Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins!

another variation on the wonderful pumpkin muffin. taste delish with cream cheese. you need;
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup quick cook oats (NOT old fashioned oats)
3/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 cup pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin)
3/4 cup fat free milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 egg
2 palm fulls shredded coconut
1 palm fulls nuts
1 palm fulls raisins

preheat oven to 400' and spray nonstick spray onto a mini muffin tray, or a big muffin tray. mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. (flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & pumpkin pie spice). then mix the pumpkin puree, milk, canola oil & egg using a stand mixer, hand mixer or wrist strength. add the flour mixture, coconut, nuts & raisins to the pumpkin mixture. blend until everything is mixed together, being careful not to over mix. (over mixing causes tough muffins.) scoop the batter into the muffin trays and bake for 22-25 mins.

Pumpkin Banana Muffins!

a delish combo of all the leftover cans of pumpkin from thanksgiving and bananas. simple and delish. you need:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup wheat bran (or you can use wheat germ)
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 mashed bananas (preferably on the brownish side. and if they are not very brown, mush the banana around while it is still in the peel.)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (pumpkin puree is the stuff in the "one pie pumpkin" can. do not confuse pumpkin puree with canned pumpkin pie mix. they are not the same)
1/2 cup skim milk
1 beaten egg
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
handful or so of raisins/ nuts.

preheat over at 400'. stir dry ingredients together in a bowl. (both flowers, wheat bran & baking powder). mix the wet ingredients using a mixer or beaters or really intense wrist strength. (bananas, pumpkin, milk, egg, vegetable oil & nuts/raisins) carefully mix the dry ingredients in with the wet ones. scoop batter into greased mini muffin pans and bake for 20 mins.

Panera Bread

Panis meaning bread in latin, is the inspiration behind this restaurant chain. and yes many other languages use words starting with P to mean bread, but latin came first. any who this is a delish place. well priced, many comfy chairs and delectabilis (latin for delectable) food. (why yes, i do enjoy latin.)the chicken Caesar salad had delish croutons and parm shavings on top. the Asian chicken salad has a sweet and tangy dressing and crisp won tons. the dressing may be a bit strong but goes well with the almonds and cilantro. each come with a good hunk of bread or their own chips. all sandwiches are top of the line, just be sure to get it grilled. really brings out the flavors of the fresh baked breads and melts the cheese. i also enjoy all of their baked goods and cookies. they also make some nice coffee and use republic of tea tea which is delish times 10. my loves (leah and nikki) agree this place is magically delicious.

Soy Milk

i have been reluctant to jump on the soy bandwagon. i struggled to imagine the edamame i have come to love and cherish in a white liquidity consistency. but recently my friends have been telling me i am lactose intolerant because i cannot digest food. so i decided to give this soy milk a try. at first sip of the soy latte, i missed my skim latte. but a few lattes later i have come to appreciate the soy milk. its sweeter than actual milk and is frothier than skim. the soy has more fat and calories than the skim, but it is loaded with nutrients as well. and the soy is delicious in coffee. to further extend my soy vegan-ness i baked with soy butter instead of regular butter. regular butter is like death on a stick, but in most cases its so worth it. i was skeptical about the fake butter at first, because the badness in butter makes it oh-so delicious. but after sticking my fork into the apple crisp, i did not miss the real butter. sadly, i have yet to find a non dairy option for cheese; but i shall continue the hunt.

Fro-Yo

I have fallen in love again. with pints of Ben and Jerry's Fro Yo. for those of you who don't know, fro yo is frozen yogurt, all of the usual lovin' from ice cream with much less fatness. i usually have to leave my house and drive to jp licks, white mountain creamery, or pinkberry for a delicious cup of fro yo. but no longer. i have discovered the selection at Whole Foods, and am blown away. My absolute favorite is black raspberry chip. i was turned on to this after buying a super premium pint of this at a farmers market. the Ben and Jerry's version is delicious too. mounds of dark chocolate chunks with velvety smooth raspberry ice cream. B&J's (Ben and Jerrys, duah) also make a great Chocolate Brownie fro yo. it can be too chocolaty some times, but if you are in the mood it is perfect. fro yo is even better than light ice cream, because after compairing pints in my freezer, the fro yo is actually much lighter. (who knew!). overall, i dont think a bad pint of fro yo exist because what can be bad about ice cream that makes you less fat?