Tasty Tuesday – Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Brownie Cookies

Hello!

It’s Tasty Tuesday and I have a fabulous Fall recipe to share with you!  Whoop!!

Make sure you head over to Lena’s page and check out all the other Tasty Tuesday yumminess! 🙂

I decided it was high time I jumped on the pumpkin bandwagon because it really seems like Fall is here to stay.  I figured we would have somewhat of an Indian Summer and have warm weather through October but…..according to the meteorologists, these temps are going up any time soon.

Of course, how much can you really count on a meteorologist but still…….I’m doing it because I want some pumpkin stuff!

I’ve been dreaming of brownie cookies lately – as well as of running. Anxious much? – and I decided I needed to incorporate pumpkin somehow.

I’ve made a couple of pumpkin brownie recipes and I’ve made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies so it seemed that the logical next step was pumpkin brownie cookies!

I’m really stoked these turned out so well on my first shot!

They are soft, chewy, pillowy, chocolatey, pumpkin spice-y, and delicious.

Thing 2 said they were really chocolatey but … really, what’s wrong with that?!

You would think they would be dense but they’re not. It’s gotta be the pumpkin that makes it like little pillows.

Little pillows of chocolatey goodness.

 

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Brownie Cookies
makes approximately 18 cookies

1 cup white whole wheat flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cocoa powder
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
½ cup mini chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In small bowl, whisk together dry ingredients – flour through nutmeg.

3. In large mixer bowl, mix pumpkin, sugar, and vanilla until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Slowly mix in dry ingredients until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets. These will not spread so don’t worry about them running into each other.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes before removing to cooling rack.

6. NOM them down!!

 

Talk to me: Do you dream about cookies? Do you love Fall? What’s your favorite season?

– jennifer

Pumpkin Black Bean Soup

Hello!

How’s your weekend been?

Have you survived the cold?

I headed out for my final longish run yesterday morning. (T-minus 6 days!!!)

And, it was COLD!

But, not as cold as it was on Saturday when the wind was whipping away.

Thank goodness!

I honestly wasn’t sure I was going to get out for my run yesterday. I nearly had myself convinced that it was too cold and that I was going to bag it before I even went to bed on Friday.

I need to stop doing that to myself.

Besides, I was warm thanks to awesome running gear designed for cold weather. And cute. Because that’s totally a priority of mine. 😉

So, a couple of days ago, I posed this question on my Facebook page:

“So, if you had this can of pumpkin in your pantry, what would you do with it, excluding pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread?”

I got quite a few great responses (thanks!) and I definitely need to go buy some more pumpkin so I can try them all!

I decided to stay away from sweet – yeah, I’m pretty sure I ate my weight in sweet stuff in the month of December.

Well, I found an awesome recipe for Pumpkin Black Bean soup and just knew I had to make it.

I adapted it to our (which really means “my” – shhh, don’t tell) tastes though. Of course. I really only truly follow the recipe directions when I’m baking.

Except for when I don’t. Which is often. 😉

This soup was amazing!

Hearty, warm, savory yet sweet, spicy (don’t run! you can leave the spicy part out!), and perfect for a cold winter evening.

I decided to top the soup with avocado because, well, avocado is delicious and I thought the smooth freshness of the avocado would blend well with the savory and spice in the soup.

I was right. 🙂

Pumpkin Black Bean Soup
serves 4 to 6 (that means BIG bowls of soup!)
*recipe adapted from veryculinary.com

2 (15 ounce) cans low-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup coconut oil (use butter if you don’t have coconut oil)
1 small onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Avocado, for topping

1. Pour the black beans and tomatoes (including their liquid)into a food processor. Puree until smooth; set aside.

2. Heat coconut oil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.

3. Stir bean and tomato puree and remaining ingredients into the pot; mix well. Simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

4. Serve in large soup bowls topped with sliced avocado, if desired.

5. Om nom nom!

Talk to me: When it comes to weather, where do you draw the line when it comes to heading out the door for a run? What keeps you inside?

I personally don’t do thunderstorms, blizzards, or hail. The cold almost got me yesterday but, I still went out. (Glad I did, too!) But, I’m not sure what I would have done if the wind had still been whipping. Wind chill kinda sucks.

– jennifer

Pumpkin Gingerbread cupcakes with Maple Greek Yogurt icing

Hello!

Happy weekend!

In case you’re wondering, Karen was all talk.  She fell apart out in the Gulf on Friday afternoon. It is raining today but it’s definitely not Tropical Storm rain or Hurricane rain.

Phew!

Yesterday was brutal though.  And I’m not talking about rain.

Pretty sure the humidity was at 100%.

It was disgusting.

I had a 13-miler on my schedule.

I called it quits at 11.

I had to take walk breaks, my feet were cramping up, and I was miserable.

NOT a good run.  But, it’s okay.  It’s only week 2.

Knocked out my burpees after I cooled down.

100 day burpee challenge – Saturday was day 5.

Saw stars after I finished them.

Oof.

Check out this crazy spider that has taken up residence in the palm tree in my front yard.

This is about as close as I wanted to get.

Ew. Creepy. And apparently they jump. YIKES!

So, I made some Paleo/not Paleo cupcakes.

Yes, I’m a little confused. 😉

There’s a recipe for Sweet Potato Gingerbread Cupcakes with Maple Frosting in my Paleo Diet for Athletes cookbook.

Well, I didn’t have sweet potato but I did have pumpkin.

So, I made Paleo Pumpkin Gingerbread Cupcakes with non-Paleo Maple Greek Yogurt icing (I didn’t have any coconut butter for the frosting so I had to change it up. Cuz that’s what I do.) 🙂

They turned out pretty well!

The Greek Yogurt icing is pretty thin but you can add a couple tablespoons of cream cheese if you want it to be a thicker frosting.

Or, you could make the Maple Frosting that the recipe actually calls for.

I’ll give you the ingredients for both.

Cuz I’m cool like that. 🙂

Sweet Potato (or Pumpkin) Gingerbread Cupcakes with Maple Frosting (or Maple Greek Yogurt Icing)

Makes 12 cupcakes

1 cup sweet potato, pureed (or 1 cup pumpkin)
2 whole eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup almond butter
1 cup almond flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
Maple Frosting
1/2 cup Organic coconut butter
1/2 cup Organic coconut oil
3 tablespoons medium to dark maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Maple Greek Yogurt icing
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened (if desired)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2. Mix sweet potato puree (or pumpkin), eggs, vanilla, and almond butter in a medium bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients and add to sweet potato mixture. Blend well for about 2 minutes, then fill cupcake papers 2/3 full.

4. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

5. Place on cooling rack and make your icing. When cupcakes are cool, ice and enjoy.

6. Om nom nom!

Question: How do you deal with a tough or disappointing run/workout?

– jennifer