Christmas!
Until next time..cheers!!!