Pumpkin Caramel Monkey Bread Muffins

I just figured out what you should make for breakfast on Thanksgiving.  These little muffins were so good!  Before I moved to Iowa I had never heard of Monkey Bread before.  Now, I see it all over the place.  I saw a similar recipe to this from Pillsbury, and this is what I turned it into.  Monkey Bread Muffins, covered in a Pumpkin Caramel Sauce. 

I made these yesterday for my 6 year old, and he couldn’t stop saying how good they were.  At first he wasn’t excited.  He said he liked Cinnamon Roll Pancakes so much, why did I have to try something new?  Then he tried them…..”Mommy, you are such a good cooker!  How do you make so many things I love?  Now I won’t be able to decide what I want?”

These come together quickly, so you can get that Turkey cooking.  Why not wake up to wonderful pumpkin flavor, and have it all through the day!  I used 1 tube of biscuits, and it made 8 giant muffins.  You could easily double this recipe if you were feeding a crowd.  

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Enjoy the time with the ones that you love!!  See you again on Friday.  

Pumpkin Caramel Monkey Bread Muffins

Adapted from Pillsbury

Printable Recipe

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp all spice

¼ tsp ground cloves

1 tub Pillsbury Grand Flaky Biscuits

2/3 cup brown sugar

½ cup butter

1/3 cup pumpkin puree

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray, or use liners.

Open tube of biscuits, and separate.  Using a kitchen scissors cut each biscuit into quarters.  In a zip lock bag mix together sugar and spices.  Add 6 pieces of biscuit at a time into the sugar and shake to coat.  Remove and place 4 pieces (3 if you want normal sized muffins), into each muffin tin. 

In a sauce pan melt butter, brown sugar and pumpkin together.  Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute, while stirring.  Reserve about ½ cup of the caramel sauce for later.  Pour the rest of the sauce over the muffins. 

Bake for 15 minutes for large muffins (probably closer to 12 minutes for smaller muffins).  Let cool for a couple minutes before removing from the pan.  Drizzle with the reserved caramel sauce.

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes

We are now officially into things I have made since my husband moved to Colorado.  Things he took to Colorado include our (my) camera!  So I am stuck with my seriously old point and shoot. Which is such a shame with amazing breakfasts like this, you get stuck with not great pictures.  But....I will get my camera back, and you will get good pictures again!  It just might be awhile :(

I did it, I finally caved and made Cinnamon Roll Pancakes.  I have seen these all over different blogs.  I do not know where it originated, but whoever came up with it is genius!!  It really was only a matter of time before I tried these.  Pancakes are a big hit at our house, and my 6 year old can barely go a day without something cinnamon.  I knew these would be a huge hit, and they were!  I made these for the first weekend that my husband was gone.  I figured we had made it through 7 days alone, we deserved a special treat! 

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
From RecipeGirl
Printable Recipe

Pancakes:
1 cup  flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk
1 Tbls canola oil
1 egg, lightly beaten

Filling:
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbls cinnamon

Glaze:
4 Tbls butter
2 ounces cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

To make Pancakes:Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add milk, oil and egg.  Whisk until just combined (lumps are good).

To make Filling:  Mix butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Put filling into a zip loc bag and set aside.You do not want this to get too liquidy.  About the consistency of toothpaste.  If it gets too hard, you can microwave it for a few seconds.

To make Glaze:  Heat butter and cream cheese until melted. Mix until smooth; whisk in powdered sugar and vanilla.


Heat large skillet or Griddle over medium-low heat. Spray with nonstick spray. Pour about 1/2 cup batter into pan.  Cut the corner of your bag of filling and squeeze a spiral of the filling onto the top of the pancake. Flip carefully when bubbles begin to appear on the surface.  Cook for about another 1-2 minutes.  

Serve with glaze drizzled over pancakes!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins

I was interviewed!!  I was so excited when I got an email from Correen asking if I was interested.  Are you kidding?!  You don't even need to ask!  Thanks to Liz for recommending me!  Check out my amazing answers on the Food Lovers Website!

