Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

FOUND IT: On Allrecipes.com, with a reference from my friend Erin.

Yes, another pumpkin recipe. Maybe I should change the name of the blog. Give me ideas for something that'll alliterate with both pumpkins and mac and cheese.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup pumpkin pureee
  
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup Splenda
  
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional, I skipped them)

Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir in to wet ingredients. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well.

Stir in vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm. These are soft, fluffy cookies so they won't get really dark or firm.

Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese

FOUND IT: Where else? Keyingredient.com

As I've mentioned previously, I cook pumpkins down from scratch in big batches every year, and as such I'm always looking for new ways to cook it. This isn't the kind of recipe I would ever try if "pumpkin" hadn't been in the title - with that said, it's not bad and much healthier than your average mac and cheese. Just make sure you're using good cheese, because a little bit of cheese has to go a long way here.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• ½ cup milk
• ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan
• 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
• ½ cup grated (I just used 1 1/2 cups of sharp cheddar)
• ¼ tsp ground mustard
• ½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• ¼ tsp ground red pepper
• Salt and pepper
• 10 oz. small pasta

Boil pasta according to package directions to al dente. Heat pumpkin puree in a medium
saucepan over medium to high heat. Add milk and thoroughly combine. Turn heat down to low. Add ¼ cup parmesan cheese, ½ cup cheddar cheese, and the mozzarella cheese. Stir until melted into pumpkin mixture. Add mustard, worchestire sauce, red pepper, and salt & pepper. Mix pumpkin sauce with drained pasta until thoroughly combined. Mix in rest of cheddar cheese.

Sprinkle extra cheese (if you have any) on top and bake in a 9x9 baking dish at 350 for ten minutes. Allow to cool for 3-5 minutes before serving.

Sauteed Apples

FOUND IT: On Allrecipes.com

I have over 40 lbs of apples on hand and needed a side dish for pork chops, so this filled in nicely. With the amount of sugar in it, it's basically pie filling, but you could call it a serving of fruit.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 large tart apples - peeled, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  

In a large skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; add apples. Cook, stirring constantly, until apples are almost tender, about 6 to 7 minutes. Dissolve cornstarch in water; add to skillet. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and serve warm.

Crock Pot Mac and Cheese

FOUND IT: It's a Paula Dean recipe.

Until I made this one, I thought there was only two ways to make mac and cheese: on the stove or in the oven. This one creates a third option - in the crock pot. The volume of pasta would suggest a small recipe, but this filled my small crock pot, and easily serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (slightly more than half of a 1 lb box).
  
• 4 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes.
• 10 ounces grated sharp Cheddar
• 3 eggs, beaten (less if you don't want them)
  
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup whole milk (I used skim)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

(The recipe calls for 3 hours, but make sure it doesn't get dry and add liquid if you need to. When I made it, it was really good at 2 hours, and not as good at 3.)

Foolproof Mac and Cheese

FOUND IT: My mother-in-law spotted it in a Cooks Illustrated publication.
MODIFIED IT: I removed the bread crumb topping, which I've never been a big fan of, and replaced it with some extra cheese on top. Other changes are noted below.

Ingredients:

1 lb elbow macaroni
Table salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter
5 tbsp flour
3 12-ounce cans evaporated milk (I use two and 1 1/2 cups skim milk)
2 tsp hot pepper sauce
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp dry mustard
8 ounces extra sharp cheddar, shredded
5 ounces American cheese, shredded (You can use mild cheddar, or just skip it and replace it with sharp cheddar)
2 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

(The recipe calls for you to save 1/2 cup of the pasta water. If you use the skim milk as I did above, you don't need it.)

Boil macaroni in a large pot with 1 tbsp of salt until al dente. Save 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.

Melt butter in the now empty pot, cooking until it becomes foamy. Whisk in the flour until it starts to brown a little, then whisk in the milk, hot sauce, nutmeg, mustard, and 2 tsp of salt, stir and simmer until the mixture *starts to* thicken, roughly 4-5 minutes. Off heat, stir in cheeses and reserved cooking water (if you're using it). Stir in pasta and mix until coated.

Pour mixture into 13x9 baking dish, top with some extra shredded cheese (maybe some jack or mild cheddar), and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Let cool 5-10 minutes before serving.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

FOUND IT: It's a Martha.

Roasting pumpkin seeds is a nice bonus when cooking down dozens of pumpkins, as I plan on doing this year. I usually double the recipe, as I'm usually cooking at least two pumpkins at a time.

Ingredients:

• Seeds from one medium pumpkin (roughly 1 cup)
  
• 5 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch of cayenne pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil (I use olive oil)
  

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread seeds on parchment in an even layer. Bake at 250 until dry, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. Let cool. (Actually, I usually go straight from oven to pan.)

In a medium bowl combine 3 tablespoons sugar, salt, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cayenne. Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add pumpkin seeds and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Cook until sugar melts and pumpkin seeds begin to caramelize, about 45 to 60 seconds. Transfer to bowl with spices, and stir well to coat. Let cool. These may be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week. They'll never last that long.

Pumpkin Waffles

FOUND IT: At my friend Erin's blog about her adventures in Alaska.

I always love a good pumpkin recipe. This one makes a lot, so cut it in half if you're only feeding 2-4 people.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs, separated
2 cups well-shaken buttermilk (Skim milk works.)
1 cup pumpkin, canned or fresh
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted

Sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder and soda, salt, and spices. Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl with buttermilk, pumpkin, and butter until smooth. Whisk in dry ingredients just until smooth. In a mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Folk them gently into the waffle batter, until just combined. Brush waffle iron lightly with oil and spoon batter (about 2 cups for four 4-inch Belgian waffles) into waffle iron, spreading quickly. Cook according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer waffles to rack in oven to keep warm and crisp. Make more waffles in same manner.

Pumpkin Zucchini Bread

FOUND IT: At this site.

I love pumpkin, and cook a bunch of it down from scratch using the oven version of this recipe every year. As such, I've always got a bunch of it around this time of year. And, like everyone else in the Midwest, I've got a ton of zucchini around. This recipe uses a little of both, and it's delicious.

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs, slightly beaten
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 2 cups pumpkin puree, from a can or fresh
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• 1 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 3 cups flour
• 1 Teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 1/2 Teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 Teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 Teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup chopped or ground walnuts (optional)
• (I added a cup of chocolate chips)

Spray two bread loaf pans, or a loaf pan and a round cake pan, as I did. Mix eggs, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Stir in pumpkin puree and butter(or margarine). Mix flour, baking soda, and spices in a separate bowl. Stir dry ingredients into the first bowl containing the egg mixture. Stir in the shredded zucchini. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips, if you are using them. Divide the batter into the two pans. Bake at 350 for 45 to 50 minutes. Test bread with a knife or a toothpick to see if it is done. Remove the bread from the oven and let rest for ten minutes before cooling on a wire rack.