Food Friday - Christmas Brunch

from Tracey G

I love this dish - and I'm sure most people have some kind of version of a "ring" in their bag of recipe tricks, lol. It uses the refrigerated crescent roll dough to make it pretty. My mom found this particular recipe years ago, and I know she's added a few tweaks here and there and I've even made my own on the fly with it. I discovered that what's written in my book is different from what she had written down, lol. So I made my version this time, but I know we've made hers more, lol. She called for shredded Colby Jack, I used shredded Swiss, so you can go with whichever you like - or change it up each time you make it. Sometimes ham and Swiss is what you after - so go for it, as I did!

 I also upped the Dijon mustard amount - I go by taste, so I start with the 2 tbsp called for and go from there. I think in this particular go, I added a couple more extra (could even have been 3 extra for a total of 5, lol) - I love the flavor it adds. It also calls for chopped/minced onion and since Harry is not a big fan, I used some onion powder (to taste). Although, since it has broccoli in it, my hopes of him eating it were dashed. But I did decide it would be good without the broccoli, lol.

The longest part of the recipe, for me is arranging the crescent roll dough in an even pinwheel - I'm so particular I arrange and rearrange more times than I can count so I can get if fairly even. You really don't have to be too particular because once it bakes it looks pretty anyway. ;-) It's also one of those recipes that tastes better the next day - so leftovers, if there are any, are really good if not better than the day before!

Broccoli Ham Ring

Preheat oven to 375°

2 - 8 oz. tubes refrigerated crescent roll dough

1 ½ c shredded Monterey Jack cheese with Colby (Colby Jack)

¼ lb fully-cooked ham, diced (1/2 c)

2 ¼ c finely chopped broccoli

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp Dijon mustard (more to taste)

1 tsp lemon juice

Unroll crescent roll dough and place triangles on 12” pizza pan (or large cookie sheet), forming a ring with pointed ends facing outer edge of pan and wide ends overlapping. Press wide ends together.

Combine remaining ingredients; spoon evenly over wide ends of rolls. Fold points over (towards center of pan) and tuck under wide ends (filling will be visible). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

from Kris B.

First let me apologize for my uninspired photo of this week's recipe.   This poor shot has nothing to do with the fact that I am behind with everything and am not yet fully feeling the Christmas spirit.  It is much more traumatic than that!  My tripod, with camera attached, tipped over and my lens took the brunt of the fall.  Thankfully, despite the fact that for some reason I had taken my UV filter off of it, the glass didn't break.  The plastic ring around the edge, however, is another story.

I logged on to the Nikon website to see what the procedure was for sending it in for repair.  Surprisingly, it was an easy process, not often the case these days.  I was presented with a multiple choice menu from which to identify the nature of my problem.   #2 "Dropped or Impact Damage". I guess I am not the only unfortunate person to have such a problem.  Once all of the pertinent information was supplied,  I was given an estimate of the cost of repair.  Mind you, it is only an estimate; but, I had to provide payment information at that point in order to proceed.  The good news is that the estimate is a great deal less than the cost of replacing the lens.  The bad news is that this lens is the most expensive one that I own.  So after school this afternoon, I'll make my way to UPS with all those who are trying frantically to get holiday gifts shipped and send my lens on its way.  Hopefully it will not get lost in the Christmas rush!

Once Nikon receives the lens and assesses the damage first hand, they will send a specific cost of repair and I will again have an opportunity to decide how to proceed.   Until then, I will be forced to use some of the lenses in my bag that I haven't used much lately.  That is a good thing, I think.  I have been kind of lazy and have been relying on my "workhorse" lens rather than pushing myself to be a little more creative with some of my other options.  We'll see what happens...

Back to breakfast...

Despite what the photo looks like, this egg dish with a southwest touch is really good!  The recipe was given to me by a friend several years ago.  I believe she got it when she was working as a substitute innkeeper for a bed and breakfast.  I wish that back then I had been more diligent about making note of such details.

Because my older daughter is a vegetarian, our Christmas morning main course is always meatless.  (The rest of us have bacon or sausage on the side.).   And truthfully, the "protein dish" is never what anyone in my family looks forward to.  For the last ten years, said vegetarian daughter has made homemade cinnamon rolls by the dozens for Christmas morning.  (Leftovers are a must!). These are the part of the morning feast that we all anticipate!  But, I insist on something with protein during the morning to help mediate the sugar and caffeine high on which we all find ourselves.  Hyper adults on Christmas  are not nearly as cute as sugared up excited children. Lol!

