Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

 Recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin-pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
• 12 ounces chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
2. With a stand or electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until smooth; beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Add pumpkin puree and mix well. The mixture will look somewhat curdled. Reduce speed to low, and mix in dry ingredients until just combined.
3. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake bars for 35-40 minutes or until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached.
5. Cool bars completely in pan. Cut into squares and serve.

Chocolate Chunk White Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies - Yields ~24 to 34

From Tasting Colorado by Michele Morris via Holden House 1902 B&B Inn (lightly edited)

INGREDIENTS

• ¾ cup Brown Sugar
• ¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) Butter
• 2 large Eggs
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 ½ cups Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 6 oz Dark Chocolate Chunks (semi-sweet or milk chocolate OK)
• 5 oz White Chocolate Chips
• ¼ cup chopped Walnuts

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375-degrees F (If using Samsung convection oven, select "Chef Bake" mode w/ oven divider REMOVED, and the rack moved to middle of the oven. Regular "Bake" mode is the convection method, which blows hot air on the cookies causing the tops to brown too quickly). 
2. Combine the brown sugar and the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl and heat on high until soft (30 - 40 seconds)
3. Whisk in eggs and vanilla and mix well.
4. Add the flour and baking soda and stir until well mixed
5. Stir in chocolate chunks, white chocolate chips, and walnuts
6. Spoon well-rounded teaspoons of cookie dough onto an ungreased (insulated preferred) cookie sheet (optional to use silicone baking mat or parchment paper for less clean-up).
7. Bake until slightly brown on top (~10 to 12 minutes)

(If

Buttermilk Pancakes - Serves 2 (or six 4.5" pancakes)

Adapted from: NYT Cooking

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (125 g)
• 1.5 Tbsp sugar (19 g)
• 0.75 tsp baking powder
• 0.75 tsp baking soda
• 0.65 tsp kosher salt
• 1.25 cups buttermilk (290 to 300 g)
• 1 large egg
• 1.5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• Vegetable, canola, or coconut oil for the pan
• OPTIONAL TOPPINGS: Small pineapple chunks, blueberries, chocolate chips, etc
• 
  

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 225 degrees. 
2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and kosher salt together in a bowl. 
3. Using the whisk, make a well in the center. Pour the buttermilk into the well and crack eggs into buttermilk. Pour the melted butter into the mixture. 
4. Starting in the center, whisk everything together, moving towards the outside of the bowl, until all ingredients are incorporated. (lumps are fine) Do NOT over-mix. Overbeating causes dense, rubbery pancakes! 
5. Rest the batter for 30 minutes at room temperature. The batter can also be refrigerated for up to one hour.
6. Heat a large nonstick griddle or skillet, preferably cast-iron, over low heat for about 5 minutes.
7. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the skillet. Turn heat up to medium and using a measuring cup, ladle 1/3 cup batter into the skillet*. If you are using a large skillet or a griddle, repeat once or twice, taking care not to crowd the cooking surface.
• At this point, you may add optional flavorings like pineapple, blueberries, etc.
8. Flip pancakes after bubbles rise to surface and bottoms brown, about 2 to 4 minutes (Sarah's note: 3 minutes on our induction stove using cast iron skillet). 
9. Cook until the other sides are lightly browned. Remove pancakes to an oven-safe plate (or wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet), and keep in heated oven until all the batter is cooked and you are ready to serve.

Pumpkin Muffins

adopted via: https://pinchofyum.com/favorite-pumpkin-muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of rolled oats
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 6 ounces plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup maple syrup (less 1 or 2 tbsp for altitude)
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of cinnamon 
• pinch of salt
• chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. In a food processor or blender, pulse the oats for about 10 seconds to get them mostly smooth
3. Add all the ingredients (sans chocolate chips) and pulse until mixed
4. Stir in the chocolate chips
5. Transfer to a greased muffin tin
6. Bake for ~15-minutes

Pumpkin Chocolate Cookies - Makes 30

Difficulty: 2 (time consuming)

EQUIPMENT

• 1 large mixing bowl
• 1 medium bowl
• 2 Air-bake OR 2 regular baking trays
• Parchment Paper (optional)
• Mixer (if you don't want to do it by hand)

INGREDIENTS

WET

• 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
• 1/2 cup butter, room temp or melted
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 can (or about 1 cup) pumpkin puree or 100% pumpkin - NOT pumpkin pie filling

DRY

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup wheat flour (if no wheat flour, use all-purpose)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 cup (half a 12 oz package) Chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.  Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, add all the dry ingredients EXCEPT the chocolate chips. Whisk until well-combined. 
3. In a separate large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars by mixing them together with a hand-held mixer or stand mixer until rather smooth and creamy.  Add the egg and vanilla and mix again (whipping the eggs provides air).  Add pumpkin puree and mix again.
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet while using the electric mixer.  Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again.
5. Using a spatula, fold in the chocolate chips until evenly distributed.
6. Drop the batter by spoonfuls onto the lined baking sheets.  These cookies do not spread much.
   
   7A - REGULAR BAKE: Bake for 10 minutes, then check using a toothpick.  If still a little raw in the middle, bake for another 2 to 4 minutes.  If using AIRBAKE sheets, bake for 15 minutes, then check.
   7B - CONVECTION BAKE WITH AIRBAKE SHEETS: Bake for 15 minutes, then check using a toothpick.  May need another 5 minutes.

Optional: Cool on the trays for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack for another 10 minutes.

Lychee Muffins - 12 muffins

From: Lycheesonline.com
Difficult: 1 (easy)

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup unbleached flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/4 cup fat-free egg substitute (or about 1 large egg)
• 3 tbsp Lychee jam or puree
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh or canned Lychees

DIRECTIONS

1. Line 12 muffin cups with paper baking cups or spray them with non-stick spray
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flours, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg
3. In small bowl, combine the buttermilk, egg substitute and fruit spread. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Fold in the chopped berries.
4. Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake at 350ºF until the muffins are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.