White Chocolate Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

Traditionally, I always make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins as soon as the fall hits. The flavors of the muffin just epitomize the season for me, making me feel ready to get warm and cozy during the crisp weather. This year, I decided to take that same recipe and change it up a little bit, just to try something new. Instead of mini chocolate chips, I stuffed the muffin with white chocolate chips and cranberries, before topping it off with a few pepitas. I ended up loving the combination of flavors and will definitely be making them again in the future! I just wish they sold mini white chocolate chips, since the smaller chips spread out in the batter  bit better.

For this recipe I ended up making a pan of 12 regular muffins, and used the rest of the batter to make a pan of 12 mini muffins. I also used some leftover Halloween muffin tins that I had sitting around. 

Pan: Muffin tin

Yield: about 16 regular muffins

Oven prep: Bake at 400˚ F

What You’ll Need:

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup sugar

• 1/2- 16 oz. can pumpkin

• 3/4 cup oil

• 1 1/2 cups flour

• 1 tsp. baking soda

• 1 tsp. baking powder

• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

• (optional) pepitas to put on top of the muffins

Directions:

1. Using a large mixing bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and oil until smooth.

2. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon in a separate bowl.

3. Slowly add the mixture to the pumpkin mixture and stir well, until all clumps are dissolved. 

4. Fold in the white chocolate chips and cranberries.

5. Line the muffin tin with muffin cups. Pour the mixture into the cups about 3/4 full.

6. If you want to add pepitas to the tops of the muffins, press in about 5-8 into the tops of each muffin prior to putting into the oven.

7. Bake for 16-20 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

8. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing.

Here are some photos of the final product:

Pumpkin Cookies with Maple Cream Cheese

My mom was in the mood for a soft and flavorful pumpkin cookie, so we picked up a few fall ingredients and put together these very festively fall cookies. I was inspired to add the maple cream cheese (topped with some pecans) after having the new Maple Pecan Latte at Starbucks. Still being a bit pumpkin-ed out from last year, I liked having a different option, and thought it was a welcome change to the lineup of fall flavors. My mom said this was her favorite cookie we have ever made, and I think they more than beat the latte on the flavor combination. These really melt in your mouth and make you feel like autumn is giving you a slightly-spiced hug.

Pan: A cookie sheet, with parchment paper lining the pan
Yield: About 2-3 dozen cookies

Oven prep: Bake at 350˚ F

What You’ll Need:

• 1/2 cup softened butter

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin

• 1/2 tsp vanilla

• 2 eggs

• 4 cups flour

• 1/4 tsp baking soda

• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar

• Dash of salt

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp nutmeg

• 1/2 tsp cloves

Frosting:

• Can of cream cheese frosting

• 1 tsp maple extract

• (optional) cinnamon

• (optional) pecan pieces

Directions:

1. Begin by preheating the oven to 350˚ F and prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Using a large bowl, mix together the butter, sugars, oil, pumpkin, vanilla, and eggs until fully blended.

3. Continue by slowly adding the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and spices until a smooth dough forms. 

4. Form the dough into balls and place onto the baking sheet. Each ball should use about 1 1/2 tablespoons worth of dough. Slightly flatten each ball using a glass or the bottom of your palm. Bake for 8-10 minutes.

5. After 5 minutes, transfer the cookies from the pan to cool. Allow the cookies to cool completely before starting the frosting. 

6. To begin your frosting, scoop about 1/2 of the canned cream cheese frosting to a small bowl. Add your maple extract and stir until incorporated (you can taste to see if you want more maple flavor). Use a knife or spoon to put a small dollop on each cookie and smooth around until a nice circle forms.

7. You can also add a sprinkle of cinnamon and/or pecan pieces on top of each cookie. I poured some cinnamon into a small bowl, and pecans in another. This made it easier to have a system of decorating them.

8. Once frosted, the cookies are ready to eat! The cookie remain soft and the frosting stays quite creamy for quite a few days. You can also freeze them and they taste good right out of the freezer!

