The Best Mini Pumpkin Muffins for Fall

Being from the Midwest, I think I have a soft spot for Fall in my heart.  

When the seasons change, the cool breeze whips through my hair with just enough of a chill to make me feel alive and breathe a little deeper, but not enough to force me to rush back to the warmth of the indoors.  I want to be cozy, but I also don't want to miss a minute of nature's last hurrah.  The scattering of gorgeous leaves on the ground is a treat for the eyes, and is almost always accompanied by the scratching and scurrying sounds of dried leaves blowing across the ground. The combination of rustic, muted colors together with crimson and yellow leaves is always spectacular, and the first arrival of bright orange pumpkins is a cause for celebration.        

So if you are like me, when Fall comes, you want to get outside and soak up the fleeting clean, cool air with hikes, late afternoon picnics, and hayrides.  But at the same time, the urge to warm up indoors beckons.  And naturally, the best way to warm up inside is to bake.  

Lately, my urge to bake has been insatiable - I have definitely baked more in the last three weeks than I have in the last three months combined, and I think that is directly related to the arrival of Fall and the warm comforting flavors it brings with it.  But let me tell you who has totally out-baked me: my sister.  I told you before that she has fallen in love with baking, and that affair just continues to blossom as she has been baking up fantastic sweet treats almost every other day.  And now it is sort of ironic because the tables have turned - she is recommending baking recipes to me instead of the other way around!  

Sugar and Spice Apple Chips

In celebration of fall, I am so excited to tell you about these easy and crispy Sugar and Spice Apple Chips.  But it gets even better, since I am sharing the recipe as a guest post over on Meandering Eats today!  I am sure you remember Marie of Meandering Eats - she is my dear friend who shared a post here on The Cilantropist not long ago, and my partner in crime for getting the best eats and food experiences here in San Diego.  

Today I am sharing a recipe on her site so that you can make your own apple chips with the abundance of apples this fall.  Apple chips are a fantastic and healthy snack for both adults and little ones - I am sure kids will be amazed to see how some extra heat, a dash of sugar and spice, and a little time can turn this... 

Into this...! 

You can flavor these chips with anything you like, but I chose sugar, cinnamon, and chinese five spice.  Perfect warm flavors for a cozy snack on a cool fall day. Oh, and be sure to share - you can bag these up and give them away to friends and family as homemade gifts!  

Stop by Meandering Eats to get this easy recipe, and enjoy your week!

You might also like: Smoked Gouda, Apple, and Bacon Melt

One year ago: A Presidio picnic, with Italian Pressed Sandwiches

More berries! Summer Strawberry Preserves

Be it strawberries, cherries, or blueberries, I have been buying summer berries in bulk from the farmers market and eating them like there is no tomorrow.  Which, to be honest, is sort of hilarious, because there is definitely no shortage of sweet berries here in Southern California.  For us, the berry season in the summer is pretty long which means I am a lucky lady (with a belly full of sweet berries).  

At the farmer's markets and even the grocery stores, strawberries are plentiful and perfectly ripe right now, which makes it the ideal time for turning those berries into jam and preserves.  I told you a few weeks ago about my first love - cherry preserves - and a few readers were curious if the same recipe would work for other berries like strawberries or blueberries.  Naturally I couldn't let this question go unanswered (since own curiosity often gets the better of me) so I decided to cook up some strawberry preserves.

A Recipe for Sweet Cherry Preserves

It is cherry season!  I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first cherries at the farmers markets, and finally their happy red faces have appeared.  They are juicy, sweet, and voluptuous, with smooth shiny skin and soft flesh inside.  They are just absolutely perfect.  Some of them are even so red and ripe that they are almost a deep crimson violet color.  

Here in San Diego we get the common Bing variety of cherry, but we also get neon-colored and super sweet Rainier cherries, and as well as Lapin Cherries.  I buy them all.  I love them all.  I am an equal opportunity cherry eater.  

