fall

Apple Cider Doughnut Cake

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Happy National Doughnut Day! I was actually going to make this recipe tomorrow but when I found out what today was, duh! I bring you this delicious cake inspired by apples and fall. Oh and of course, doughnuts! This cake is very easy to make and no fancy kitchen gadgets are needed. Just 2 bowls and a bundt pan. And if you follow my Insta stories, you know that I completely butchered the cake flip (face palm). I think I need a new bundt pan because I always struggle with inverting cakes with it. None of my other cake pans have problems, just this one…

But, with the power of photography, you can’t even tell in these pictures! And, it doesn’t matter, the cake is still delicious and it just goes to show that no one is perfect. We all make mistakes and sometimes we fail. I still have dessert for my family 🙂

So go get your aprons on, start your ovens and let’s bake!

What you will need:

Bundt pan greased well

For the cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups oat flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup apple cider
3/4 cup applesauce
3/4 vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the topping:

2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and soda and salt. Set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients; cider, applesauce, oil, eggs and vanilla.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 40-50 minutes. Allow to cool 15-20 minutes on a wire rack before carefully inverting on a serving plate.

While cake is cooling, melt butter. In a small bowl stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Pour butter over cooling cake and immediately sprinkle on the cinnamon sugar. Slice and serve. Enjoy!

Store covered at room temp.

Look at those pretty crumbs and beautiful cinnamon sugar!

Sweet and Salty Pumpkin Seeds

Yesterday was the day of pumpkin carving in my household! It is so fun and brings back many good memories of my childhood. However, Liam was grossed out by the pumpkin! I mean, yes, it is pretty nasty, feels weird and smells but I enjoyed myself. And of course I saved the seeds! Last year I made drunken pumpkin seeds, but this year I wanted something simple, sweet and salty. So, go wash your pumpkin seeds and let’s roast!

What you will need:

1 cup washed pumpkin seeds (I got this from 1 medium pumpkin)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees fahrenheit. Place the pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for about 30 minutes to dry them out.

Once dry, take out seeds and set your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until all the seeds are coated. Put the seeds back on the parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until the seeds are lightly golden brown. Enjoy!

Yum! Such a great snack. And here is our mess from carving…

 

Have fun!

 

Apple Cinnamon Bread

My kitchen smells amazing right now! No candle needed. Making this bread was the perfect idea for this gorgeous fall day. Happy October! Not only does it smell delicious, it tastes like heaven. The season of fall filling your senses. So c’mon! Let’s get to baking this beautiful bread…

What you will need:

Loaf pan lined with foil and sprayed with non-stick spray

For the batter:

1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
1 Granny Smith Apple peeled and chopped into small pieces

To make:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. In a small bowl, stir together brown sugar and cinnamon. Set aside. In another small bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl (or bowl of your electric mixer), beat sugar and butter until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Add in dry ingredients and milk, and mix until combined.

Evenly spread about half the batter into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle half the apple pieces and then half the cinnamon sugar on top. Pour the rest of the batter on top of that, spreading with the back of a spoon to make sure it’s even. Sprinkle the rest of the apples and cinnamon sugar on top.

Bake for about 45 minutes. Let cool on wire rack completely before removing from pan. Enjoy (but not all at once)!

 

 

Dark, Cold and Wet

That’s right, my friends! Fall has arrived in Chicago. This morning I woke up to run at 6 AM and it was misty, dark and about 51 degrees. I was thrilled! No exaggeration. I LOVE running when it’s cold. It was really difficult for me to continue my workout routine in the summer. Summer is for swimming and going to the beach and drinking ice cold cocktails. 90 degree weather with 99% humidity is not for running, but that’s just me. You workout in the winter to look good in the summer 😉

So out of bed I crawled, excited to get outside. I usually use the Nike + app on my phone, but it has been sucking lately. I decided to just get out there and not worry about how many miles or how fast I ran. I popped 3 Reece’s Pieces in my mouth, opened the door, inhaled some fresh air and pounded pavement.

Not going to lie, it was probably one of my favorite runs. Not too many people were out and when the sun started coming up, everything looked beautiful! Nature has a way of speaking to you (cheesy, I know), when you least expect it. The wet grass and colorful leaves all said “Good morning, Emily! Welcome to autumn.”

Next up, baking something pumpkin!