These cranberry pumpkin muffins take less than an hour to make and are great for breakfast, brunch or snacks.  I frosted these with a cream cheese honey frosting and finished with finely chopped pistachios. 

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup 100% pumpkin puree
6 oz. dried cranberries
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg

Instructions:  Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease or paper-line 12 muffin cups.  Combine flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Combine pumpkin, sweetened dried cranberries, vegetable oil, milk, molasses and egg in separate medium bowl. Add to flour mixture, mixing just until the dry ingredients are moist. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cup, filling 2/3 full.  Bake for 30 minutes or until wooden  pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 5 minutes; remove to  wire rack to cool slightly. 
 
Honey Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
16 oz. light cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup honey
2 tsp. vanilla
Finely chopped nuts for garnish

Instructions:  Beat cream cheese, honey, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy. Chill until stiff enough to spread.  Ice cooled muffins and sprinkle with chopped nuts of your choice. 

Oh, it's so good to be home and baking again! 

As a child, I loved Twix bars, and found this recipe to make my own version.  I hope you enjoy! 

Caution:  EXTREMELY rich.  Eat carrots all day so you can enjoy guilt-free!




Ingredients: 
2/3 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter 
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips 
kosher sea salt (optional)
 
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a medium bowl, mix together 2/3 cup butter, white sugar, and flour until evenly crumbly. Press into a 9 inch square baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Cool completely.
 
In a 2 quart saucepan, combine 1/2 cup butter, brown sugar, corn syrup,
and sweetened condensed milk. Bring to a boil. Continue to boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon for about 3 minutes. Pour over baked crust). Cool in fridge until it hardens.  

Place chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat for 1 minute, then stir and continue to heat and stir at 20 second intervals until chocolate is melted and smooth. Pour chocolate over the caramel layer and spread evenly to cover
completely. Chill.

Cut into 1 inch squares. These need to be small because they are so rich.

These are super-fast to make, and they disappear even faster. 

Ingredients:
10-12 baked tart shells (I found these great ones at Whole Foods.)
12 oz. Greek honey-flavored yogurt (or plain Greek yogurt with rosemary honey)
Honey or maple syrup
Assorted fruit, mint, basil, purple basil, yogurt covered blueberries, etc.
     

Ingredients:

2 zucchini
1 cup white whole-wheat flour
1/3 cup baking cocoa
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup dark chocolate morsels, divided
1/4 cup canola oiil
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar or Splenda
2 large egg whites (see leftover uses for egg whites/egg yolks)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

  
Yield: 12 brownies
WW Points+: 5 pts per brownie (4 when made with Splenda)

I was quite fortunate to receive a beautiful butternut squash from my best friend, Kate the Great, this week.  I've always wanted to try butternut squash pie, and so I gave it a go.  Yummo -- it's like a lighter version of a pumpkin pie.  You'll love it, I promise. 

I took the best of several recipes to make it my own, and so my version is reflected below. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

FOR THE CRUST

Prepared pie crust -- I always use David Letterman's mother's recipe

FOR THE FILLING

1 butternut squash, about 1 1/2 pounds (will yield 6 cups of cubed squash after peeling and de-seeding)
3 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks  (see ideas for the extra egg whites here.)
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I used light, but don't think it matters)
2 T applesauce (original recipe called for 2 T brandy, but I don't have that sitting around...)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
Lightly sweetened freshly whipped cream, for serving

NOTE:  Most of the pumpkin pie recipes I looked at had the traditional combination of cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves.  I just don't happen to enjoy the flavors of allspice and cloves, but feel free to remain traditional in your baking of this pie!


Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make the crust:  Roll out the pie crust to a 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate, and trim crust to a 1-inch overhang. Fold edges under, and crimp as desired. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.  Bake until edges of crust begin to turn golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

For the filling, peel and de-seed the butternut squash, and then cut into small cubes.  Cook the squash by your favorite method; I use my electric steamer, but you can boil, roast, microwave, etc.

Put cooked squash in your food processor or mixer, and process until smooth and light. 

Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Whisk squash puree, eggs, egg yolks, heavy cream, sugar, applesauce, cinnamon, nutmeg, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and a pinch of pepper in a bowl.

Pour filling into pie shell, and bake until just set but still slightly wobbly in the center, about 1   hour (filling will continue to set as it cools). Let cool on a wire rack. Serve slightly with whipped cream.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. strawberries, hulled and sliced (about 6 cups)   
1/2 cup(s) Splenda   
1/2 tsp salt   
12 oz angel food cake, prepared from cake mix, cut into 1/4-inch slices   
4 cup(s) fat-free vanilla frozen yogurt   
  
Instructions:
 
To make strawberry sauce, combine strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and salt in a saucepan, stirring over medium heat until the sugar melts and the liquid comes
to a simmer. Simmer 15 minutes. Use the back of a wooden spoon to mash about
half the berries against the side of the pan. Cool to room temperature and use immediately or refrigerate, covered, up to 2 days. 
 
Spoon the frozen yogurt into a large bowl and mash it with the back of a wooden spoon until soft and spreadable. 
 
Line the bottom of a 9-inch round springform pan with one third of the cake slices, cutting any slices to fit the shape of the pan. Top with half the frozen yogurt, spreading it to the sides. Spread half (about 2/3 cup) strawberry sauce over the frozen yogurt, then top with half the remaining cake slices, again cutting any to fit. Spread the remainder of the frozen yogurt over the cake, top with remaining strawberry sauce, and finally seal the top with the remaining cake slices. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze at least 6 hours or up to 3 days. Let the cake stand at room temperature 10 minutes before unmolding.  Slice into 12 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.

Weight Watchers: 3 PPs