fall = pumpkin raisin muffins

Fall is teasing those of us in South Florida this week. There are commercials everywhere advertising wonderful things like pumpkin spice lattes, piles of brightly colored leaves, and lovely things like boots, hats and scarves. With the high temps. reaching 84 degrees now, lows in the mid-70's, and humidity of only 53% today, it's finally starting to feel cool and "crisp".

Yes, fall is coming.....slowly.

If there was ever a recipe that could take me to another time and place, it's this one. My wonderful mom started making these when I was in high school, and this recipe has become a go-to recipe when I want to feel the comforts of home and the wonders of fall.

Pumpkin Raisin Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 c. milk
1 egg
1/2 c. canned pumpkin
1/2 c. raisins
1/4 c. melted butter

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease bottoms of muffin pan.
Let raisins soak in milk for 15 minutes in a large bowl.
Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium sized bowl.
Add the remaining wet ingredients to milk and raisins.
Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients. (Batter should be lumpy.)
Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 min.
Optional: Top with sliced almonds, oatmeal, or sprinkle with sugar.

Here are some other pumpkin combinations I've tried:
cranberry, blueberry, chocolate chip, banana
(Raisins always win though...)


And now I leave you with a little puppy love:

peanut butter puppy love

I think I can freely say that our dogs are like our kids at this point in our lives. (Don't judge me non-dog lovers.) I was the one who would scoff at people who treated their dogs like kids....and well, the tables have turned. Now, before you start viewing me as someone who dresses up their pets and gives them royal treatment, let me tell you that that is certainly not the case. We just....well, we love them like they're a part of our family. I mean really, how could you NOT love these two?

 With that said, we love to give them treats that don't have a ton of yucky fillers in them. So last night I was searching the web for a quick and easy dog treat recipe when I came across one for peanut butter treats. I know Phoebe and Juno started salivating as soon as I typed the words peanut butter in the search engine, so I knew I couldn't go wrong. I made some changes and altered the recipe some, so I thought I would share. By the way, they love them, and they were super easy to make!

Peanut Butter Puppy Treats

- 2 cups peanut butter (We love Skippy Natural)
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup ground flax seed (for a shiny coat)
- 1/4 cup rolled oats

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl (because this recipe makes a LOT of treats) mix all of your dry ingredients. In a small bowl mix together milk and peanut butter. Slowly add wet mixture to dry mixture. You can use a wooden spoon, but I found a heavy duty hand mixer or stand mixer works best. Feel free to add a little more milk if your recipe if it seems to dry. Roll out your dough to about 1/4 in. thickness. You can use a cute little cookie cutter, or simply cut the dough into bars. (Your preference.) Place treats on baking sheet. Since the dough won't rise, I like to fit as many treats on a sheet as I can. Bake for 20 - 22 minutes until thoroughly dried.

Feel free to 1/2 the recipe if you need to. This batch was well over 200 treats! (That's a really big bowl...)

And an update on my vanilla....Only 4 more weeks to go!