INGREDIENTS

1 TBS olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

12 corn tortillas, taco sized cut into pieces

2 4 oz. cans diced green chilies

2 Cups Mexican blend cheese

4 eggs

2 Cups buttermilk

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp oregano

Dash of cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

I make this is an cast iron skillet, but it can be made in a 2 quart casserole dish as well.  Coat the pan or dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil until browned.

In the cooking pan, layer half of the tortillas, all of the onion mixture, half of the green chilies, and half of the cheese.  Continue layering with the remaining tortillas, chilies, and cheese.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and spices.  Pour the egg mixture over the layered ingredients.

Bake for 40 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven and let rest for ten minutes.

This dish is good just like this, but can also be topped with sour cream, extra cheese, and/or diced fresh tomatoes.

I'm f you haven't yet settled on your Christmas morning menu, I hope you'll add this one to the list of contenders.

During this hectic and crazy time of year,  make sure to give yourself the gift of a few moments of peace in every day!

Food Friday - Family Favorites

from Kris B.

It is hard to believe that the holiday season is here!  It's that time of year where my life is made possible only by the many lists that have diligently created - lists of social obligations, Christmas gifts to buy, chores to be done, and of course, meal planning tasks.

Sometimes I wonder why planning Thanksgiving dinner is that difficult since it is a meal of tradition; everyone has their favorite dish and it is my job to make sure that all those favorites end up on the holiday table. In my family, we don't have generations of traditions by which to abide when it comes to our holiday meals, but I know many families that have had the same dishes as part of their Thanksgiving celebrations for years and years and years.  And often when they stop and think about it, they realize that some of the things that are still being served were a favorite of someone who is no longer living and no one now even likes "that" dish.  This scenario reminded me of a funny song that I sang with a chorus several years back, "Lime Jello Marshmallow Cottage Cheese Surprise."  If you need a little bit of comic relief during these hectic days, click here.

We don't have any Lime Jello Marshmallow Cottage Cheese Surprise at our house, but we do have some foods that are fast becoming holiday traditions.  One such food is pumpkin butter.  A former friend and I used to make it every year for our church's Christmas bazaar.  It quickly became a favorite of my then toddler second child.  Over the past twenty years, I have tweaked the recipe a little here and there to try and make it the best it can be and to add my own personal touch.  A jar of pumpkin butter used to be the standard holiday gift for my girls' teachers, as well as for many of my friends.

Because of the craziness in my life at the end of last year, I did not make any holiday pumpkin butter. in 2014  Though life still hectic this year as well, I managed to get the first batch of pumpkin butter made this week.  (Yes, Erin.  You may have a jar now.)  As I was making it, I was reminded of just how good pumpkin butter is.  I will definitely be making a few more batches over the coming weeks!

INGREDIENTS

2 15oz. cans of pumpkin puree

1 1.75oz package of pectin

1 TBS pumpkin pie spice

3 1/2 cups white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 TBS vanilla

Stir pumpkin puree and pectic together in a good sized heavy pot.  (You want a pot that is big enough so that once you add the sugar, the mixture will not boil over or "spit" hot pumpkin butter over the top.)  Continue to stir regularly while bringing this mixture to a boil.  Once boiling, add all of the sugar at once, the pumpkin pie spice, and the vanilla.  While stirring constantly, again bring the mixture to a boil.  Allow to boil for two minutes.  Remove from heat.

The pumpkin butter can be canned using standard canning procedures; or, it can be stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to one month.

Pumpkin butter is fantastic on your morning toast or English muffin, on crackers as an after school snack, or as filling for your holiday thumbprint cookies.  And, as members of my family will tell you, it is also good on a spoon right out of the jar.

by Tracey G.

Thanksgiving has never been a time for sticking with tradition for me, I don't know why, but I've never felt obligated to one certain dish. I've always been very open-minded about my menu. I have made turkeys the majority of the time because I like the sides that go with it, lol. And I like to make turkey noodle soup with the left-overs! But I'm always willing to add in things, omit things and whatnot.

I've been looking for a recipe for the Thanksgiving morning, something simple that could maybe pave the way for a "tradition" of sorts and this recipe came along at the right time so I thought I'd give it a try. I mean seriously this sounded pretty straight-forward yummy, lol. And it is - it's really good. Harry loved it and will go perfect with coffee at any time of the day! I must thank Taste of Home for coming through for me once again!

