Cinnamon-honey pumpkin butter !

Yesterday  after making that french toast I had  a ton of pumpkin left over so  I decided to whip up this super simple, super Delicious pumpkin butter ! Which goes on almost anything you can think of :) 

1 stick of room temp butter 

2 tablespoons of honey 

1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon 

3 tablespoons of pumpkin 

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla 

Beat on high speed for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy !

the best pumpkin french toast!

i feel bad for you non-pumpkin lovers out there because you are indeed missing out! i saw a "official" recipe for this on pintrest but my phone died so i decided to wing it and it came out soooooo good !! its basically fall for breakfast!

1 loaf of fresh french bread
1/4 cup of half and half
1/4 cup of canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 tablespoon of sugar -or two ;)
1 heaping teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
4 table spoons of butter

(for cream)
beat 1 cup of heavy cream and a few teaspoon of sugar until stiff peaks form.

heat your griddle to 350
slice bread into 1 inch thick pieces
in a bowl mix, eggs, half and half, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and pumpkin. until combined and dip bread covering both sides.

cook on griddle for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. top with fresh cream and an extra sprinkling of pumpkin spice and let your taste buds take you away! (don't forget the maple syrup)

creamy tomato & curry butter lobster pasta!

phew that title was long. but boy oh boy does it describe everything in this dish! if you've never made lobster before this is a fool proof recipe and one of the tastiest too! the pasta is super simple to put together , and whats best is the pasta cooks in the sauce! if you can look past all of the ingredients in this recipe you will see it is quite simple to make and its totally loved by all who try it! start to finish this amazing lobster dinner was done in  under an hour. 

here's what you need :

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 5 cloves garlic, minced or grated
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon dried basil & oregano (plus more basil)
• salt and pepper, taste
• garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 (28 ounce) crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 4 ounces cream cheese, cubed
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1 pound long cut pasta
• 4 lobster tails
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon spicy yellow curry powder + more 
• salt, to taste
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped + more for serving

heat your pan with olive oil and saute garlic and red pepper flakes. be-careful it doesn't burn (just until fragrant) then add tomatoes, salt, pepper, basil, curry, oregano & sugar. let it mix for a minute and then add wine & water. next add pasta and let it simmer on low until the noodles are tender and cooked through. once pasta is done add cream and cream cheese. taste to adjust seasonings if necessary.

then season the lobster tails with salt, pepper, garlic powder, basil and curry powder. and set aside. heat a cat iron skillet to high heat with 8 tablespoons of butter. place the lobster tails belly side down and cook for 4 minutes. turn them over for another minute or two until shell turns fully pink. 

to plate serve pasta in a bowl with lobster on top. drizzle the top with any remaining curry butter from cooking the lobster (optional) 

also if you want those fancy grill marks you can totally throw them on the grill after cooking (just brush with olive oil) but totally not needed ! and that's it folks ENJOY!

DIY kitchen menu board!

so i had a chalk board in my kitchen. and it was cute but it couldn't hold the whole weeks menu without being super squished and too tiny to read. so i scrolled to pintrest to get some inspiration to make my tiny little kitchen wall into a life size menu board. im so thrilled with the results! it adds a color and character all at the same time. 

within 30 minutes i went to home depot bought the chalk board paint and painted the wall . it took no time at all to paint (maybe 8 minutes?) the hardest part was waiting for the paint to dry so i could write one it. (which i did as soon as i opened my eyes this morning) hints the late breakfast we had today. lol anywho if you have a few bucks to spare this is a easy project that the whole family will enjoy!!

i bought the paint at home depot -$14

chalk at big lots- .50 cents

menu letters from walmart- $3

stencils from walmart - $1.49

paint for letters- .50 cents

pumpkin spice ice cream !

as we all know by now, i'm obsessed with all things pumpkin! and today its pumpkin spiced ice cream & its served in its own tiny little pie crust cup! this recipe follows the same directions as the ice creams i posted about last week. super simple and super delicious !! here's how i did it :

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp vanilla
1 can of sweetened  condensed milk.

in your mixer beat 2 cups of heavy cream until stiff peaks form. in a separate bowl mix pumpkin, vanilla, condensed milk and pumpkin pie spice until combined. then fold mixture into the whipped cream and freeze for 6 hours in a tupperware container. serve in pie crust and drizzle with caramel (optional)

you can buy a pre made pie crust or follow this easy recipe :)

1 3/4 C flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C vegetable oil

2 tbsp water

 

In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt.

