Autumn is settling in.  Autumn has settled in, and here I am ready to accept it.  I’m also ready to accept the fact that my days in the kitchen are about to dramatically increase (if you can believe that) as my cravings for apple crisp (lovelovelovelovelovelovelove), pumpkin cookies and cranberry treats become harder to ignore.  I’m less ready to embrace the way my jeans are tightening around my thighs… or maybe it’s my thighs growing inside my jeans.  Either way, the tightness and the sucking in of the tummy seems to be just a part of the season.

What are you up to in the kitchen these days?  Here’s some food for thought  Yes… I totally just said that. 

Mocha Hazelnut Marble Cake.  This cake was gorgeous, classy and utterly fine… until I tried to transport it in a fancy cake stand and got this glistening chocolate glaze exactly everywhere.  Everywhere.  Lesson learned. 

Sweet and soft Ginger Chewies.  Full of molasses attitude.  

Spiced Pear Walnut Cake with a praline walnut glaze.  How about I just go ahead and make the glaze and then spoon it into my mouth… forget the cake.  This beauty is all about the glaze.

Cinnamon Spice Buns.  The dough is spiced.  The filling is sugar and spice.  There’s butter and glaze.  Make this a part of your life please.

Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding.  I ate the whole pot.  The whole pot.  By myself.  

Pizza.  Homemade pizza.  Easy.  Not hard. Worth it’s weight in gold and precious stones.  

I’ve got a guilty conscience.  Here’s a little peek inside:

Dear Coworker David,  

Tonight when you were detailing the twenty one shots you had for your twenty first birthday, I stopped listening at about shot number four… the Raging Bull I think you said.  How do you remember all twenty one shots after twenty one shots anyway!?   Sheeesh!  Though I was smiling and nodding tonight, I heard not a word you said.  True. 

Dear Downstairs Neighbor,

Is it noisy down there?  Does it seems sometimes like I’m stomping around on my second floor apartment floors?  Probably.  I am.  I can have some heavy feet from time to time.  Do I do it on purpose?  Sometimes.  Yes.  To be fair, I do this because, as you know, I left cupcakes on your doorstep for you one afternoon and I watched you discover them and take them to the dumpster to throw away.  I saw you do that.  Not cool.  Not cool at all.  

Dearest Friend (pssst!… that’s you),

Sometimes I make recipes vegan simply because I’m out of eggs and/or butter.  It’s true.  A severe and persisting egg shortage in my house was the inspiration for the Vegan Pumpkin Bread.  If you’re vegan, you’re probably annoyed.  That’s ok.  I can be annoying.  If you’re not vegan, you’re probably happy to know that you can still bake up some wonders without eggs and butter.  Your call.  

Love,

Joy the Baker

Pumpkin Bread.  Ooooh, you’re a tough one to futz up.  Pumpkin adds moisture and flavor that just won’t quit.  When combined with plenty of spices, pumpkin bread becomes a treat that will stay fresh and moist for days and days.  This version is sweetened with both brown sugar and maple syrup.  I. Love. It.  

Vegan Pumpkin Walnut Bread

     makes 2 loaves

     Print this Recipe!

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour ( or whole wheat flour… or just use only all-purpose flour)

2 cups light brown sugar, packed

1/3 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree, or just under two cups

1 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup water

1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place a rack in the center of the oven.  Grease and flour two loaf pans (mine are 8×4x2) and set aside.  

In a large bowl, whisk together flours, sugars, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.  

In a medium bowl, carefully whisk together pumpkin puree, oil, maple syrup and water.  

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and use a spatula to fold all of the ingredients together.  Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl well, finding any stray flour bits to mix in.  Fold in most of the chopped walnuts, reserving some to sprinkle on top of the batter once in the pan. 

Divide the dough between the two greased pans and sprinkle with a few walnut pieces.  Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove from the oven.  Let rest in the pans for 20 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack.  

Serve warm.  Maybe even wrap one loaf up in plastic wrap and store in the freezer for future munching.

I love waking up about half an hour early on Wednesdays to make pancakes for breakfast.  They really take very little time to throw together, and they make a world of difference to my day.  I can’t save my pancakes only for special weekend breakfasts.  Sometimes (every Wednesday) I need that weekend indulgence before I throw on the chef’s coat and dive into the big kitchen.

Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Pancakes are surprisingly light, healthy, and keep me full well into the afternoon.  Drizzled with homemade Vanilla-Brown Sugar Syrup and served with a side of fresh fruit, I can indulge in the comforts of a lazy Sunday morning, even on a daunting weekday.

Treat yourself to pancakes on a weekday.  The sunshine and hearty breakfast are well worth the early alarm chime.

Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Pancakes with Vanilla-Brown Sugar Syrup

adapted from The Gourmet Cookbook

Print this recipe!

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup cornmeal

1 Tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, separated

1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus additional for brushing the skillet

1 1/2 cup whole milk, plus additional if needed

1 ripe banana, diced or mashed

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

Whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl  Whisk together yolks, oil and 1 1/2 cups milk in another bowl and add to the flour mixture, whisking until smooth.  Let batter stand for 5 minutes to allow flour to absorb liquid (batter will thicken).

If batter is too thick to fall easily from a spoon, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons additional milk.

Fold in banana and walnuts.

Beat egg whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer at moderately high speed until they just hold stiff peaks.  With a whisk, gently but thoroughly fold into batter.

Brush a griddle or 12-inch nonstick skillet with oil and heat over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking.  Reduce heat to moderate.  Working in batches of 4, spoon 2 tablespoons batter per pancake into a hot skillet, spreading it if necessary to form 3- 3 1/2 inch rounds.  Cook pancakes until bubbles appear on surface, edges are set and undersides are golden, 45 seconds to 1 minute.  Flip pancakes with a metal spatula and cook until undersides are golden and pancakes are cooked through.  Lower heat if pancakes brown too quickly and insides aren’t set.  Transfer pancakes to plate and serve with Vanilla- Brown Sugar Syrup.  Brush griddle with more oil between batches.

Vanilla-Brown Sugar Syrup

1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar

1 1/2 cups water

3 Tablespoon unsalted butter

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine brown sugar, water, butter, and salt in a 2-quart heavy saucepan and bring to a oil, stirring until sugar is dissolved.  Boil until syrupy and reduced to about 1 1/2 cups, about 12-15 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and vanilla, then let cool to warm or room temperature.