Pumpkin Pancakes

It's Veteran's Day, and with no work to do and no place to be, it's the perfect time to indulge in some breakfast for lunch. (In case you were wondering? We also had breakfast for breakfast too). 

I whipped out my trusty Vanilla Bean Pancake recipe; but low and behold, we had no vanilla. Zip, Zilch, Nada. This, in and of itself, is a heinous pantry crime-- one I fully intend on rectifying as soon as I am done with this post! Luckily for me, I had just purchased canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice, because? 

My kids are pumpkin fiends. Seriously. I currently have 8 boxes of pumpkin bars, three boxes of pumpkin o's, pumpkin bread, pumpkin yogurt, and pumpkin granola. I'll say it again... my kids are pumpkin fiends.i

Which in this case was extremely advantageous; as vanilla bean pancakes quickly became pumpkin pancakes with just a few minor adjustments. Like the original, they are dairy free (I think using rice milk instead of whole milk creates a lighter, fluffier pancake), however for those of you "true" dairy fanatics, regular milk will work just as well.

Ingredients:

4 cups and 2 T of flour, 

1/2 cup of sugar

1 t salt

1 t pumpkin pie spice

4 t baking powder

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 box of rice milk (plain, unsweetened)

2 T canned pumpkin

Directions:

Preheat a griddle over medium heat. 

Whisk together the dry ingredients.

Add pumpkin, eggs, oil and rice milk. Whisk until batter is almost smooth. 

Using a cookie batter scoop, ladle out pumpkin batter on griddle, Flip pancakes when bubbles form and start to burst.

Tastes of Fall: Apple Cinnamon Sangria

So a couple of years ago, we had the summer of Sangria. And what a summer it was. Multiple recipes tested, tasted, and repeated. Sangria continues to be a staple of summer.

But what about now? Fall has set in, and just like with food, I'm starting to crave something a little less light and crisp, and a little more filling and homey.

Enter the perfect season changer: Apple Cinnamon Sangria.

Made with Hard Cider, instead of wine, and maple syrup instead of honey or sugar, it's a heartier version of the summer favorite. And every bit as drinkable.

Ingredients:

6 Fuji apples, core removed and sliced
2 oranges, sliced
1/4 cup real Maple Syrup
1/2 cup Jim Beam Bourbon Whiskey
1 cinnamon stick
33 oz of Hard Apple Cider
Unfiltered apple juice

Directions:

8 hours before serving combine all ingredients except for apple juice in a large pitcher. Mix to combine. Refrigerate. Couldn't be simpler to enjoy fall in a glass.

When serving, fill glasses 2/3 full with Sangria and top with cold unfiltered apple juice.