Maple Glazed Bananas over (Trader Joe's) Pumpkin Spice Waffles

This yummy fall breakfast is so simple and quick - you could make this on a weekday, or weekend!
I love making pancakes on the weekends, but when Trader Joe's 'pumpkin everything' season comes around, I find gems like these frozen pumpkin spice waffles! They look just like Eggo waffles, but slightly more healthful, and full of pumpkiny spiced flavors! I love fall. (Even if our weather here is still more like summer).

Recipe:
Serves 2

2 ripe bananas
1/4 cup real maple syrup
coconut oil spray (or anything to slightly grease the pan)
waffles (or pancakes, or french toast!) of choice. Preferably with pumpkin puree and/or pumpkin pie spices added.

Slice your bananas on an angle, to get a good, long surface area on each slice.
Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat.
Spray a bit of cooking spray in the pan, to help the gooey bananas come out of the pan a bit easier at the end.
Pour maple syrup into pan, and lay banana slices in one flat layer in the pan on the syrup.
Let it bubble and reduce, until it turns into almost a sticky caramel glaze on the bananas.

You can swirl the pan around a bit, to coat bananas, but don't stir, or try and flip them, as they will fall apart.
Once reduced as much as possible, without burning, use a spatula to pour bananas over the top of your pumpkin spice waffles.
You can butter the waffles, if desired, or spread them with coconut oil, before you top with the bananas.

These would be even more decadent with a huge pile bit of whipped cream on top!

Yum! Warm, fall-festive breakfast! So delicious. and super easy.
Win. win.

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

This Pumpkin Pie Cupcake recipe has been floating around Pinterest for awhile now, and it actually comes from my favorite couponing site: The Krazy Coupon Lady!

These cupcakes are an exact cross between pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie.  It is so cool!
It only uses one batter, but the outside bakes into a dense pumpkin bread texture, while the center stays soft and jiggly, just like pumpkin pie!
I topped these with a whipped cream, and actually used a really cool trick I found to "stabilize" the whipped cream so it lasts, like frosting, for a couple days without melting and deflating. You know, like the whipped cream topping you see on cakes in bakeries??  The trick calls for an ingredient that I don't actually love normally, gelatin, but it works so well for these, I'll allow it ;)

These are super easy to make, yet very impressive, which is perfect for around the holidays!

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can of pumpkin

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup evaporated milk

2/3 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

Recipe:
Adapted from: The Krazy Coupon Lady

Preheat the oven to 350, and grease a muffin tin with cooking spray.

Mix together the pumpkin, both sugars, eggs, vanilla extract and milk in a medium bowl.  Add in the flour, pumpkin pie spice, salt, baking powder and baking soda, and stir until combined.

   

Fill each muffin cup with 1/3 cup of the mixture. They will be pretty full as these don’t rise much.

Bake for 20 min.

Then, let cool for 20 minutes.  Remove cupcakes from pan and then chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before frosting.

See??! Isn't it cool how it is pumpkin pie in the middle?!!  But then, has a more dense, sturdy shell to hold it all together?  So neat! 

For the Stabilized Whipped Cream:

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder

2 Tbsp cold water

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 Tbsp powdered sugar

Recipe:

Adapted from:  Food Pusher

Sprinkle gelatin over cold water in small bowl to soften.

Pour 2 Tbsp of the cream into a small pan and bring to a simmer on the stove.  Pour over gelatin, stirring until dissolved.

Refrigerate for about 10-15min until it turns the consistency of unbeaten egg white. Then, whisk until smooth. Set aside.

Whip remaining cream in a large bowl just until soft peaks form, then whip in the powdered sugar, until mixed well. 

Whip in the smoothed gelatin mixture now, stopping to scrape bowl sides a couple times.

Continue to whip just until stiff peaks start to form.

Ta da!

Stabilized Whipped Cream.

Scoop whipped cream into a piping bag (or just spoon on top instead) and pipe on top of chilled or room temperature cupcakes.  Top with a light sprinkle of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.

My little trick:  Put piping bag down into a tall drinking glass, and fold top of bag over the glass sides.  This makes it much easier to scoop whipped cream (or frosting) into the piping bag!