No, not dog food – it’s puppy chow! And it’s seasonally on trend – it’s pumpkin puppy chow. Or muddy buddies. It’s not so important to me what you call it. And if you’ve never had it before it’s a delicious sweet snack. Plus, it’s beyond easy to make and when it’s done you’ll want to eat it by the fistful. 

I think because of backyard barbecues summer is billed as the time of year when people get together to eat. But, actually in my experience I get together more with people during autumn. Summer everyone’s busy trying to get outside or going on holiday. Autumn, the weather starts to get cold, it gets darker earlier, and people are home and invite each other over to stay inside to hang out. And when you’re hanging out indoors, you’re going to snack.

A big tub of puppy chow reminds me of lots of autumn get-togethers with family and friends. It reminds me of my Titi Lisa who often brought it to family gatherings like Thanksgiving or Christmas. Or it reminds me of my friend Jess who would bring it for the annual cabin weekend trip that we had with our friends every October. And last Sunday, Ryan and I went to our friends Adam and Angie’s house to watch American football, and I thought yeah it would be delicious here too.

In the US puppy chow is made with Chex cereal. Here in the UK, I used a similar cereal called Shreddies. I found the Shreddies to be a little more thick, crunchy, with a stronger wheat flavor, yet still just as good. So you start with something fairly healthy like wheat cereal, and then you cover it in chocolate, pumpkin, spices, and powdered sugar. It’s incredible. In addition to being crazy simple, this recipe makes a ton so you can share it with everyone you know.

And my recommendation is definitely to share it. These are best eaten the day you make them. Although they last, I find the longer they sit then the more likely the cereal is to lose its crunch. But they’ll go quick, because as I said it’s so easy to eat these by the fistful. Finally, if you’re interested in other puppy chow versions check out the puppy chow archives from Sally’s Baking Addiction. She has some great flavor combinations.

Adapted from Land O’Lakes.

Messy level: It is possible to do this neatly. It really is. However, I’m going to give it a high spoon rating just because there’s so much room for mess. You have to pour the chocolate over the cereal and then mix it until everything is coated – and sometimes everything means you and your hands. Then you transfer this all to a bag and coat it with powdered sugar. That can also get everywhere. If you’re patient and careful it’s a one spoon recipe, if you’re tired and in a rush it can be three spoons messy no problem.

Pumpkin Puppy Chow

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

15 mins

 

Ingredients

• ½ cup/ 115 grams butter
• 12 oz/ 340 grams chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate, but you could use semi sweet too)
• ½ cup /115 grams pumpkin puree
• 1 13.5oz box / about 9 cups/about 1 500 gram box of square rice cereal like Chex or Shreddies
• 2½ - 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 large resealable plastic food bag (about 1 gallon size or larger)
• *Alternatively you could use 2½ teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice instead of the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.

Instructions

1. Melt the butter and chocolate in a medium sized saucepan over low heat. Stir regularly until the mixture is smooth.
2. Add the pumpkin puree and continue heating. Stir constantly until it is smooth. Remove the pan from the heat.
3. Put the cereal in a very large bowl or tub. Pour the chocolate mixture over the cereal. Stir until everything is coated.
4. Transfer the chocolate coated cereal to the plastic bag. Pour 2½ cups of the powdered sugar into the bag. Close the bag and shake until the powder evenly coats the cereal. If you feel like the cereal isn't sufficiently coated then add the last ½ cup of powdered sugar.
5. Pour into a serving bowl and share with friends.

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Hope you all have had a lovely Christmas! Ryan and I spent it in Colorado at Aaron and Katy’s house (Ryan’s brother and his wife). It was nice to see them and Ryan’s mom and sister since we hadn’t seen them since right before we moved to London. But, the best part I think for most of us, was getting to meet and play with Boden. He is so cute! He is smiley, good-natured, and wiggly. It was fun to see him do everything – roll over, squirm around, and even grab my hair. I did take a picture of other people besides Boden, but we’re all in our pajamas and I think there was general consensus that we didn’t want that photo public. 

