Pumpkins are in season! Every time I see them at the grocery store, I am tempted to buy some, but I never do because cooking pumpkins seems like a lot of work. It's hard to cut and peel and it takes time to cook. However, that doesn't stop me from using pumpkins in the kitchen. There are canned pumpkins for lazy people like me. They are perfect for pies and quick soups. This pumpkin muffin recipe also calls for canned pumpkins. The aroma of the spices reminds me of the holiday seasons, which is actually around the corner. These muffins are for grown ups, slightly sweet and a bit spicy. You can increase the amount of sugar to one cup and reduce the clove and nutmeg to 1/4 tsp for a more kids-friendly version.
The problem with making smoothies at home is crushing the ice. If you have a serious, semi-professional blender, it's a different story. My consumer-grade six-plus year old blender can't handle rock-hard ice cubes. When I tried, it felt like my blender would break before the ice would break. My solution was to use frozen bananas. Frozen bananas are not as hard as ice cubes and give the drink a smoothie-like texture. And of course, it tastes great. Bananas don't have that much flavor, so you'll want to add a second fruit. I happened to have a ripe papaya looking for a drink to hop in to, and I'm sure strawberries or raspberries would work nicely also. This quick and easy smoothie is perfect for a summer breakfast. It's always nice to start the day off healthy.
My husband and I took a week long-vacation in mid-April. We drove down to North Carolina and Virginia to visit our friends. We enjoyed spending time with them, playing with their kids, and having fantastic breakfasts. At home, our breakfast is usually limited to bagels, cereals, and instant grits, but they served us a quiche with crab meat, healthy lime muffins, a breakfast casserole, and biscuits with country ham!! This totally inspired me to cook a breakfast, which requires more than toasting and microwaving. So one Saturday morning, I got up and made these fluffy pancakes. The combination of fresh bananas and roasted walnuts is just perfect! To make it soft, I whipped an egg white and folded into the batter at the end. I served it with warm maple butter, which made it a little more special.