Here are some photos of the final product:

Splash Mountain Briar Patch Frames

After going to Disney World with a friend, I wanted to make a gift for her birthday that used a photo from her favorite ride, Splash Mountain. I wanted it to be more than just framing an image though, so I attempted to come up with items that would fit the theming of the ride. Things that came to mind were wood, moss, and sticks, which go with the “briar patch” storyline of the attraction. I originally was going to just Google some photos of the characters from the ride (Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Fox, and Br’er Bear) but ended up coming across an old Disney book at a thrift store. The book and attraction both take characters from the 1946 Disney film Song of the South, which really isn’t a highlight in Disney’s history due to the way race is presented in the story. Because of this, I really didn’t have much of a problem cutting up the book to use it for my frame (normally I’m not a book cutter, I promise!) The illustrations in the book were spot on for the theme, and I felt that it would really make the gift unique.

I must admit that the ride photo I chose of us, which was our favorite photo of all the times we went on the ride during our trip, was actually just a photo of the screen where you can view your photo after the ride. I took a photo of the screen and managed to make it look moderately decent without purchasing. Sorry, Disney! This photo was our favorite because of how we were seated center in the log, the expressions of the people on the ride with us, and how we bonded with the kids in front of us. They had never been on the ride before and looked to us for a bit of emotional support as each drop approached.

I also had a photo of my mom and I on the Disneyland version of Splash Mountain, so decided to make a similar frame for us. Since we actually had PhotoPass this time around (maybe because of my guilt from the other photo?), I wanted to utilize one of the photos since we don’t have any Disney pictures from over the years framed or displayed. Although Splash Mountain doesn’t scare me, I always have trouble keeping my head up on the final drop, so this photo was a major accomplishment for me! I think being in rows of one prevents me from ducking my head towards the person next to me. My face is a bit concerning though, so maybe ducking would have been preferable!

For the frames, I thought that a patchwork look would work with the items I had accumulated and ended up with two frames that took me right back to the briar patch.

What You’ll Need:

• Frame (I bought mine at Michaels)

• Patterned paper (I used one large sheet and pages from a small paper pack)

• Glue stick or adhesives (I used sticky dots)

• Scissors or paper cutter

• Moss 

• Sticks, wood pieces, denim pieces, embroidery floss, photos, or other decorations

• Glue (I used Aleene's Tacky Glue)

Directions:

1. I started by choosing the photo I was going to use printed it on a 4x6 piece of photo paper. I then trimmed it.

2. With my photo ready to go, I begin arranging a scene behind it. I first cut my large piece of paper, which had a wood pattern. This acted as my base to build upon.

3. Next, I cut out characters from the book I had. I wanted a circle shape, so I used two small mugs and traced around a few of the characters using a pencil. I then carefully cut out the images using a scissor. I cut out more than I would need, just so I was able to play around with some different images. You can also use different sized shapes to differentiate the images a bit.

4. To start assembling the patchwork theme, I used my other patterned papers and cut them into small square and rectangle shapes. I laid them around the sides, with some overlapping and others not, until it looked decent. 

5. On top of the paper patchwork, I placed three of the circle images I chose from the book, representing the three main characters from the ride. Once everything was arranged how I liked it, I then used sticky dots to quickly attach them all in place. I figured this might be a bit easier, and less potentially messy, than using a glue stick.

6. With everything in place, I then attached the main Splash Mountain ride photo in the center.

7. Since nothing really required drying at this point, I started adding a few more dimensional aspects. First up, I cut a few squares of denim from an old skirt. I then did a quick basic running stitch around it to add a bit more color. Once the stitching was secured, I glued the denim pieces to the paper background.

8. Lastly, I added the moss and sticks. I attached the moss by putting down a circle of glue, and then patting in pieces of moss. The last items I attached were a few small sticks. I tried to get them as flat as I could so there would be no problems with assembling the frame.

9. Once everything was dry, I put the finished piece into the frame. Then it was ready to gift and display! (and reminisce about the memories)

Here are some photos of the final product: