Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins

Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins

My mom had a cupboard in the kitchen containing a few old cookbooks that she rarely used. As a child, I used to enjoy perusing them and looking at the baked treats. Some of the cookbooks were so old, they had black and white photos or even just drawings of the food. The ones with drawings interested me because they often depicted smiling children enjoying the treats.

When I started learning to bake, I found a recipe for French Breakfast Puffs in one of those old books. The title sounded so fancy, but they were really just simple muffins dunked in butter and rolled in cinnamon sugar. I have no idea what the name of the cookbook was or what happened to it, but the delicious muffin recipe stuck around for a while. I’ve tweaked the recipe so many times over the years, and most recently, I added pumpkin to it. These Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins are one of the best versions I’ve created. The inside texture of the muffins is soft and moist and it contrasts nicely with the slight crunch you get from the cinnamon sugar on the outside. They look so cute too, like little pumpkins, and they definitely make children smile!

To watch the Instagram video of these mini muffins being made, click here.

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Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins
Soft, tender pumpkin mini muffins rolled in cinnamon sugar
Servings
mini muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
Topping
Servings
mini muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
Topping
Instructions
Muffins
  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and flour a 24-serving mini muffin pan.* Do not use muffin liners. (The muffins need to form an outer crust. This prevents them from absorbing too much melted butter later in the recipe.)
  2. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg until well combined.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, egg and pumpkin purée until smooth and well combined. Stir in the flour mixture just until combined. The batter will be thick.
  4. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, filling the muffin cups about 2/3 full. (I ended up with 22 muffins.)
  5. Bake until toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean, about 10-13 minutes. Do not over bake! Be diligent, since over baking can happen very quickly with mini muffins. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn the muffins out and place on a cooling rack.
Topping
  1. Whisk the sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl until well combined.
  2. Briefly dunk the warm muffins in melted butter, then roll in cinnamon sugar.
Recipe Notes

To find the mini muffin pan I used, click here.

Peaches and Cream Loaf Cake

Every peach season, I get excited by the abundance of peaches at my local farmers market and I end up buying way too many. So if you’re like me and you have ripe peaches sitting on your counter, turn them into peach purée. I love adding peach purée to my iced tea or adding it to desserts like this moist, tender cake. This is one of my most popular cake recipes on social media, and for good reason. It does not disappoint! To watch the TikTok video, click here.

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Peaches and Cream Loaf Cake
Moist, tender peach cake with peach cream cheese icing
Keyword cake, peach
Servings
loaf
Ingredients
Cake
Icing
Keyword cake, peach
Servings
loaf
Ingredients
Cake
Icing
Instructions
Cake
  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line the bottom of an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the sides.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
  3. Set aside 2 tablespoons peach purée for icing.
  4. In a large bowl, beat sugar, oil, eggs, remaining peach purée and extracts until smooth.
  5. Add flour mixture and beat just until combined.
  6. Transfer batter to prepared baking pan. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 38-45 minutes.
  7. Let cake cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Spread icing on cooled cake.
Icing
  1. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
  2. Add powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of peach purée. Beat until smooth. Add additional peach purée, if needed, until desired consistency is reached. Fold in diced peaches.

Lemon Scones

Lemon Scones

Yellow is the color of happiness and sunshine. These adorable Lemon Scones will bring you a burst of lemony brightness even on the grayest day. The pretty, vibrant yellow sparkling sugar adds a pleasant crunch to the tops. It’s a nice contrast to the soft, tender interior of the scones. These little gems would shine on any breakfast or brunch table. I served them with blueberry jam and green tea, which was so delightful, I’m still smiling.