We were lucky enough to have a white Christmas! It started snowing about halfway through the day and we got maybe 3-4 inches. It was really beautiful and at night Ryan, Tia (his sister) and I went for a walk to look at the Christmas lights in the neighborhood. Colorado was also cool because we got to see a very different landscape compared to what we’re used to. Colorado has wide open plains and then beautiful views of the Rocky Mountains. It was a real treat.

Since it doesn’t get that cold in London and Ryan and I are non-nature-loving city slickers were weren’t totally prepared for the snow. Ryan had cloth sneakers and dress shoes. I had sneakers and leather boots without tread on the bottom. So, needless to say, we had to borrow boots from Aaron and Katy. I’m glad we did because the day after Christmas we took their dog Tarka on a 3 mile walk to the dog park. It was lovely to see all the snow and to be outside, but it was cold and our regular shoes could not have handled it. The dog park itself was pretty nice, and the picture at the top of this post is the view from the dog park.

In addition to getting to enjoy the outdoors, Aaron and Katy also took  us to enjoy some local restaurants and sites. On Saturday we had brunch with Katy’s parents at the Mercantile in Union Station. The food itself was really good but the service was so weird. You order at a counter in the front of the restaurant, then you sit down and wait for a text. When they text you, you walk 5 feet over to the kitchen window and pick up your food. They come around a little to check on you and see how you’re doing, but they don’t bring refills of drinks or anything. It was odd, but nice. I wish I had taken pictures of Union Station. It’s a train station and it’s been gorgeously redone on the inside. It has a hotel, restaurants, and it has a modern and old look that works for it.

After brunch we went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It was packed with families taking their kids of after Christmas. It’s a really good museum for kids because there are so many animals and skeletons and I thought most of the label texts were written with young audiences in mind. My favorite part of the exhibit was the section on wales. I learned that whales sound out their sound, then it bounces back, and vibrates into a fat deposit in their forehead. How cool is that? Throughout the museum there were a lot of diorama’s of animals in their “natural habitats.” It’s an old style of exhibitions, but I think it works. What was sort of funny was that every diorama had lots of animal poop – as if that will make me think it’s really authentic. Also, they had a snake on the floor (that was scary looking) and weighed 100 pounds. The sign next to it said it was modeled after a real snake and that with your friends you should see if you can pick it up. Ryan did all by himself, but it looked difficult.

Aaron and Katy also made sure to feed us lots of the American foods we’ve been missing. They took us to Highland Tap and Burger because Ryan had been craving a burger. Prior to this experience I had felt like burgers in London were perfectly good and that I wasn’t missing an American burger. And then I had one bite and everything changed. It was cooked medium-well, it was topped with a fried egg, and it was so juicy.I took a bite and sauce and juices oozed all down my hands. I fell in love. That bite was like snuggling with your favorite blanket. It was like the perfect first kiss. It was like putting on your favorite sweater. That one bite was so satisfying. I downed the rest so fast there wasn’t time to take a picture. I sort of wish I hadn’t had the burger because now I know what I’m missing.

They also took us to the Post to have fried chicken, waffles, and biscuits. My British colleagues keep telling me a biscuit is just like a scone, but it really isn’t. I don’t know how to explain it, but biscuits are more buttery and savory than scones. Even though Post is sort of a nice restaurant, the chicken came out in a bucket – which gave us that real American feel. We went home stuffed. My pictures of all this might not look so amazing, but it was. It was amazing I think for anyone, but all this food was even better after months of being away from it. You know, absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that.

Sunday we had a low-key day. Katy and I spent most of the morning having some girl time. We went to the grocery store to buy ingredients for nachos (something else on our American food bucket list, and I’ll tell you more about it tomorrow). We took Tarka to the dog park, and then we went and got a pedicure. It was meant a lot to me to spend some quality time together and just hang out and chat. In the afternoon we all finished a puzzle then went to Ryan’s uncle’s house to watch the Broncos game.

