Fall Recipes: Trial and Error + Ratings

Hello there lovies!

So far I have tried three pumpkin recipes and one apple recipe from my Fall Recipes lists found here and here. Unfortunately with the end of November drawing closer, the time for pumpkin and spiced apple treats is rapidly coming to a close as well. And while I am tempted to compile my gingerbread and peppermint lists, I will wait til the Christmas spirit truly hits me (aka the day after Thanksgiving).

So here's some recipe reviews in the order that I made them:

Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies 

scrambledhenfruit.blogspot.com

They look really good, right? WRONG. I think it is ridiculous that you need to use TEN PACKETS of apple cider. It was absolutely disgusting and a complete sugar overload. That's really saying something since I love sweet things. Not one person in my family liked these.

*Side note that has nothing to do with flavour: the dough melted off the top and slightly off the bottom of my caramel when baking. Instead of stuffed, they looked like sunny side up eggs. 

Rating: Poor

Don't bother.

Pumpkin Scones

portuguesegirlcooks.com

I made these as a surprise for a girl that I worked with. She was a pumpkin fanatic so I thought I would give these a try (I didn't tell her I was making these just in case they didn't turn out well. I wouldn't have given them to her if they were a failure haha)

Rating: Excellent

Highly recommended. I have made them twice and love them. They're a huge hit!

These are what they looked like when I made them :)

Pumpkin Pancakes

Food.com

I had some leftover pumpkin from the scones, so I decided to make pumpkin pancakes for my family as an easy breakfast for dinner. I think I either doubled or tripled the recipe (I was cooking for 4 people) and I added chocolate chips to the batter for some of them. Be warned! These are really good but are super rich. I struggled to finish two haha

Rating: Really Good

Would make these again with this exact recipe :)

Mine definitely don't look as pretty, but they tasted just as good!

Pumpkin Oat Cups

arentedkitchen.wordpress.com

I don't know what I was expecting with these... maybe something with a more muffin-y texture and a less soggy oatmeal texture perhaps. They weren't bad per se, just not what I was expecting. It was like eating oatmeal without  much taste. Their texture and  flavour was none too great. I definitely would not waste time or supplies making them again.

Rating: Poor

I wouldn't bother with these again

That's all the autumnal baked goods that I have made so far. (I made my peanut butter frosted, chocolate ganache cupcakes too, but those don't fit the theme in my opinion haha)

I'll probably put up a new recipe for black bean soup that I figured out a few week or so ago, so be sure to look for that soon! :) 

Le me know if you find these reviews helpful at all. :) Til next time, lovelies.

love always,

xo

Banana Spinach Smoothie

Hello lovies!

So today I decided to try something new for my smoothie and it turned out great in my opinion. It's a great meal on the go (i usually make them for breakfast or lunch). Plus it has some vitamins and protein and stuff like that in it :)

Banana Spinach Smoothie
Yield: 1 smoothie
Ingredients:
1/2 cup lowfat all natural vanilla yogurt*
1/3 cup spinach leaves
1 heaping tablespoon of peanut butter
1 banana
1/2 teaspoon ground flaxseed (optional and doesn't affect taste at all :) )
1 handful of ice cubes

Directions: Blend everything and pour into a glass or travel cup :)

Calories: 330

*To make it thinner: use milk instead of yogurt
*To make it vegan: use either soy yogurt or an equivalent (I've never tried this before)      OR     Use almond milk (I like to use sweetened vanilla almond milk)
It is super important to me that yogurt doesn't have any chemicals or fake sugar in it. I'm always super careful about checking ingredients cause I'm weird like that ;)

Let me know what you think!

love always,
xo

Nutrition Facts:

Calories: 330

Total Fat         11g

   Saturated         2 g

   Polyunsaturated       1 g

   Monounsaturated     0 g

   Trans         0 g

Cholesterol               5 mg

Sodium                 181 mg

Potassium            986 mg

Total carbs          50g

   Dietary Fiber       6 g

   Sugars                 33 g

Protein                13 g

Vitamin A               62%

Vitamin C           52%

Calcium              7%

Iron                    9%