Print Recipe
Lemon Scones
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword lemon, scones
Servings
scones
Ingredients
Lemon Scones
Icing
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword lemon, scones
Servings
scones
Ingredients
Lemon Scones
Icing
Instructions
Lemon Scones
  1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
  3. Work the butter and lemon zest into the flour mixture with your fingers or with a pastry blender until pea size chunks form.
  4. Stir in the heavy cream and lemon juice until a shaggy dough is formed. If your dough seems too dry, you can add 1-2 more teaspoons of heavy cream.
  5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead briefly, by folding dough over onto itself a few times. Do not overwork the dough.
  6. Pat or roll the dough into an 8-inch round, about 3/4-inch thick. Cut out rounds using a 2" or 2 1/4" inch round cutter.**
  7. Place scones about 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet. Brush scones with heavy cream. Sprinkle generously with sparkling sugar.
  8. Bake until edges are golden brown, about 16-19 minutes.
  9. Cool completely on a wire rack. Decorate with icing.
Icing
  1. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, heavy cream and enough lemon juice to form a stiff icing.
  2. Transfer icing to a piping bag or a plastic zip bag. Snip off the tip of the bag. Pipe lines in a spoke pattern onto the scones.
Recipe Notes

*To find the sparkling sugar I used, click here.

**To find the cutter I used, click here.

French Toast Cubes

French toast in all forms is welcome here! Everything from classic French toast to stuffed, sticks, bricks, casseroles and even cubes. I came up with this recipe for French Toast Cubes after I had a French toast brick at a restaurant. I like the idea of tall, thick pieces of French toast, but the cubes are a bit more manageable. This is a fun to make, well-loved recipe. I love to serve the cubes with warm maple syrup and fresh whipped cream.

Print Recipe
French Toast Cubes
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings
cubes
Ingredients
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings
cubes
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. With a serrated knife, cut the bread into eight 2-inch cubes.
  2. In an 11 x 7-inch baking dish, whisk tougher the eggs, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt.
  3. Coat all sides of the the bread cubes with the egg mixture. Let the cubes soak up all of the liquid.
  4. Fry the cubes on a hot buttered griddle until all sides are golden brown.
  5. Transfer the cubes to a baking sheet with a wire rack. Bake until the cubes are puffy, about 20 minutes.

Strawberry Rose Pancakes


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Strawberry Rose Pancakes

Pink pancakes made with strawberry purée and rose petals, topped with strawberry syrup and pink whipped cream

Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword pancakes, strawberry

Servings


Ingredients
Strawberry Syrup

Pink Whipped Cream

Strawberry Rose Pancakes

Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword pancakes, strawberry

Servings


Ingredients
Strawberry Syrup

Pink Whipped Cream

Strawberry Rose Pancakes


Instructions
Strawberry Syrup
  1. Purée the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Pass the purée through a mesh sieve into a small saucepan. Stir in the sugar and 1/2 cup (118ml) of water. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low and simmer until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup thickens, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pink Whipped Cream
  1. In a large bowl, beat the whipped cream to soft peaks with an electric mixer at high speed. Add the powdered sugar, strawberry extract and food coloring in 3 separate additions. Continue beating just until stiff peaks are formed. Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Strawberry Rose Pancakes
  1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together until well combined. Set aside.

  2. Purée the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Pass the purée through a mesh sieve into a medium bowl. Add the egg, milk, melted butter, vanilla extract and food coloring (if using) and whisk until well combined. Stir this mixture into the flour mixture just until combined. A few lumps are okay. Stir in the rose petals.

  3. For each pancake, scoop 3-4 tablespoons of batter onto a hot oiled griddle. Flip the pancakes when bubbles form on the surface. Continue cooking until the pancakes puff and are lightly browned.


Recipe Notes

*To find the gel food coloring I used, click here.

**To find culinary dried rose petals, click here.

 

Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar

Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar

If you landed here from one of my social media accounts, welcome! I’m really glad you’re here. I love to create fun, pretty and sweet treats like these delicious blueberry donut holes! The thing that really makes these special is the homemade blueberry sugar, which adds a burst of blueberry flavor. Freeze dried blueberries are combined with sugar to create a beautiful, flavorful sugar that you can use for many other things. It can also be used in tea, lattes, lemonade, cocktails or sprinkled on cookies or scones. Keep in mind that freeze dried blueberries are not the same as dried blueberries. Dried blueberries still contain some moisture, so they won’t work for this purpose.

