{ Stoli Salted Karamel Appletini }

A fantastic fall cocktail. And only 2 ingredients. Perfect-ness.

Stoli Salted Karamel Appletini

Ingredients

• 2 parts Stoli Salted Karamel Vodka
• 3 parts apple juice

Process

1. Shake ingredients together with ice and strain into martini glass.
2. Garnish with red apple slice.

{ baked pumpkin cake donuts with vanilla glaze }

I've been wanting to buy a donut pan for several months -- I finally found one.

So I took my first dip into the culinary pool of baked donuts this afternoon when I made a batch of pumpkin cake donuts with vanilla glaze. Obviously the baked donut variety doesn't have the same texture as its yeasty, deep-fried cousin, but it's a sweet treat that's lower in calories (each one has 158 calories) and easier to make.

Next time I'm adding bourbon to the glaze.

Baked Pumpkin Cake Donuts with Vanilla Glaze
adapted from DoesNotCookWellWithOthers

Ingredients
Donuts

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 2 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small cubes
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 tbsp milk
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Glaze

• 2 tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Process 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spray donut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Place flour and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Add diced butter. Pulse about 10 times to cut in butter, until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
4. Add baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and salt. Pulse 3 or 4 more times to combine. Pour mixture into a large bowl.
5. In a medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin, milk, eggs and vanilla.
6. Pour wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined. Dough will be very thick.
7. Scrape mixture into a large piping bag or a quart-sized plastic bag. Snip the bottom of the pastry bag or the corner of the plastic bag, leaving about a 1/2" opening.
8. Pipe dough into molds (about 3/4 full).
9. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes. Donuts are done when they spring back after being gently pressed.
10. Remove from the oven and cook in pan for 3 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
11. When ready to glaze, place powdered sugar in a small bowl. Whisk in milk and vanilla until smooth.
12. Take one donut at a time and dip top into glaze.
13. Flip over and place on wire rack. Repeat with remaining donuts and let sit until glaze hardens.

{ edible leaves }

More fall foliage ... this time, made with a whole lot of butter. :)

And thanks, Callye, for the inspiration!

{ autumn in new england }

Lake Chocorua, NH

Happy first day of October!

If God's glorious color palette gets any better than what is currently on display right now up here in our little corner of the world, I sure would love to see it. Every aspect of nature seems to be an amazing explosion of color, and I couldn't be happier.

I simply marvel at fall in New Hampshire. I have been blessed.

Kancamagus Highway, NH

Applecrest Farm & Orchards, NH



Lake Chocorua, NH



Kancamagus Highway, NH



Kancamagus Highway, NH

Kancamagus Highway, NH

Kancamagus Highway, NH

Kancamagus Highway, NH

{ makin' [pumpkin] whoopie }

... pies, that is.

This is an easy, fail-safe recipe that I highly urge you try if you've been craving that soft, creamy, spicy pumpkin taste. For some reason, the taste kind of reminds me of a puffy carrot cake in cloud form. Except it's pumpkin, not carrot. And it's not cake. And, well, it's not a cloud. But other than that, the similarities are uncanny. ;)

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Frosting
(adapted from DreamyDesserts)

Ingredients
Pies
3 cups all purpose flour

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil
1 15-ounce can of pumpkin
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8-ounce package of cream cheese, softened

1 stick of butter, room temperature
1 16-oounce package of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
a pinch of cinnamon

Process

Pies
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat together brown sugar, sugar, oil and pumpkin. Add eggs one at time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla.

In a separate bowl, shift together the dry ingredients. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.

Using a pastry bag with a large round tip (Wilton #12 works great), squeeze out concentric circles of batter, until the circles are about 2 inches in diameter. If a point is left where the tip was raissed from the pie, dampen a finger with water and gently pat down the point until batter circle is smooth.

Bake for 11 minutes and cool completely on a baking rack.

Frosting
Beat together cream cheese and butter until creamy. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Frost flat side of half the pies and top with remaining halves.

Enjoy right away or wrap individually with plastic cling wrap.

Makes 12-14 pies.

 

{ rich & creamy tomato basil soup }

It's chilly outside, and if you breathe in deep enough, you can almost smell the first frost in the air. The leaves are changing, and the world is pumpkiny and perfect. I love fall so very much -- it never ever gets old.

We're heading to a local apple orchard this afternoon to do some picking, so I thought having a warm pot of soup waiting on us when we return would be a comforting and perfect way to end the day.

Tomato basil soup sounded like a good choice, only this one is super-naughty. The butter and cream can be tasted (and savored!) in every bite.

I doubled the usual recipe this time, as I wanted plenty of leftovers. So don't be confused by some of my pictures if things look excessive. The normal recipe makes plenty for a family dinner though.

Sidenote: Ty, the husband who doesn't like chunky, vegetable stuff, says this is the "best" tomato soup he's ever eaten. Aidan, my 6-year-old son who is also the pickiest eater on planet Earth, loved it. Paige, my 2-year-old who eats anything, ate this too (so her opinion on the subject is actually no big deal). ;)

Rich & Creamy Tomato Basil Soup
(adapted from chef in training)

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter

2 heaping tablespoons minced garlic

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 cups half and half

 1 1/2 cups light cream

2 1/2 tablespoons chicken base (I use Better Than Bouillon)

2 (28 oz.) cans petite-diced tomatoes

1 cup tomato puree

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped

1/2 teaspoon pepper, more if needed TT

1/2 teaspoon salts, more if needed TT

milk, if needed, to thin to desired consistency

Process

1. Melt butter over medium heat in heavy saucepan or dutch oven.
2. Once melted add garlic and sauté for a minute or two.
3. Stir in flour and make a roux, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes.
4. Once roux is formed, slowly pour in half and half and light cream, stirring as you pour.
5. Stir in chicken base, diced tomatos, tomato puree, sugar, basil, pepper and salt. Stir until heated through.
6. Using a ladle, spoon soup into blender and pulse briefly, breaking up the tomato chunks, but still leaving a nice, thick texture to the soup. Repeat, as needed, until entire batch of soup has been blended.
7. Return soup to pot. If needed add milk to soup to thin out to desired consistency (I didn't need to add any).
8. Serve hot, garnished with a sprinkle of grated cheese and fresh basil leaves.