It is no secret I like muffins.  It is no secret the entire world likes Peanut Butter and Chocolate.  I have already made a muffin that had Chocolate Base with Peanut Butter Chips.   Now I wanted to make a Peanut Butter Muffin with Chocolate Chips.  I just couldn't help it!  After I made the Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins from Connor's Cooking, this just seemed like the next natural progression.  Let me tell you, these were a winner!  I brought them to a friends house so we had treats to munch on while managing her garage sale.  They disappeared quickly, they were moist and delicious!


Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins
Printable Recipe

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips

Heat oven to 375. Spray muffin pan with no stick spray.

Stir together flour, salt, baking powder, and chocolate chips in a large bowl. Combine milk, eggs, sugar, peanut butter and oil in a separate bowl; combine ingredients until just moistened. Do not over beat.

Fill 18 muffin tins.  Top with a few extra chocolate chips.  Bake for 14 minutes.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Muffins

Chocolate and Peanut Butter is obviously a classic combination.  Usually you see it in desserts, but why not have it for breakfast?  I saw this recipe over at The Kitchenarian for her Muffin Monday series.  I knew I had to make them.  Muffins are always a hit here, chocolate and peanut butter is always a hit here, so I knew these muffins would be great.  And they were! 

Sorry for the lack of chit chat today.  I have a bad cold.  As luck would have it my 6 year old left today to spend 4 days with his Grandparents.  I had big plans for stuff to get done around the house, but so far nothing.  No energy.  Hoping this cold goes away FAST!!


Chocolate Peanut Butter Muffins
Adapted slightly from The Kitchenarian
Printable Recipe

1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups  flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare muffin tins, makes approx 18 muffins.

In a large bowl whisk together the melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla.

In another large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the peanut butter chips. Fold the egg mixture into the flour. Do not over mix the batter or you will have tough muffins.

Fill the muffin cups. Bake about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes before removing from pan.

Blueberry Muffins

I like muffins.  If you are a normal reader, this comes as no surprise.  For our family reunion my family was in charge of doing breakfast on Sunday.  We planed Heuovos Rancheros, Fruit and Yogurt and Muffins.  I was in charge of bringing the muffins!  I brought quite a few different kinds, but this was a favorite.  Almost all of these were gone!  This was not a new recipe, my son LOVES these.  I use the base of this for my Chocolate Chip Muffins as well.  It is just moist and delicious!  So feel free to change it up any way you want! 

Blueberry Muffins
From Allrecipes
Printable Recipe

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners. 

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture. 

To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking. 

Bake for 16 to 18 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

Guest Post - Cinnamon Roll Scones

I am so excited to introduce to to Cassie today!  She has a wonderful site over at Bake Your Day where she makes delicious treats, and shares wonderful tips!  Cassie is a sweet, kind, caring and generous friend.  I am very glad to have "met" her!  I think she had me in mind when she came up with this recipe - it is absolutely perfect for my family.  So sit back, relax, and meet Cassie!

Hi guys!  I’m Cassie and I blog about baking, cooking and life over at Bake Your Day.  I love Dinners, Dishes and Desserts and I am so excited to be here blogging for Erin while she is on vacation!  Enjoy my scone recipe and I hope to see you soon at Bake Your Day!  

There aren’t many flavor combinations that I like as much or better than cinnamon and sugar.  If you read my recent cheesecake post it also talked about flavor combinations.  I would normally say that I’m on a combination kick and then my husband, Paul, would make fun of me for saying that I’m on a “kick.”  I do say that often and he likes to make fun of me for it.  Sometimes I get on a roll, and I go with it!  No pun intended there.  But since I mentioned it...

I have always loved cinnamon rolls and my family has always had an incredible knack for making them.  I enjoy making them myself but sometimes I just want the flavor combo without having to take the time to actually make the rolls.  Yes, I could reach for Cinnamon Toast Crunch (my favorite unhealthy cereal) or Cinnamon and Sugar Pop Tarts (also very unhealthy) or just make some plain cinnamon toast.  However, I’ve had scones on my “to-bake list” for a while now so I came up with these, my quick version of the cinnamon roll: a cinnamon roll scone (still not the healthiest but totally worth it!)

