pumpkin

https://www.somethingswanky.com/pumpkin-pie-fudge-with-nutella/

Pumpkin Pretzel Bites Recipe

These easy pumpkin pretzel bites are an easy salty + sweet Fall snack that you won’t be able to stop munching on!

These easy pumpkin pretzel bites are an easy salty + sweet Fall snack that you won't be able to stop munching on!

I’m pretty picky about my pumpkin consumption. Generally, my rule is that I stay away from pretty much anything pumpkin that is NOT baked. I think the “fresh” pumpkin flavor is just too overwhelming, and it desperately needs some butter, sugar, and flour to even it out a little bit.

My exceptions to the must-be-baked rule almost entirely include pumpkin treats that have been made with pumpkin FLAVOR (not real pumpkin). Like this pumpkin cream pie made with pumpkin pudding mix– that’s something I can get behind! Or this pumpkin fudge made with pumpkin spice morsels (like chocolate chips).

Or these pumpkin pretzel bites!

https://www.somethingswanky.com/pumpkin-pie-fudge-with-nutella/

With a pretzel on the bottom, a Pumpkin Hershey Kiss, an M&M, and a drizzle of white or dark chocolate these poppable pumpkin bites are pretty irresistible.

I entirely surprised myself by loving those pumpkin Hershey Kisses. Like I said– I’m picky about pumpkin treats. And these just did not look or smell all that appealing. But in the name of research, I tried one. And then another. And then another. And then I was hooked.

Add to that a little salty crunch and an M&M and I never really stood a chance against these little guys.

These easy pumpkin pretzel bites are an easy salty + sweet Fall snack that you won't be able to stop munching on!

Another obviously awesome thing about this recipe is that it is SO EASY. And pretty quick too.

You could skip the chocolate drizzle at the end, but I’m going to advise you not to for two reasons:

☝???? I’m sorry to say it, but these kind of look like boobs without the chocolate drizzle on top ????! And I swear, I don’t think it’s that my mind is in the gutter over here ????. You have to admit the pumpkin Kisses are pretty close to flesh colored. And the way they melt in the oven.. well, you’ll see!

And ✌???? Is there anything not made better by a chocolate drizzle? It adds the perfect texture and flavor. I really feel like it balances out the strength of the pumpkin flavor just right.

Enjoy!

These easy pumpkin pretzel bites are an easy salty + sweet Fall snack that you won't be able to stop munching on!

Pumpkin, Nutella, and marshmallow cream make this like no other pumpkin fudge you've had before!

Pumpkin Nutella Marshmallow Fudge Recipe

Pumpkin, Nutella, and marshmallow cream make this like no other pumpkin fudge you’ve had before!

Pumpkin, Nutella, and marshmallow cream make this like no other pumpkin fudge you've had before!

Warning! You are about to enter high addictive pumpkin territory.

Let me start out by saying that this recipe is one of my all-time personal favorite pumpkin recipes. And you should know that I’m rather picky when it comes to pumpkin…

I like it. And I like it as early in the year as possible.

HOWEVER– I do not like weird pumpkin desserts. Tell me I’m not alone here, but there are just some things that pumpkin SHOULD NOT go in. Am I right?! For instance, it is my firm belief that pumpkin (as it REAL pumpkin) should not not go into anything not baked. I also have really strong feelings about pumpkin and oatmeal– that the combination should never happen ever.

So when I saw some no-bake pumpkin energy bites recently, and I barely held it together. Even now, I’m kind of gagging in my mind ????. But different strokes and all that, right?

Pumpkin, Nutella, and marshmallow cream make this like no other pumpkin fudge you've had before!

Now that you know how picky I am about my pumpkin treats, you know that you can completely trust me as I gush over this amazingly fabulous pumpkin fudge.

Which contains no actual pumpkin, just to clarify– because, again, pumpkin should be baked. In my humble opinion ????.

The base of this fudge is actually a variation of my favorite 2-ingredient fudge, which is essentially 3 cups of chocolate melted together with 14 ounces of sweetened condensed milk. It’s easy and simple, and it always turns out just right.

