First up is pumpkin pancakes. I've been making pancakes from scratch for a long time, I don't even remember the last time I used a mix. People over estimate the difficulty of doing things from scratch. Pancakes are one of the easiest things to make and it only takes a couple more minutes to make them from ingredients you probably already have at home. The best part is you can experiment with the batter and make tons of yummy flavor combinations.
This particular recipe hails from one of my favorite blogs, Annie's Eats. All of the recipes I've tried from this site are great. Always easy to follow and delicious to eat!
Pumpkin Pancakes
1 1/4 cups flour
2 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Dash of ground ginger
Dash of ground cloves
1 cup milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1 large egg
2 tbsp. melted butter
1. Mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Use a whisk to break up any lumps.
2. In a separate bowl beat the egg. Next add the pumpkin, milk, and butter and mix till combined.
3. Pour liquid mixture into the flour mixture and whisk together. Stop when the batter is just combined, some lumps are ok but not too many.
4. Heat frying pan or griddle to a medium. Spray with cooking spray if you are not using a nonstick surface. Pour about 1/3 a cup of batter on to the pan. The batter is pretty thick so you may want to spread the batter out a little bit. Flip when bubbles start to appear in the surface of your pancake. Once flipped NEVER SQUISH THE PANCAKE DOWN. I repeat NEVER SQUISH THE PANCAKE DOWN. If you want fluffy pancakes resist the urge. After this side is browned, remove from pan. Repeat till out of batter.
5. Top with cinnamon sugar or syrup or both and enjoy!
Now that you've made pancakes, you've still got half a can of pumpkin left. What to do, what to do? Cupcakes of course!
This recipe also comes from a great blogger, Brown Eyed Baker. I have to say this is by far the best pumpkin cupcake/ muffin recipe I have ever tried. They were moist, spiced just right, and completely delicious. I highly recommend this recipe to anyone and everyone.
Pumpkin Cupcakes w/ Cream Cheese Frosting
Cupcakes (makes about 18):
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 Tbsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 pinch ground cloves
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with liners or grease which ever you prefer. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices.
2. Beat the butter and sugar together until it becomes light a fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until combined. Next add the flour mixture in three separate batches, mixing in the buttermilk in between each addition of the flour. Finally, beat the pumpkin in to the mixture until combined. The batter will be very thick. Don't freakout this is how it is supposed to be.
3. Fill the cupcake liners 2/3s of the way up. Bake for 10 minutes, rotate the pans, and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and removed cleanly. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing.
Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter (room temp)
1 8oz package cream cheese (room temp)
2 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1. Beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth.
2. Add powdered sugar a little bit at a time until frosting becomes fluffy. Beat in vanilla extract.
3. Once cupcakes are completely cooled frost and enjoy!!