As a side note, let me say that I am a huge coffee drinker.  Everyone knows that scones go pretty well with coffee.  “Scones go pretty well with coffee” is an understatement for these beauties.  The cinnamon and sugar is a great compliment for a strong cup of joe. 

The scones came together so quickly.  I learned to love the center of the cinnamon roll the best and these scones reminded me so much of the center of a cinnamon roll.  The texture is that of a scone but they are airy and moist and I wanted to eat the whole batch.  I made the classic icing that my mom always made as a kid.  Super simple and gooey!  And the best part is that these can be ready in as little as 30-40 minutes.  Perfect for a last minute breakfast or morning get-together!

Cassie’s Cinnamon Roll Scones

Ingredients:

For the scones:
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 cup + 2 Tbs. granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. cinnamon
6 Tbs. unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

For the filling and topping:
1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Prep:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder salt and sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl and combine well with a whisk.  Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or two forks.  Continue to mix until the mixture is crumbly and resembles the consistency of sand.

In a small measuring cup, combine the milk and vanilla.  Create a well in the dry ingredients and pour the mixture over the dry ingredients.  Gently stir the dough with a fork just until combined and a cohesive dough forms.

Combine filling ingredients in a small bowl and crumble most of it into the dough.  Gently knead the mixture into the dough, leaving some streaks.  You want it to somewhat resemble the streaks of a cinnamon roll.  You’ll see what I mean. 

Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet and form a large circle, about 8-9 inches in diameter and about 1 inch thick.  Sprinkle the remaining topping over the dough.  Cut into 8 wedges and transfer to the baking sheet.  

Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cook slightly on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack. 

Adapted from Baking Bites

My Mom’s Cinnamon Roll Icing

Ingredients:

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Tbs. milk

1-2 cups powdered sugar

Prep:

Mix vanilla, milk and powdered sugar together in a small bowl.  Stir with a wire whisk or fork until combined.  To reach a thicker consistency, add more powdered sugar.  To thin out, add more milk.  Taste and enjoy! 

Strawberry Muffins

I did it, I joined Twitter!  I haven't set up the link on my page yet, not exactly sure how to do that.  Hopefully this week I can figure it out.  Until then you can follow me at http://twitter.com/#!/Dinnersdishes

It is no secret that we are a muffin household here.  I just counted and I currently have 7 kinds in the freezer.  That is kind of embarrassing, but what can you do!  I think I just put my foot down and said we need to get rid of some before I make more.  As sad as that is, I need to clean out my freezer!  I made these last year when we had fresh strawberries, and they were delicious!  So I knew I was going to make them again this year for sure!

Strawberry Muffins
Recipe adapted from Allrecipes
Printable Recipes

1/4 cup Canola Oil
1/2 cup Milk
1 Egg
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 cup Sugar
1 3/4 cup Flour
1 cup chopped Strawberries

In a small bowl combine oil, milk, and egg.  Beat lightly.  In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and sugar.  Toss in chopped strawberries and stir to coat with flour.  Pour in milk mixture and stir together.

Fill 12 muffin cups with batter.  Bake at 375 for 16 minutes.  Enjoy!

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

As you all know by now, we love muffins!  Another thing my son absolutely loves in cinnamon.  I mean just about anything with cinnamon.  Cinnamon rolls, cinnamon toast, cinnamon bagels, cinnamon poptarts, I could go on.  So when I saw The Baker Chick made a Cinnamon Roll Muffin, I hit print immediately!  I knew, this would be a success!  And boy was it ever.  At first bite, my son said this was the best muffin EVER!  I had one too, and they were pretty darn good.  Reminiscent of Cinnabon from the mall food court, which was The Baker Chick's goal when she came up with this brilliant idea!  My Dad absolutely LOVES Cinnabon, so I am thinking I am going to have to make these for him.  I think he will be very impressed.  Oh yeah, they freeze well too!