Now last year when cherry season rolled around, I didn't quite get my act together.  I bought lots and lots of cherries, and snacked on them.  Often.  Cherries are just the ideal size for popping in your mouth one at a time, and then of course, you can't eat just one.  They are sweet enough to feel like an indulgence, but they are also really healthy - a win-win in the snack world.  

But yet, there were those pesky pits... and that was when I realized something was missing from my life.  Specifically, I didn't have a cherry pitter, and clearly everyone should own a cherry pitter.  (Am I right friends?)  Now I should have used this as a good excuse to go shopping (as though I need an excuse), but because of aforementioned lack of getting-act-together, I lagged behind and the cherry season passed me by.     

Citrus Palmiers for Frosting for the Cause

Hi friends!  I am really excited to share with you that I am guest posting today over at Frosting for the Cause! 

For those of you not familiar with the project, Frosting for the Cause is organized by Paula of Vanilla Bean Baker, and she has brought together a group of 365 bloggers and bakers to share their recipes and their stories of how cancer has touched their lives.  As part of the project, we also pledge to donate $25 to 
the American Cancer Society to help find cures for cancers affecting women world-wide.  After the year is finished, this project will have raised an astonishing $9,125 dollars to support cancer research from the bloggers alone!!!  In addition, we will also donate our baked goods to our local women's hospice or hospital, to bring smiles to the faces of those suffering from this horrible disease.


Head on over to the Frosting for the Cause site to read about how cancer has touched my life, and about how one very brave woman inspired my decision to purse a career in medical research.  At one point or another, cancer will touch everyone's life; I hope that my story, and those shared by hundreds of other women, will raise your awareness and make you take a moment to think about donating even a small amount to help find a cure.  You can donate directly to the Canadian Cancer Society or the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and keep in mind that every little bit counts.  

The recipe I chose to share for my guest post is a classic French palmier, brightened up with happy notes of citrus.  This recipe is extremely easy to make, and it produces beautiful heart shaped cookies that are sure to bring a smile to the face of anyone who eats one.  I am sharing the recipe here, but please don't forget to read the whole post (and see more photos!) over on the Frosting for the Cause site.  

Thanks for your support!

Swedish Cinnamon Butterhorns (Kanelbullar)

Doesn't this look like the perfect weekend breakfast?  Warm cinnamon and sugar rolls, straight out of the oven, a little bit of sweet fruit, and a warm cup of coffee... All enjoyed while relaxing in your pajamas with the morning paper or your favorite magazine.  Yes, that is my idea of a perfect weekend breakfast.  Of course, I would like these butterhorns any day for breakfast, but I find the weekends allow for the time needed to savor a simple European sweet bread such as this. 

Swedish Cinnamon Butterhorns, or Kanelbullar, are the Scandinavian equivalent of the American cinnamon roll.  Translated, Kanelbullar literally means cinnamon (kanel) bun (bullar or bulle), and it is an appropriate name since these are delicately spiced with cinnamon and less sweet than their American cousins.  These breads can be shaped in a spiral like a traditional cinnamon roll, or in a crescent like the ones I have here.  While almost all American cinnamon rolls are topped with a sticky sweet glaze, Kanelbullar can stand on its own or it can be dressed up with a little powdered sugar or a traditional glaze.

I first made these rolls almost four years ago now, when I decided that I would impress my Norwegian boyfriend with my baking prowess.  (Not that I had a lot of baking prowess four years ago, I think I was blinded by love.)  He was returning home from a summer trip to Norway, and I wanted to surprise him with something I knew he would appreciate so I headed to the library and checked out The Great Scandinavian Baking Book.  I figured if an authentic recipe was to be had, I would find it there.  

Of course, when I paged through the cookbook, the problem ended up being that I found too many great recipes and had trouble choosing!  I finally landed on these Kanelbullar which seemed easy to make and didn't have any bells or whistles to trip me up.  I got it right on the first try, and when my boyfriend arrived from the airport he promptly ate four of them.  I suppose that means they got the seal of approval.