The donut hole batter comes together quickly and easily. The most challenging part for me is frying them. I found that using a thermometer and testing one donut hole first, helps you determine the perfect oil temperature. Using a small portion scoop helps you get uniform donut holes. Make sure the outside of the scoop is clean between each donut to help them keep the round shape and avoid pointy tails.

Print Recipe
Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Servings
donut holes
Ingredients
Blueberry Sugar
Blueberry Donut Holes
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Servings
donut holes
Ingredients
Blueberry Sugar
Blueberry Donut Holes
Instructions
Blueberry Sugar
  1. Process freeze dried blueberries and sugar in a food processor or a clean spice grinder until finely ground. Be careful not to over process or you may end up with powdered sugar.
Blueberry Donut Holes
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, beat sugar, eggs, melted butter, milk and vanilla extract until well combined.
  3. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Do not over mix. A few lumps are okay.
  4. Fold in chopped blueberries.
  5. In a heavy saucepan, heat 1 1/2 inches of oil to 340ºF.
  6. Drop tablespoon size portions of batter into hot oil. I used a #60 portion scoop.** Don't overcrowd the pan.
  7. Cook donut holes until golden brown on all sides, about 2-4 minutes, flipping halfway through. If donut holes cook too quickly on the outside, turn heat down.
  8. Briefly drain donut holes on paper towels, then toss warm donut holes in blueberry sugar. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes

Success tips: Use a small ice cream scoop sprayed with nonstick spray to drop donut holes into oil. Make sure the outside of scoop is clean between each donut hole to keep the round shape and avoid tails on your donut holes.

*To find freeze dried blueberries, click here.

**To find the portion scoop I used, click here.

My Favorite Banana Bread

This moist, flavorful banana bread is my favorite banana bread recipe to date. I like to add toasted pecans or chocolate chips to make it extra delicious.

Print Recipe
My Favorite Banana Bread
Moist, flavorful banana bread
Cuisine American
Keyword banana, loaf
Servings
loaf
Ingredients
Cuisine American
Keyword banana, loaf
Servings
loaf
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (165ºC). Line the bottom an 8 x 4-inch or a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the insides.
  2. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, eggs, sour cream and vanilla until smooth and well combined. Stir in the bananas until incorporated. Mix in the flour mixture just until combined. Do not over mix. Stir in the 1/2 cup of pecans if using. If using chocolate chips, set aside 1/4 cup (43g) for the top and stir in the remaining 1 cup (170g) of chocolate chips.
  4. Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the loaf with the chopped pecans or 1/4 cup (43g)of chocolate chips. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 40-50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove the loaf from the pan and transfer it to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

A good scone has a way of making you feel elegant, especially if you pronounce it ‘skon’ instead of ‘skōne’. I went to a lovely tea recently where scones were served, along with an array of dainty tea sandwiches and desserts. The scones were round with pink sugar sprinkled on top. Pretty pink food is always so promising. Unfortunately, the scones were hard, dry and bland. No amount of clotted cream slathered on them could help. There’s nothing elegant about a dry, hard bite of a scone that you have to struggle to choke down. Scones should be dense and slightly dry and crumbly, but there’s no reason we can’t make them more delicious. It’s fun to add fruit, chocolate, herbs, nuts or whatever you like to make them more delightful. These Raspberry White Chocolate Scones are tender and buttery with bursts of flavor from the fresh raspberries and white chocolate. I added pink sparkling sugar for texture and, of course, to make them look pretty!