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

Adapted from The Baker Chick

Printable Recipe

1 cup Buttermilk (I used ½ buttermilk, ½ cup skim)

½ cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp vanilla

1 egg

3 cups flour

Filling

2 Tbls Butter, softened

2/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

2 -3 Tbls milk

½ tsp vanilla

In a bowl combine brown sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla and egg.  Add in the buttermilk.  I actually had some buttermilk leftover from when I made these.  But, I usually don’t have it around.  I would not hesitate to just use regular milk next time I make them.  Mix together with a fork.  Add the flour.  Stir until it is well combined.  Be careful not to over mix!

Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and knead for about a minute.  Roll the dough into a 12x24 inch rectangle. 

Spread the butter over the dough, and sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon.

Roll the dough into a log, and stretch it slightly.  Cut into 2 inch pieces.  Put them  into a greased muffin tin.  Bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.  

While they are baking you can put together the icing.  Add the milk slowly to the sugar.  Doesn’t really matter how much you use, just get it to the consistency you want.  Drizzle over the muffins!  

These were so gooey and delicious!  I recommend you make them right now!

This recipe is also posted on Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Oreo Muffins

My son loves muffins, if I haven't mentioned it before.  I think I have 5 different kinds in the freezer right now.  I make a batch, we eat them for breakfast, and they immediately go in the freezer.  Works great!  Then when he wants muffins again another day, he gets to pick what kind he wants.  I take one out, microwave it for 30 seconds, and he get a warm muffin for breakfast!  

I saw this recipe on Knead for Speed, and knew I just had to make it.  So when I had Oreo's left from making Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies, I knew exactly how to use them up.  Because eating them straight out of the bag by the handful seemed like a bad idea.  As much as I wanted to, I had to resist! 

Oreo Muffins
Recipe from Knead for Speed
Printable Recipe

Muffins:
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup skim milk
12 Oreos, coarsely crushed

Streusel:
2 Tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, diced
6 Oreos, finely crushed

Preheat oven to 385 degrees F.  Grease or line muffin tin with liners.

Prepare streusel first.  Stir together flour, sugar, and finely crushed Oreos in a small bowl.  Cut in butter until consistency becomes like coarse meal.  Refrigerate 10 minutes.



Whisk together flour and baking powder in a medium bowl.  Set aside.



Using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs, one at a time, stirring between additions.  Add vanilla.  Add flour all at once.  Mix on low speed for a few seconds, then add milk and continue mixing just until incorporated.  Fold in crushed oreos.




Divide batter between 10-12 muffin tins, filling each 3/4 full.  Evenly sprinkle Oreo streusel atop batter.



Bake 16-18 minutes, or until done.

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

Guess what?!?!?!  I am now a Featured Publisher with Foodbuzz (check it out on the right)!!  Super excited to start this journey, and see where it leads.

Now to the muffins....
In case you missed it, rhubarb season arrived a couple weeks ago, and everyone in the food blogging world has been posting recipes like crazy.  I am kind of late in the game here, but this is my requisite rhubarb recipe.  I did make it a week ago, but am just getting around to writing it.  I have very limited rhubarb experience, and am not sure how much I actually like it. I know, gasp!  I had a strawberry rhubarb pie years ago, but that had ice cream or whip cream and lots of strawberries, so not sure that is fair.  And I also made strawberry rhubarb jelly a few years ago, but that had tons of sugar and I think there was even jello in it.  So these muffins, that were really full of rhubarb, I am not sure what to think.  Very tart.  I did give them to someone who likes rhubarb, and she said they were great - so makes me wonder about my taste for rhubarb. 

I don't know where this recipe came from.  I printed it a LONG time ago, but it doesn't have a site, or name on it. 

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins
Printable Recipe

1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup minced rhubarb
1/2 cup sliced strawberries

Topping
3 Tbls brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Combine egg, milk, oil, vanilla, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Add flour, sugar, baking powder.  Mix.

 

Fold in the strawberry and rhubarb.  Fill greased or lined muffin tins.