For this recipe, I’m using 3 cups (about 2 bags) of Nestle’s Pumpkin Spice Morsels. In the past, I’ve used Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses to make this same fudge, but it was so unnecessarily tedious to unwrap 3 cups worth of Hershey Kisses when I could just dump out a bag of morsels instead!

I find both the Hershey Kisses and the morsels at Target. Feel free to use either one you can get your hands on.

This Pumpkin Nutella Marshmallow fudge will rock your world.

Once you’ve made the 2-ingredient fudge base and poured it into the prepared pan, you need to act quickly to get the Nutella and marshmallow cream swirled in before the fudge begins to set.

I went ahead and prepped two piping bags (you could even just use big zip top baggies) by filling them with the Nutella and cream. Once the fudge is poured, snip of the ends of the piping bags and squeeze little pockets of Nutella and marshmallow throughout the fudge. Swirl it all a little with a knife, and voila!

Hands down, the best pumpkin fudge you will ever eat. I promise!

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

Pumpkin Chocolate Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and Butterscotch Caramel Recipe

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don’t forget the butterscotch caramel!!

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

There are FOUR outrageously delicious flavors happening in this cake.

Can you guess them just by looking at the outside?? One of the flavors is a little tricky, but I bet you can do it.

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

Today we’re playing with:

Pumpkin cake.

Pumpkin + Chocolate cake.

Cream cheese frosting.

Annnnnnnnnd BUTTERSCOTCH CARAMEL. ????

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

You guys. This butterscotch caramel sauce is basically heaven on earth. I’ve been eating it on everything lately– apples, ice cream, straight outta the jar. It’s SO GOOD.

So don’t judge me too harshly for not whipping up a batch from scratch. I just figure, why fix what’s not broken, right? Plus…. it just makes things that much easier. Which is always A-Okay in my book.

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

Ok, so I am being 1000000000% for real when I promise you: this cake is SO EASY. Here’s the basic breakdown:

Both cakes are overly simple using just cake mix, pumpkin, and a little milk. You’ll need a yellow cake mix, a chocolate cake mix, and two cans of pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling).

Next, you’ll make my favorite cream cheese frosting. It’s easy. You can do it.

Last, you’ll buy that amazing butterscotch caramel sauce. I found it at Target near the ice cream. You could also use my other favorite– Smuckers Caramel Delight Sundae Sauce (which I also usually buy at Target).

You have to try this cake made with layers of pumpkin cake and pumpkin chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. And don't forget the butterscotch caramel!!

And voila! You’ll have one incredibly moist, flavorful, and beautiful cake perfect for ushering in pumpkin everything season Fall.

Enjoy!

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

Baked Pumpkin Nutella Donuts Recipe

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

My daughter knows no seasonal boundaries when it comes to her love of pumpkin.

Regardless of the time of year, when we let her choose the dessert for family night– it’s always pumpkin pie. Always. Which is so funny to me, because she is an incredibly picky eater especially in regards to texture. And it took me until adulthood (and years of acquiring more adventurous palate)  to appreciate a good pumpkin pie, because I always felt like it was kind of slimy.

It is, after all, a cold pie made of squash. I feel like kids have a right to be a little leery when it comes to pumpkin pie. But not my girl!

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

As much as I love a good pumpkin pie (now), I just feel like there is so much more fun to be had when it comes to pumpkin season.

Pumpkin Monkey Bread. Enough said.

Pumpkin Cornnread with Maple Cinnamon Butter. ohemgee.

Pumpkin S’mores Cupcakes. Just yes.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting. Swoon.

Pumpkin Oreo Cheesecake Bars. Need I continue??

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

I’d have to say, at the top of my pumpkin favorite recipes list is most definitely this one for pumpkin donuts with Nutella on top.

Pumpkin + Nutella is the kind of flavor combination that dreams are made of. Initially, I thought I might make some sort of Nutella “glaze” or Nutella “frosting.” But then I realized… why mess with perfection? So I warmed up a bowl of straight-up Nutella and dunked my cinnamon sugar coated pumpkin donuts right in.