Down East Blueberry Buckle

courtesy of Taste Of Home Magazine

2 c flour

1/4 c sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 large egg

3/4 c 2% milk

1/4 c butter, melted

2 c fresh or frozen blueberries

Topping:

1/2 c sugar

1/3 c flour

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 c  butter, softened

1) Preheat oven to 375° F. In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, whisk egg, milk and melted butter until blended. Add to flour mixture, stir just until moistened. Fold in blueberries. Transfer to a greased 9-in. square baking pan.

2) For topping, in a small bowl, mix sugar, flour and cinnamon. Using a fork, stir in softened butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over batter.

3) Bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (do not overbake) Cool in pan on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Food Friday - Pie in the Sky

"Pie in the Sky" is probably not the most honest title for this week's post.  It is actually pie in my belly.  This is one of my favorite pies so as soon as I got the photos taken I felt obliged to eat the model.

In our family, my oldest daughter and her dad (my ex-husband) have had an ongoing battle waging over who makes the best pumpkin pie.  His is the more traditional type, and hers is vegan.  They are both really good.  I am always amazed that the vegan pie is as good as it is.  In all honesty, I bet you wouldn't know that it was vegan unless you were told.  Because I am the non-competitive member of the family, I never joined in the pie battle.  I took a completely different route and always make a pie for the non-pumpkin pie eat that comes to dinner every now and then.

This recipe comes from The Pantry Restaurant in McKinney, Texas, a locally owned family business.  Their recipes are longtime family recipes that have been passed down through generations. Fortunately, they also published a cookbook with the recipe for this pie!

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs
1/2 Cup melted butter
1 Cup granulated sugar
1/2 Cup flour
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Cup pecan pieces
1 10 inch pie shell

Mix eggs, butter, sugar, flour, and vanilla together.  Stir in chocolate chips and pecans.  Pour into the 10-inch pie shell.  Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes to an hour.  Serve topped with whipped cream or, if you are feeling really decadent, vanilla ice cream.

I usually melt the butter in a four-cup measuring cup and then mix all the ingredients in.  This makes it easy to pour the filling into the pie crust and it is easy clean up.  Only the measuring cup and a stirring spoon!  I also do not make my own crust for this one.  The pie itself is so rich that the taste of the crust is lost, so save the trouble of a homemade crust for that apple or peach pie!

On a side note, this is another in our "brown food series."   Again I say that brown food is really hard to photograph in an appealing way!


by Tracey G.

This recipe intrigued me, the fact that it's a colonial-era pie caught my attention. Add in the fact I love cranberries in just about any form and I'd never eaten them in the form of a pie, and I was really interested! The yummy ingredient list and the easy-factor sealed the deal for me.I think then next time I have some I'm going to heat it up and put a scoop of vanilla ice cream with it - yum!

I must thank Taste Of Home once again for the recipe and this venue for me having the reason to make this recipe! :-D 

Now, instead of making my own pastry for the pie, I just bought and used the refrigerated crust, made it super simple! But I've included the pastry recipe that came with the pie recipe :-)

And this was my first lattice topped pie - and it was so much easier than I thought it would be! I'd always said, nope, not doing that, that looks way too difficult, lol. Well, it's not and it sure looks pretty when you're done and it's baked! :-D

Cranberry Walnut Pie

courtesy of Taste of Home Magazine

Makes 8 Servings

1 pkg (12 oz) fresh or frozen cranberries, thawed

1 1/2 c packed brown sugar

1 c chopped walnuts

1/4 c butter, melted

4 1/2 tsp flour

2 tsp grated orange peel

Dash salt

Pastry for double crust pie (9-in.)

1) Preheat oven to 375° F. Place cranberries in a food processor; cover and process until finely chopped. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in brown sugar, walnuts, melted butter, flour, orange peel and salt.

2) On a lightly floured surface, roll one half of the pastry dough to 1/8-in. thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim pastry to 1/2-in. beyond rim of plate. Add filling.

3) Roll remaining dough to a 1/8-in. thick circle; cut into 1/2-in wide strips. Arrange over filling in a lattice pattern. Trim and seal strips to edge of bottom pastry; flute edge. Cover edges loosely with foil.

4) Bake 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake 20-25 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on wire rack.

