Pumpkin Roll

You gotta do this at least once this season. Such an impressive but easy holiday treat.

Pumpkin Roll
adapted from Libby's

3/4 c flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground cloves
1/4 t salt
3 large eggs
1/2 c sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin puree

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 c powdered sugar
1 t vanilla extract

FOR CAKE:
PREHEAT oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar.

COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan.

BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.

FOR FILLING:
BEAT cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Slice into 1 inch rolls.

Cheddar Bites

These are addicting!
These taste just like Cheez-Its!
These will be gone by tomorrow!

Cheddar Bites
Martha Stewart Living Magazine

1 stick butter
2 c extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 c flour
1 t salt
1/4 t cayenne pepper
2 T cream


In a food processor, combine first 5 ingredients and pulse until it resembles course crumbs.
Add the cream and pulse until combined.
Divide dough into 4 pieces shaped into rectangles and wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll out a rectangle to a 1/4 inch thickness then cut into squares.
Place on lined baking sheet and chill again for about 20 minutes.
Bake at 325 degrees until golden about 15-17 minutes.
Let cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Peanut Butter Puffs

I was at the grocery store and noticed for the first time a big bag of plain puffed cereal. No sugar. No coating. And I thought hmmmm, I wonder how hard it would be to make my own peanut butter coated cereal? Turns out it's quite easy and quite tasty!

(There is also a cocoa version still in the works. That one needs a few more tweaks, but I'll share it with you when I've got it figured out. Then you can make your own Reese's Puffs!)


Peanut Butter Puffs

8-9 cups of puffed cereal
1 cup peanut butter
2 T coconut oil
1/2 c honey or agave nectar
1/4 t salt
1 t vanilla

Melt peanut butter, coconut oil, and honey in sauce pan until smooth.
Stir in salt and vanilla.
Poor over puffed cereal in a large bowl and mix until evenly coated.
Spread into 2 baking sheets and bake at 250 degrees for 16 minutes, stir and rotate pans half way through.
Let cool and store in an airtight container.