Before we left, we got one more taste of American foods. For breakfast before our flight to Connecticut we had bagels with pumpkin spice cream cheese and coffee with pumpkin spice creamer. Oh America, you are wonderful.

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These cookies are lovely because they taste and smell like all the best part of the holidays. Making these, and baking these, made me feel like I was walking through a Christmas market drinking cider. They evoke a sense memory that is soothing and makes me feel like I’m snuggled in a blanket. But in all honesty, they don’t taste too strongly of pumpkin. It’s no matter though because in addition to pumpkin there are chocolate chips, dried cranberries, pumpkin pie spice, and molasses (which is called dark treacle here). See, it has all the yummy flavors of autumn.

The cookie batter is  little weird because it is soft and sticky. It is less easy to manage than a regular chocolate chip cookie batter. It also calls for melted butter, and I’m not sure why because I didn’t create this recipe, it’s from Sally’s Baking Addiction. The thing about the melted butter is, when I melted it and it cooled it the cookies came out thicker and more cakey. When I melted the butter, but mixed it hot, the cookies came out thinner and softer. I don’t really know the science of why this works, but this is my observation. I just started my job at the Science Museum, so I feel a little bad not knowing the science and just asking us all to accept some sort of baking mystery. But, I did do some research and it seems like other bakers have had the same experience. What I remember from making gluten-free cookies is that melted butter helps wet what could be a dry mixture and help activate the protein structures. How that makes the cookies spread, I don’t know. I’ll look into it and get back to you.

If you try it, let me know how it goes for you. But, do with this information what you will, the main effect is on texture. The delicious flavor is there regardless. Also, for those visual learners among you, check out the difference in texture in the photos below.

What’s most important thought, is that you make these cookies. You should definitely make them if you’re having people over! Your home will smell amazing and everyone will be happy because there will be cookies.

Messy level: Ordinarily I would give basic drop cookies 1 spoon, since they are easy to mix in a bowl or two. These cookies are two spoons because the batter is sticky and so it gets all over your hands as you put the cookies on the sheet to bake. Also, molasses is a pain to measure and pour. A good tip is to spray your measuring spoon with some cooking spray, then pour in the molasses. The molasses will slip right out and won’t be stuck in the spoon! 

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Cranberries

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

Delicious cookies that have all the flavors of autumn

Author: Sally's Baking Addiction

Serves: 24

Ingredients

• 2 cups + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 heaping tsp pumpkin pie spice
• ½ tsp salt
• 1½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 8 oz unsalted butter, melted
• ¼ cup dark molasses
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• ¾ cup pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• chocolate chips and dried cranberries - a combo up to a total of 1½ cups.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°/180°.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. If you'd like the cookies thicker, melt the butter now. If you want them thin, don't melt the butter yet.
4. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Once well mixed, fold in the oats.
5. If you want your cookies thin, melt the butter now.
6. In a medium bowl, whisk the butter, molasses and both sugars.
7. Once combined, stir in the egg.
8. Now add the pumpkin and vanilla to the sugary-egg mixture.
9. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix.
10. Add in your chocolate chips and dried cranberries.
11. Scoop about 1-2 tbsp of dough onto the prepared sheets. Give the batter enough space to spread.
12. Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes.
13. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheets.

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Last week when when I made the Pumpkin Roll recipe I told you I was making my own pumpkin spice mix, but I didn’t tell you how. So today, here’s a quick post with recipe for pumpkin spice.  Now, you might be thinking, why would I make my own spices? Here are three reasons:

1. You can’t find it in a store
2. You already have the spices you need and don’t want to hit the store
3. Sometimes DIY is fun

This recipe is from allrecipes.com. You could subsitute cloves for the all-spice if you already have that on hand. This makes about 4 tablespoons, increase the recipe as needed. Mix the ingredients below and you’re done. Now let the fall flavors flow.

The post Pumpkin Spice Mix Recipe appeared first on Cooking is Messy.