Pastry for 9-in double-crust pie:

2 /12 c flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup cold butter, cubed

1/3 - 2/3 c ice water

Combine the flour and the salt; cut in the butter until crumbly. Gradually add 1/3 to 2/3 cup ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together. Divide in half, shape into disks; wrap in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour.

Food Friday - Fall Fare

from Kris B.

As you read earlier in the week, for Tracey and me both, fall is a favorite season.  Though there are lots of wonderful things about this time of year, it also brings with it memories of tough times for both of us since she lost her mom and I lost my dad during the fall  So, we have both had our share of nostalgic moments recently, both those that bring tears and those that bring smiles.  Life is all about finding that balancebetween the tears and the smiles; that is where we find ourselves right now, trying to find and maintain that healthy balance.

On one of my visits back to check on my dad during the summer of 2014, my aunt, his sister, brought over some sweet potato biscuits for him as they were a favorite.  As he was offering me one at dinner that night, I realized that despite the breadaholic that I am, I had never had a sweet potato biscuit.  Being that I am a sweet potato lover as well as a breadaholic, I suspected that sweet potato biscuits would be a win-win for me.  I was right.  These things were amazing...if of course you like biscuits and sweet potatoes.

Last Thanksgiving, for the first time ever, I was not at home with my girls.  I went to Delaware over that week to begin the process of settling my dad's affairs.  Weber and I spent Thanksgiving with my aunt, the sweet potato biscuit maker, and my cousins...and a big batch of sweet potato biscuits!  I missed being at home, but I loved having the biscuits, both because they tasted good, and they reminded me of my dad.

I begged for the recipe and my aunt graciously shared it with me.  Now I can have them any time that Id like.  Well, maybe not any time, because that would be all the time! Lol.  As I was baking this batch, my daughter, Brooke,  and I were talking about our Thanksgiving menu for this year.  At my request the sweet potato biscuits are on it!

INGREDIENTS
2 Cups mashed sweet potatoes
3/4 Cup sugar
3 Cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/2 Cup shortening

Preheat oven to 425

I am going to share the instructions exactly how they were given to me.

"Mix the mashed sweet potatoes and sugar.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients and cut in shortening.  Add dry ingredients to the sweet potato mixture.  I use both hands here and it gets kind of messy.  You might need to add flour in small amounts until the dough "feels right.'  I usually spray my hands with Pam and roll dough into balls about 1 1/2" in diameter.  Bake on a baking sheet for 12-15 minutes."

Any of you who have recipes that have been passed down from several generations will understand the part about "until the dough feels right."  Also, most biscuits are usually rolled and cut.  I have not tried that with these  because...well, because this is the way I want to remember them.  Also, this is easier; but, if you want to roll (and re-roll) and cut these, I suspect it will work just as well.

And here is my ah-ha moment of the day...Brooke and I were having a lovely conversation about lots of things while I was baking, something we both enjoy when we share our days off. In a manner that I'm sure felt totally random to hBrooke, I asked her where the term "baker's dozen" originated.  She is a trained pastry chef; she should know such things.  She didn't.  My question arose as I was putting the biscuits on the baking sheet.

When spaced using this fairly common layout on a standard baking sheet,  you end up with thirteen items.  I didn't take the time to research the real reason that we have a baker's dozen.  I'm sticking with my newly realized explanation because it makes sense to me. LOL!  

This same ridiculous way of thinking led my then six year old daughter to exclaim with total conviction, "Mama!  I know why Thanksgiving is always on Thursday...they both begin with TH.  That's why!"  Yep.  The apple doesn't fall far from the tree in our family....except that she was six when she had her great epiphany and I am 53.  


by Tracey G.

I am relatively new to the world of squash, lol. I'd say just the last 7 years or so, I discovered they're pretty yummy! As I kid I wouldn't even try them - maybe the name turned me off, I'm not sure. And it's not like they weren't around the house, my mom loved squash of all sorts, so it wasn't a stranger to me at all. And to be honest, it wasn't until about 10 years ago I discovered I loved sweet potatoes and still kick myself for not trying them sooner! But anyway, I am a big fan these days of pumpkin and butternut squash. This soup uses butternut and it's really yummy. I have been searching for a good squash soup/bisque recipe for awhile, I love the stuff and have never made it at home! So, this was the perfect excuse to try my hand at it. :-) I researched and this is kind of my own creation from a few recipes, it's simple and easy - and best of all, good!