Sprinkle the topping over each muffin.  Ok - you will see that I have a strawberry on top of each muffin.  The recipe called for this - leave it off!  I repeat - LEAVE IT OFF!!!  It looks pretty, but it is just a soggy mess.  You could put one on after they bake for serving, but baking a whole strawberry just leaves is mushy and kind of gross. 



Bake at 400 degrees for about 16 minutes.  Enjoy!

This recipe is linked to Taking Time for Mommy

Elephant Ears

This morning I made the mistake of asking the birthday boy what he would like for his birthday breakfast.  He took full advantage, and picked something we almost never make.  I should have known better, these Elephant Ears are his all time favorite, but I just wasn't thinking.  They are pretty easy, but with just 2 of here, and me trying to stop eating so much after this weekend, we didn't really need them!  Oh well, it is his birthday! 

I had never heard of these before I was in my 20's.  But apparently it is a well known breakfast to make with kids.  My husband made these frequently as a kid.  His mom gave me the recipe, which she got from a magazine years ago.   They are similar to a cinnamon roll, but without the frosting.  The dough is a little different, but they are really good and easy. 

Elephant Ears
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup flour
2 Tbls sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup milk
3 Tbls sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.   Mix the flour, 2 Tbls sugar, salt, and baking powder together.  Stir in the milk, and 3 Tbls of the butter.  Once the dough forms a ball, knead dough about 10 times.  Mix the 3Tbls of sugar and the cinnamon in a separate bowl.

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough on a floured surface into about a 9x5 rectangle.  Spread the remaining 1 Tbls of butter on the dough.  Sprinkle with almost all of the sugar mixture.  Leave a tiny bit, to sprinkle on top before you bake.  

Roll into a log, and then cut into 5 pieces.  Put them on a greased or lined cookie sheet, and press down gently with the palm of your hand.  Sprinkle lightly with the rest of the sugar mixture.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.  They are best served warm. Warm, gooey cinnamon....yyyyuuuummm!
If you have some leftover frosting, you could drizzle some of that over the top.  Never tried it, but I am sure it would be good!

S'more Pancakes Please

I had planned on making these pancakes for Saturday breakfast for a couple days. Then Saturday when we wake up it is SNOWING?!?!? It is the middle of April, snow does not belong! My only consolation was trying these pancakes, which now seemed the perfect summer breakfast for a yucky morning. My husband had to go into work, so it was just Tyler and I to eat these delicious chocolate/marshmallow creations. I was a little nervous they wouldn't turn out. I have been reading a couple recipes lately for different s'mores desserts - pies, bars, etc. All with lackluster reviews. But I love a good s'more, so I was going to try anyway. And boy were they good!

S'mores Pancakes
Serves 2 - 2 pancakes per serving
2/3 cup flour (all-purpose or whole wheat)
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
Optional - splash of vanilla
1 Tbls mini chocolate cips
20 mini marshmallows, halved
Chocolate Syrup
Reddi-Whip
1 sheet graham crackers


To make the batter, combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add the eggs, milk, and splash of vanilla. Mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips and the marshmallows. Stir in the marshmallows slowly, so they don't stick together. You could use a griddle if you were making a lot of them, but it was just 2 of us, so I used a non-stick skillet that I sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cook for about 2-3 minutes on the first side, and then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Once they are cooked through, put on a plate and get ready for the yummy part! I used an ice cream topping Hot Fudge - so I had to microwave it to get it "dripable" I put a bunch on a spoon, and just drizzled it over the top of my pancakes. Top with a squirt of reddi-whip, and then crush up 1/2 of the graham cracker over the pancakes.

These really did kind of taste like S'mores. Next time though, I think I wouldn't mix the marshmallows into the batter. They kind of melted in there, and didn't stand out. I think I would just sprinkle them over the top. The pancakes are hot, so the whip cream melts quickly. I think the marshmallows would as well. And really, if you have a favorite pancake recipe you could use that, and just stir in the chocolate chips and top this way.

These are definitely going to be made again here!