But England does not celebrate pumpkin everything like the U.S. I can’t find pumpkin spice in the grocery store so I make my own instead. A few weeks ago I had a craving for a pumpkin spice latte. Ryan and I decided to trek over to Starbucks to find out if it had arrived. Mind you, in the U.S. you’d never have to guess because every Starbucks window would be plastered with orange writing and pumpkin pictures. On the way to Starbucks we passed at least four proper coffee shops and a few other places that also sold coffee, but my heart was set on a PSL. We got there, and we were nervous, but they had it! It was advertised with only one small picture and a line item on the menu. How are the people of England supposed to know about pumpkin mania with such little advertising?

To get my true pumpkin fix, I hit the kitchen. I found this recipe for a pumpkin swiss roll on Pinterest and I was excited, but nervous to try it out. To make the beautiful swirl you have to bake then roll up a cake. Roll up a cake?! What if I break it? The key is, as soon as it comes out of the oven, you roll up the cake (without the filling) while it is hot. The cake won’t be so hot as to burn you, but I recommend using gloves or an oven mitt to make it easier. Then, wait for the cake to  be completely cool. It’s hard to be patient (and Ryan and I weren’t entirely patient), but if the cake is hot it will melt your filling and you don’t want that.

This cake is a great treat for any old day, but I also think it can be pretty enough to bring to a party or to your Thanksgiving feasts. The swirl of cream cheese looks just beautiful when cut. And you might not believe me, but this is actually easy to make. Any level of baker can make this recipe, I know it. Most importantly, this roll is incredible delicious. Ryan and I ate this whole roll in about two and a half days and have been talking about making another one ever since. As you can see, we still haven’t gotten our pumpkin fix yet.

I hope you enjoy the new recipe format below. I like this a lot because it looks more streamlined and easy to read. If you like to print recipes, you can finally do that. If you bring your computer into the kitchen, like I do, then you don’t have to scroll as much and won’t get dirty fingers on the keyboard. The only drawback is that I can’t post pictures alongside the steps, but for difficult or strange techniques I’ll still post those pictures above the recipe.

Now enough talk. Get your pumpkin on! Recipe by Sweet Anna’s.

Messy level: This is a three spoon recipe, but just barely. I’m giving it three spoons because you need two bowls for the cake, one for the frosting, and then you still have to sprinkle powdered sugar everywhere. Also, if you over fill the inside you’ll have a cream cheese burst (like I did) at the end of the cake.

Pumpkin Rolls with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling

 

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Ingredients

• for the cake:
• ¼ cup powdered sugar (for dusting the towel)
• ¾ cup flour
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ⅔ cup pumpkin purée
• for the filling:
• 8oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 6 tbsp butter, softened (if you don't let it soften you will have butter chunks in your filling)
• 1½ cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375º/190º.
2. Line a 10x15" jelly roll pan with parchment paper. (a pan with edges all around, you have to have this pan) Then grease the parchment paper.
3. Somewhere on your counter, spread out a clean kitchen towel or piece of parchment paper, and sprinkle that with powdered sugar.
4. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice & salt.
5. In a large bowl, beat eggs, vanilla & sugar until thick & creamy.
6. Add in the pumpkin and mix to combine.
7. Stir in the flour mixture.
8. Pour the batter onto the prepared pan. Spread the batter evenly.
9. Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until the top of the cake springs back when touched. Stay on the side of slightly under cooked, if you over cook it then cake will be too dry and won't roll.
10. Immediately loosen the edges of the cake and turn it out onto the sugared towel/parchment. Peel off the parchment paper.
11. Roll up the cake & towel together fairly tightly, starting with a narrow end.
12. Cool completely on a wire rack.
13. Now start on the filling. In another medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter & vanilla until smooth.
14. Carefully unroll the cooled cake (removing the towel) and spread the cream cheese filling evenly over the cake, coming to about 1″ away from the edges. If you go all the way to the edge, you will have filling oozing out the end.
15. Carefully reroll the cake, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.
16. Before serving cut a little slice off of each end so the roll has a smooth look. Then dust the top with powdered sugar.

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