When it came to the pureeing, I used my blender. Most recipes called for using food processor, but I didn't see why I couldn't just use my blender and buzz it up in almost one fell swoop. For today's recipe, I made a half batch of what I came up with, so I was able to get it all in the blender, but if I made the full batch, it would likely need to be done in two batches in it. I imagine my immersion blender could have been used too - I always forget about that thing! LOL

Here's the recipe (full batch), and I think it would be good with pumpkin as well...

Butternut Squash Bisque

3 1/2 lbs butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed

1 c sliced carrots

1/2 c chopped shallots

1 medium tart apple, peeled and chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

4 c chicken broth

1 1/4 c half and half

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

 1-2 tbsp chives, optional

Sour cream for garnish, optional

1) In a large bowl, toss the squash, carrots, apple and shallot in the olive oil until coated. Spread onto a large baking sheet in a single layer - if necessary you may need to use two so that they're in a single layer.

2) Bake at 400 for about an hour or until browned and tender, stirring a couple times. Cool slightly and place in a food processor, cover and process until almost smooth.

3) In a Dutch oven, add the pureed vegetables, broth, half and half, salt and cayenne, heat through - do not boil. If using, stir in chives. Garnish servings with sour cream if desired.

As I said above, I used my blender for the pureeing - I added the broth and vegetables and blended until smooth. I then transferred it to the pan and added the cream, salt and cayenne. Worked pretty well, and tasted darn good! :-D

Food Friday - Halloween Treats

from Tracey G.

When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it - I've had the darn thing for a couple years now and I'd yet to make it - until now. Yeah! Finally!  The dip tastes just like pumpkin pie - it's so yummy! And the pie crust dippers are perfect with it, only next time I think I'd do something a little "stronger" to dip - the cats legs kept breaking off and the tails barely made it off the cookie sheets, lol. Maybe pumpkin cut outs or ghosts or something - but the cats are pretty darn cute, lol. Another good thing about this recipe is it's holiday-versatile, lol. I mean, you could make it around Thanksgiving, using leaf cookie cutters in place of the Halloween themed cutters. Just tint the egg wash the appropriate color for the leaves and you're all set. :-)

This was a pretty easy recipe to execute - which was really nice! Would be a good last minute thing to throw together - I had everything on hand that I needed. I always have pumpkin puree in the freezer (canned is called for in the recipe though, but I always make my own every fall and freeze it), the pie crusts are usually in the freezer and the cream cheese is usually in the fridge, lol. So, this was an easy throw-together for me! :-)

Here's the filling ingredients - Honey, pumpkin pie spice, cream cheese, pumpkin and powdered sugar. I also make my own pumpkin pie spice as well, and that's super easy too - I'll include my recipe in this post as well. :-)

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy (this is not the bowl I beat it in, lol, this is the one I used to store it in the fridge in while the dippers were baking). Add the pumpkin, honey, powdered sugar and pumpkin pie spice.

The dipper ingredients are cinnamon, granulated sugar, milk, refrigerated pie crusts, an egg and black paste food coloring (I used the new Wilton Color Right system Black color). 

Roll out the dough directly on the cookie sheet to 1/8-in thickness...

Cut out the dippers leaving about an inch in between them, just peel the excess dough from between them - you can re-roll the scraps too if you'd like, I did. 

Beat the egg, add milk and food color. Mix the cinnamon with the sugar and set aside. Brush the colored egg mixture over the cats, then sprinkle with some cinnamon sugar. 

Bake at 400°F for 6-7 minutes, or until edges begin to brown. Cook on wire racks. Serve with pumpkin dip!

Pumpkin Pie Dip with Black Cat Dippers

courtesy of Taste of Home

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

1 15 oz. can solid-pack pumpkin

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tbsp honey

Dippers:

1 pkg (15 oz.) refrigerated pie pastry

1 egg

1 tbsp milk

black paste food coloring

1/4 c granulated sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1) In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add the pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, honey and powdered sugar; mix until smooth.  Cover and refrigerate until serving.

2) Roll out each pastry sheet directly on an ungreased cookie sheet to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with floured 2-in. cookie cutter, leaving at least 1 inch in between cutouts. Remove excess dough, and re-roll scraps if desired. Beat the egg with the milk and food coloring; brush over cut outs. Combine the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle over cutouts.

3) Bake at 400°F for 6-7 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Cool on wire racks. Serve pumpkin dip.

