Pumpkin Conundrum

Well, it's officially October, and with October comes PUMPKIN!

Have you ever opened a can of pumpkin puree, used 1/4 or 1/2 cup in a recipe, then wondered what to do with the rest?

I did last week. I knew I wouldn't be using it again during the week, so I loaded up two silicone ice cube trays and made pumpkin cubes. The silicone trays are great, because you can pop out the cubes by pushing the mold inside out. Just toss them in a ziploc bag and you have small amounts of pumpkin puree any time you need it.

I just had a vanilla-pumpkin protein shake after my run. YUM!

What do YOU do with your leftover pumpkin puree?

Pumpkin Muffins

Can you bake without flour?

I've gotten in the habit of baking while listening to conference on the internet (it certainly keeps me more attentive than falling asleep on the sofa!). I've been excited to try a recipe my sister Natalie shared for Pumpkin Macadamia White Chip cookies, and bought all of the necessary ingredients yesterday. Although my flour canister was empty, I didn't buy flour because I have a 5 gallon bucket of it in my pantry....just needed to refill the canister.

So, I pulled out my 5 gallon bucket this morning and discovered it was FULL of weevils. I should've guessed as much. Even double bagging contents doesn't seem to keep those guys out anything. So, I tossed the entire contents into the garbage. I guess that's why it's worth paying a bit extra to buy it in sealed cans. And then I improvised.

Do you need flour to bake? Not when you make these little yummies.



I combined 1 yellow cake mix with 1 cup of pumpkin, a little cinnamon and some allspice. And 25 minutes later, voila! Yummy, moist pumpkin muffins. Yep, there's already one missing from that pan, because I ate it! A little dallup of Cool Whip put this little baby over the top.



I'm glad I have a party to take them to so I don't eat them all!

I froze the other cup of pumpkin so I can make those cookies later this month.