Print Recipe
Raspberry White Chocolate Scones
Tender scones with fresh raspberries and white chocolate, topped with crunchy sparkling sugar.
Servings
scones
Ingredients
Servings
scones
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together. Work the butter into the flour mixture with your fingertips or with a pastry blender until pea size pieces form.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, sour cream and vanilla.
  4. Stir the cream mixture into the flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms.
  5. Gently fold in the white chocolate and raspberries.
  6. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Form the dough into a 1-inch thick round, about 6 1/2 inches in diameter. Cut the dough into 8 wedges.
  7. Place scones 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Chill the scones in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
  8. Heat oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Brush the tops of the scones with heavy cream. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.
  9. Bake until the edges look golden brown, about 20-24 minutes. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack.
Recipe Notes

*To find pink sparkling sugar, click here.  

This recipe was updated on 3/23/2023.

Cheddar Ham Biscuits

Have you ever had one of those mornings where you wake up starving? It typically happens to me when I skip dinner the night before. So one morning that happened. My family and I were really hungry, there was a bit of leftover holiday ham in the fridge and these fluffy, satisfying biscuits were born. I think these biscuits need to be included in all lumberjack breakfasts from now on.

If you love ham and cheese anything, you’ll love these biscuits. You can also add fresh chives or swap out the ham for bacon if you like. I love baking them in a cast iron skillet because of the rustic, crispy sides and bottoms you get from the high heat conductivity of cast iron. To find the cast iron pan I used, click here. You can also bake them in a 9-inch cake pan or pie plate.

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Cheddar Ham Biscuits
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings
biscuits
Ingredients
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings
biscuits
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Butter a 9-inch cast iron skillet*
  2. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
  3. Work butter into flour mixture with your fingertips, until flat dime size pieces are formed.
  4. Gently stir in cheese and ham.
  5. Stir in buttermilk a little at a time until a shaggy dough is formed.
  6. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
  7. Fold dough over onto itself a few times. Form dough into a 7-inch diameter 3/4-inch thick round.
  8. Using a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, cut dough into seven biscuits. Press the scraps together and cut one more biscuit. If dough becomes warm at any point, chill in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes, then proceed with recipe.
  9. Transfer biscuits to prepared pan. Brush with melted butter.
  10. Bake until biscuits are puffy and tops are golden brown, about 22-25 minutes.
  11. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes

To find the skillet I used, click here.

Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves with Caramel Filling

pumpkin spices mini loaves with caramel filling

In early September, I saw someone announce the fall season on social media. In addition to people pointing out that it was too early for the announcement, the word police corrected the person with the word autumn. Since both terms are correct, we can call the season whatever we prefer. I think autumn is a pretty sounding word, so I’ll use it for the rest of this post. Whatever you call it, these Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves are a perfect little celebration of the season. They have just the right amount of pumpkin spices, making them so fragrant that your kitchen will smell like cozy autumn heaven.

pumpkin spices mini loaves with caramel filling

I call them loaves because I originally made them in mini loaf pans. They’re so cute and delicious that I often give them as holiday gifts. This year I decided to try them in ramekins and I loved the results! I used 6-ounce ramekins, but you can use 8-ounce ramekins, any size mini loaf pans, a muffin pan or even an 8 or 9-inch loaf pan. Keep in mind that baking times will differ. To find the ramekins I used, click here.

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Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves with Caramel Filling
Mini loaves of tender pumpkin bread with caramel filling and luscious cream cheese frosting
Servings
mini loaves
Ingredients
Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves
Cream Cheese Frosting
Servings
mini loaves
Ingredients
Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves
Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves
  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour seven 6-ounce ramekins or six 8-ounce ramekins or any loaf pans of your choice.
  2. In a large bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. Set aside.
  3. In a separate large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
  4. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
  5. Beat in pumpkin and vanilla until combined.
  6. Stir in flour mixture just until combined.
  7. Divide batter evenly into prepared ramekins. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Do not overbake. (Mini loaves or muffins bake for 15-25 minutes, depending on size. 8 or 9-inch loaf bakes for 40-50 minutes)
  8. Cool completely if serving in ramekins or remove from pans after cooling for 10 minutes. Continue to cool on wire rack.
  9. Make 3/4-inch well in the center of each loaf. Fill with caramel sauce. (For an 8 or 9-inch loaf, poke multiple holes with a skewer. Fill with caramel sauce.)
  10. Top with cream cheese frosting and pumpkin seeds
Cream Cheese Frosting
  1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together with an electric mixer until smooth.
  2. Add vanilla extract and salt and beat until combined.
  3. Gradually add powdered sugar and beat at medium speed until combined.
  4. Add heavy cream and beat at low speed until combined.