And I didn’t regret it. No siree.

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

If you’re ready to begin your fall baking (and really, who’s not??), may I suggest that you start right here. Dig out that pumpkin, ya’ll! It’s Fall!

Almost ????.

Buttery brown sugar and cinnamon swirled into fluffy pumpkin pancakes, topped with a dreamy cream cheese cinnamon roll frosting. Perfect for a yummy Fall breakfast!

Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe

Pumpkin pancakes with a cinnamon swirl that melts in your mouth. Good morning!!

Buttery brown sugar and cinnamon swirled into fluffy pumpkin pancakes. Perfect for a yummy Fall breakfast!

I have a serious love-hate relationship with cinnamon roll pancakes.

They were suuuuuuuuper popular about a year ago. And it’s no wonder why– the pictures were absolutely drool-worthy. And the concept: totally genius. I mean, who doesn’t want cinnamon roll filling swirled in their pancakes smothered in cinnamon roll frosting? Everyone does.

But have you ever tried to make them?

Ohmygosh. I tried about a bazillion times last year before I just finally gave up. Every time I tried, my cinnamon swirl leaked out of the pancake all over the place, filling my kitchen with the semi-permanent smell of burning sugar. And, uh, burning sugar is HOT. So there were definitely more than a few finger blisters involved. It was messy, smelly, and painful. It’s idiotic that I tried to make them as many times as I did.

But those pictures!!!! I mean… they just look so perfect! So why weren’t mine turning out like I thought they should?

Buttery brown sugar and cinnamon swirled into fluffy pumpkin pancakes, topped with a dreamy cream cheese cinnamon roll frosting. Perfect for a yummy Fall breakfast!

This idea for cinnamon roll pumpkin pancakes has been nagging at me for a few weeks, and I kept pushing it away– not wanting to look a-fool in my kitchen again (not to mention wanting to spare my hands the burns!). But, in the end, this recipe was just too tempting not to try.

So I gave it some careful thought and drew up a game plan for making painless, mostly mess-free cinnamon roll (pumpkin) pancakes. And it worked!

Although, in full disclosure: one of the improvements I made to this recipe was simply to lower my expectations. I just realized that no matter how hard I tried, some of the cinnamon swirl was going to leak out of the pancakes. Once I came to terms with that, the rest was a breeze!

Be sure to read these tips before heading to the kitchen!

I added cornstarch to my cinnamon swirl mixture. It helped hold “things” together a bit and keep it from leaking out of the pancakes any more than it did.

Be SURE to insert the tip of your piping bag or bottle into the pancake batter a bit when piping on the cinnamon swirl. DO NOT simply pipe the swirl on top. It needs to be in the batter a little bit.

Pipe the swirl IMMEDIATELY after scooping the batter onto the griddle (just to ensure that you can pipe into the batter and not on top).

Let the pancake cook really, really well on the first side. You don’t risk drying out the pancake, thanks to the pumpkin (which keeps things extra moist). And by allowing the majority of the pancake to be cooked before flipping, you won’t lose quite as much cinnamon swirl on the “flip side.”

The edges of the pancakes should be dry, and the top of the pancake should look a little dry as well with bubbles that don’t pop and fill in.

Clean the griddle with a paper towel in between batches. It’s not as much work as it sounds if you do it in between each one. Getting the extra sugar off the griddle will prevent burning, and it will make things A LOT easier to clean in the end.

If you have an electric griddle, USE IT. Electric griddles are awesome for cooking evenly and preventing burned food. I’m not so sure how these would have gone over on the stove-top to be honest.

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

I have to admit, when I look at these cupcakes, all I can see is that cream cheese frosting.

It is just so very ???????? ???????? ????????.

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

Back when I thought I wanted to own a cupcake bakery (have I told you about that short lived dream?? Have to say I’m sooooooo glad that didn’t work out!), I would cart cupcakes around to just about everywhere I went, including my full time retail/sales-y/corporate-ish job.