Pumpkin Pie Spice:

Makes about 7 1/2 tsp

4 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Mix all together and store in an airtight container. I have made it before without using ginger and I've also added a bit more clove - because I love clove, lol. Feel free to add or subtract whatever to suit your tastes :-) 

from Kris B.

All I can say is that it is a good thing that Tracey titled this week’s post because if I had done it, it would have been “the agony of defeat.”  LOL!  First of all, time got away from me and I found myself scrambling to get things done at the end of the week.  I had everything planned out, but the execution certainly did not work according to that plan.  That I can actually cope with since I have on ongoing struggle with time management.  And time whoops me in every battle!

The second defeat was in the recipe itself.  Looking back, this is because I didn’t trust my own instincts.

So here’s the story…

A few Sunday’s ago at church, someone had made for coffee hour the good, old fashioned, remind you of your childhood, Rice Krispie treats.  Weber had one and commented as to he couldn’t remember when he had last had one and that he really liked them.  That afternoon, I made a batch of the tried and true off -the-box recipe for us to take in our lunches that week.  When Tracey and I started talking about Halloween treats, I had the idea to just add pumpkin spices to the original Rice Krispie Treats recipe to give them a little festive spirit.  

Knowing that virtually no ideas are really original, I turned to the Internet to see what had been done along these lines.  Of course I discovered that my thoughts were not original; no surprise there.  LOL!  What I did find, is that several recipes added pumpkin purée.  Though I was hesitant about that, I read this blog where the writer chronicled her own process of trying to create pumpkin Rice Krispie treats.  She told of several failed attempts, but finally, by paying careful attention to the cooling process of the marshmallow and pumpkin mixture, was successful.  Being that she had gone through the trial and error, I decided to follow her recipe, with full disclosure.  

Here it is:

Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats

serves 12

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 (10 ounce) bag mini marshmallows plus one cup

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch of allspice

Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

Pinch of kosher salt

6 cups crispy rice cereal

 Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish (or a smaller dish — see Note below).

 In a heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add the pumpkin puree and continue to cook until it is warmed through. Fold in 10 ounces of the marshmallows, stirring frequently until almost completely melted. 

Stir in vanilla, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and salt, and remove from heat. 

Allow the marshmallow mixture to cool 10 minutes; fold in the remaining cup of marshmallows.

 Continue to cool the mixture for another 20 to 25 minutes until it is room temperature (failure to cool the mixture will result in soggy rice crispy treats.) Add the puffed rice cereal and stir, using a silicone spatula, until combined. 

Press the mixture into the greased rectangular baking dish. Let set for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.

 • Note: I call for a 9x13-inch dish here, but I often use an 8x11-inch because I like taller treats. Any size in this range should do.

I'll admit that when it comes to cooking I do not always measure ingredients exactly, nor to I always follow suggested timing for things.  I have learned to adjust for me own taste and the quirks of my own oven.  That said, I followed this recipe exactly because I knew that there was a fine line between success and failure.  I actually set a timer for the two different cooling periods.  All seemed well.

After allowing the pan to fully cool, I gave Weber the first square.  His comment, "The flavor is really good, but the Rice Krispies are tough."  Ooh.  Not a good thing.  I tasted them.  He was right, the flavor is good.  What he described as "tough" was actually soggy, masked by the stickiness of the marshmallow mixture.  So, they tasted good, but didn't feel good in your mouth, especially since we all know what Rice Krispie Treats are supposed to taste like both in flavor and texture.

So what did I learn?  I am not one who thinks that I know everything.  I'm far from that.  But, in this case, I knew that the added liquid from the pumpkin purée would change the science of this recipe and I should have followed my initial instinct to only add the pumpkin pie spices.  And honestly, the pumpkin purée adds no additional flavor.  So, if you want to make Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie treats, skip the "bad guy,"

and follow the basic recipe on the cereal box, 

1. Melt 3 TBS of butter in a heavy sauce pan over low heat.  Add the marshmallows, stirring until completely melted.

 and add 1/4 tsp of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg and allspice to taste, to the marshmallow mixture.   

2. Stir in 6 Cups of Rice Krispies.

3. Using a buttered spatula, spread the mixture into a buttered 9x15 pan, or a smaller pan for thicker treats.  Let cool completely and then cut into squares. 

Most often the "KISS" method (Keep It Simple Stupid) is best.  Lesson learned.  LOL!

So there you have it, my story of being defeated by Rice Krispie Treats.  If any of you choose to take on the pumpkin puree in this arena, I'd love to know your secrets!