Stir in oil and water and mix until just combined.

Form dough into ball and place it in a greased pie pan.

Press dough out evenly until it covers entire pie pan including the sides. Make sure you press it thin where the side and bottom meet. Crimp edges if desired. 

 

Bourbon sweet potato cupcakes with bourbon cream cheese frosting !

WOOOOOOAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! these cupcakes are delicious! but before i get into that let me take a step  back . today i went to the christmas tree shop and found these adorable cupcake liners. i didn't realize at the time that they were texas style (aka jumbo) so i had to re think my whole idea of making simple cupcakes today. go big or go home right??? well the other day i came across this recipe for burbon sweet potato cupcakes. these cupcakes are so unbelievably rich and tasty i don't even know how to describe its wonders ! i changed this up a bit from the recipe i based it off of because it had a glaze vs a frosting and since they are so big in size i thought i needed something more substantial, and oh my heavens i couldn't of been happier with the results! 

for the cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, room temperature
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup whole milk
1 cup cooked sweet potatoes
1/3 cup bourbon

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Line cupcake trays with 24 baking cups.
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a large bowl.
• In another large mixing bowl, mix brown sugar, butter and eggs until fluffy.
• Add sweet potatoes and vanilla. Mix well.
• Add 1/3 of flour mixture to sugar mixture until combined. Add bourbon. Add second 1/3 of flour mixture. Add milk. Add final 1/3 flour mixture.
• Mix well with each addition.
• Fill baking cups.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes or until done.
• Cool completely.

for the frosting :

4 ounces of soft cream cheese

1 stick of soft butter

1 tsp vanilla

4 tbsp burbon

1/2 bag of powdered sugar

beat the cream cheese, butter, burbon and vanilla until combined. add sugar little at a time and beat until light and fluffy.

california style eggs benedict !

oh my gosh do i love eggs benedict! its one of those timeless breakfast dishes. its made so fast and can be served everyday or for the fanciest of occasions. 

4 eggs 
4 pieces of Canadian bacon
2 English muffins
1/4 cup of cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh spinach
1/2 avocado 
fresh cracked pepper 
fresh parsley 
salt and pepper to taste

to make tomatoes- saute tomatoes in olive oil/ salt and pepper to to taste until tomatoes caramelize and blacken a bit. 

for the hollandaise- In a small saucepan, melt four tablespoons of butter. Do not let it brown. In a bowl, beat together four egg yolks, two tablespoons fresh lime juice, one tablespoon heavy cream, freshly ground pepper, and salt.
Next, you need to combine the eggs with the melted butter . If you add the eggs to the melted butter, the eggs will curdle, and you'll end up with a chunky, runny sauce when you want a smooth and creamy sauce. When you temper eggs, you warm them up slowly by adding a little bit of a hot liquid to them, and this keeps them from curdling. To temper the eggs, take a spoon and add a teaspoon of the melted butter to the egg mixture and beat with a wire whisk. Keep adding the melted butter to the egg mixture slowly until you've added about five tablespoons or so, whisking the entire time. Now you're ready to add the egg mixture to the saucepan. Turn the heat to low and cook the egg-butter mixture very quickly - only about ten to fifteen seconds or so - whisking vigorously. If your hollandaise isn't thick enough, cook it a little bit longer in five second increments, whisking vigorously, until it reaches the consistency you desire.

poach 4 eggs, toast 2 muffins and spread 1T of butter on each. layer with spinach,avocado, bacon, egg and holindiase sause. top with roasted tomatoes, parsley and fresh cracked black pepper.