Pumpkin Bars

So those of you who already know me know of my love (read: obsession) with pumpkin EVERYTHING! As I sit here writing this I am drinking a Pumpkin Spice Latte, smelling my pumpkin candles and wallflowers and planning on attempting my first every pumpkin roll (blog to come). Oh! And not to forget the pumpkin body wash and body lotion I used this morning... I'm guessing you get the point. :) Anyway, all of that to tell you about the Pumpkin Bars I made.

 

I'll start my saying these Pumpkin Bars almost got me kicked off a plane. (This is probably an exaggeration) The trouble started when the best mom in the world sent a box of 123 Gluten Free Sugar 'n Spice Bars home with me from CO. Going through security I got stopped for about 10ish minutes so the could investigate the "suspicious" package in my suitcase. These bars are so delicious it's dangerous (pahaha, even I think I sound ridiculous :)) Here's a link to the mix.

123-Gluten-Free Sugar 'n Spice Pan Bars

 

They're pretty trick to find in stores and are kind of pricey, but I think worth it. The box included a recipe for the pumpkin bars I made. I simply followed the recipe (adding a little extra pumpkin of course). To top them off I used PUMPKIN cream cheese from Trader Joe's to make a cream cheese frosting. The finished product was AMAZING. I sent one to work with Sexy Engineer (SE) and took the rest to work with me. Just as I bit into mine and was blown away SE texted to say the same! They were a hit with EVERYONE. Enjoy!



This is my attempt at fancy photography... obviously NOT my calling. :)

*I've noticed in blogs that bloggers come up with catchy nicknames for their significant others, hence Sexy Engineer. He'll pop up often. :)

WW Hearty Turkey Chili

WW and I have had an on again/off again relationship for many, many years. However, there are a few things that I have stuck with throughout the turbulent relationship. One being the Hearty Turkey Chili. Here's the Recipe.
SE is out of town leaving me to my own devices. As much as I miss him I'm relishing in the opportunity to plan out meals for the entire week! Today has been a nice, fall day in the PNW. Chilly, but with the sun attempting to peak out. Perfect for chili! While I use the original recipe to guide me, I tweaked here and there. I followed the first few steps, sweat onions, add garlic and carrots and then brown meat. I had an extra carrot in the fridge that I added so that it wouldn't go bad. :) This is a great opportunity to use any extra veggies you have and need to use!

I like using the crockpot for this recipe to help meld the flavors. Therefore, I dumped this mixture in the crockpot and added the spices, tomatoes and beans. I added black beans and corn to the original recipe.

 

 

Don't forget the vinegar and green peppers (like I almost did), as well as, the chicken broth and tomato sauce. Mine's going in the crockpot now! :)

Happy Birthday, Dad!

I want to start by saying welcome and thank you! In about April of 2011 I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. Ever since then I've been riding the roller coaster of the gluten free life. One of the things that helps me through is baking. I love trying new recipes and watching people enjoy my food. Now to Dad's birthday!
Dad has been struggling with some health issues for a while now. That being said I wanted to lay eyes on him and decided to make the trip out to Denver. Fortunately, my trip happened to land on his birthday! (Way to kill two birds with one stone :)) When asking Dad what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday he automatically responded gluten free! After reminding him he's not gluten free ;-) he explained it'd be no fun to eat cake by himself. What a trooper! With that in mind I knew my cupcakes had to be good! Dad's a snickers lover, so with that inspiration I decided on chocolate cupcakes with salted caramel frosting. Holy cow. Yum.
If you haven't already discovered Kimg Arthur's gluten free mixes you are missing out! These are the most moist cupcakes I've ever had, gluten free or full! Side note: due to parents living at such a high altitude I added an extra egg... Perfection.
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/gluten-free-chocolate-cake-mix
To top them off I consulted good ol Pinterest and found this wonderful recipe. http://kimberlytaylorimages.com/?s=salted+caramel+frosting&submit=Search
(Scroll down for the frosting)
The result was mouth watering!
Feedback:
The caramel recipe made almost exactly a cup.
I suggest making about 1/2 the frosting recipe and saving some caramel to drizzle on top. However, I didn't have a piping bag so...
I wish I could have brought the left overs home with me. No worries though, I ate a jumbo before I left. :)