Peaches & Cream Scones with Caramel Icing


Print Recipe


Peaches & Cream Scones with Caramel Icing

Tender scones with fresh peaches, topped with a quick caramel icing

Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword peach, scones

Servings


Ingredients
Scones

Icing

Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword peach, scones

Servings


Ingredients
Scones

Icing


Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

  3. Work the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or with your fingertips until pea size pieces form.

  4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream, heavy cream and vanilla.

  5. Mix the sour cream mixture into the flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms. Fold in the peaches.

  6. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Press the dough together and fold it over onto itself a couple of times.

  7. Pat or roll dough into a 7-inch round. Cut dough into 8 wedges. Transfer to the prepared baking pan. Brush the scones lightly with egg wash or heavy cream.

  8. Bake until golden brown, about 18-22 minutes. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack.

Caramel Icing
  1. Melt the butter a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the brown sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes.

  2. Whisk in the heavy cream and heat until bubbly. Remove from heat. Set aside to cool slightly. Drizzle or spoon the icing over the cooled scones.

Fairy Puffs

Fairy Puffs sugared mini muffins wtih edible flowers

My dad used to take me on walks in the woods to look for fairy rings when I was a child. I wanted to see a real fairy so badly! I read a book about fairies, hoping to learn more about them. Fairies love little cakes, milk, honey and butter so I’m sure these Fairy Puffs would be fairy approved.

My Fairy Puffs recipe is loosely based on an old favorite mini muffin recipe. I tweaked it quite a bit, including the addition of pink dragonfruit powder. Dragonfruit has a subtle flavor, so the bright fuchsia powder is mostly for color. But oh what a beautiful color it is! You can find dragonfruit powder in healthy food stores or online. To find the dragonfruit powder, also known as pink pitaya powder, I used, click here.

fairy puff muffins

Decorating these little cuties was so entertaining! After sampling multiple variations of sparkling sugar and cinnamon sugar, I decided that dipping the bottoms of the muffins in butter and cinnamon sugar, then dipping the tops in butter and sparkling sugar gave them the perfect balance of sugar and spice. I had purchased some edible flowers a couple of days prior, and they added a pretty, magical touch. The flowers I used are called bachelor’s buttons and I got them at a local gourmet flower seller.

sugared mini muffins with edible flowers

Print Recipe
Fairy Puffs
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword cake, muffins
Servings
mini muffins
Ingredients
Fairy Puffs
Topping
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Keyword cake, muffins
Servings
mini muffins
Ingredients
Fairy Puffs
Topping
Instructions
Fairy Puffs
  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour a 24 serving mini muffin pan.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, dragonfruit powder, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
  4. Add egg and beat until smooth.
  5. Add flour mixture and milk alternately in two additions and mix just until combined.
  6. Transfer batter to prepared muffin pan, filling muffin cups about 3/4 full.
  7. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of muffins comes out clean, about 12-14 minutes. (Be careful not to over bake. Check a few minutes early. Small muffins can dry out easily.)
  8. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes. Remove puffs from pan and transfer to cooling rack. (Loosen puffs with a small offset spatula or butter knife if necessary.)
Topping
  1. Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl.
  2. Place colored sparkling sugar crystals in another shallow bowl.
  3. Dip the bottoms of each puff in melted butter, then into cinnamon sugar mixture.
  4. Dip the tops of each puff in melted butter, then into sparkling sugar.
  5. Decorate with edible flowers if desired.
Recipe Notes

*To purchase dragonfruit powder, click here.

 **To purchase pink sparkling sugar crystals, click here.