And I remember someone there once saying, “you know, it’s really all about the cake. Anyone can make good frosting, but the cake… you have to really know what you’re doing to make a good cake.”

7-ish years into the business of making A LOT of cakes, cupcakes, frostings, and other desserts nearly every day… I have to respectfully and adamantly disagree.

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

Because here’s the thing. A doctored up cake mix makes about as good a cake as I’ve ever had. I’m a cake fiend, and I’m not ashamed to admit I prefer cake mix to from-scratch cakes a good 90% of the time.

This cake mix pumpkin cake recipe has been my go-to for years. It’s simple and easy to remember: cake mix + a can of pumpkin. You could really stop there, but I usually add a little milk, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice just to give it that “homemade” taste.

Now don’t get me wrong. From scratch cakes have their place. Like I don’t think that  good banana cake can be outdone by a cake mix. And I do actually like Red Velvet from scratch marginally better than a cake mix Red Velvet. But other than that… I hardly see a reason to deviate from my favorite mixes. And that’s the truth.

Classic, creamy, EASY Cream Cheese Frosting recipe

But frosting? I do like the store-bought stuff, and it has it’s place in my recipes for sure. But there are some from-scratch frostings that just cannot be beat by something from the store. Like my mom’s brownie frosting, Grandma’s 6-Layer Cake Frosting, and this soft sugar cookie frosting.

And maybe most especially– CREAM CHEESE FROSTING.

As much as I like store-bought frosting, I have to say that canned cream cheese frosting isn’t even in the same ball-park as homemade cream cheese frosting. It doesn’t even taste like cream cheese! WHAT?!

So when it comes to cream cheese frosting in my recipes, homemade is the only way to go. And it’s really pretty easy as far as frostings go– as long as your expectations are realistic. And what I mean by that is that you can’t treat it like a buttercream. This recipe won’t be as stiff or as sturdy as a decorating buttercream. So don’t plan to do any sharp piping work or anything with it.

But you CAN plan on falling in love with it. It spreads on nice and smooth and creamy. And the flavor is light and dreamy with just a little tang from the cream cheese and a whole lot of vanilla flavor. I love using vanilla paste or crushed vanilla in place of the extract. Can you see those little delicious flecks??

Soft and moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting and pecans.

This recipe is such a keeper, ya’ll. It’s one of those no-fail, timeless classics that’s worth hanging on to and pulling out at least once every Fall.

Enjoy!!

Soft and moist, spiced pumpkin cupcakes perfectly paired with whipped Nutella buttercream.

Pumpkin Nutella Cupcakes Recipe

Soft and moist, spiced pumpkin cupcakes perfectly paired with whipped and fluffy Nutella buttercream. 

Soft and moist, spiced pumpkin cupcakes perfectly paired with whipped Nutella buttercream.

Alright you guys– where are my pumpkin freaks???

And I use the term “freaks” ever so lovingly. Because, don’t I know it, I’m one of them. And now that September is FINALLY here, and we have officially passed the Labor Day benchmark… you know what that means! Yes, my friends. It’s time to pumpkinallthethings. As all the hashtags have been no-so-subtly reminding us for the past 6 days ????.

This year, I’m especially anxious for Fall to get underway because…. I want to move into my house already!!!! I’m like a kid doing the potty dance waiting for this house to get built. Seriously. I love ya September and October– but this year, we’ve got to get a move on!

DSC_7097

In the meantime, we might as well talk cupcakes in order to distract me from my toe-tapping.

And what better distraction than pumpkin cupcakes?? Pumpkin cupcakes with Nutella buttercream to boot!

Not only are these cupcakes (obviously) the culmination of a perfect flavor pairing and utterly, sinfully delicious. But they are also SUPER easy. I used my favorite 2-ingredient pumpkin + cake mix recipe for the base. It’s ridiculously easy peasy.

After that, all you have to do is whip up a simple Nutella buttercream– which is at least 10 times easier than it sounds.

Soft and moist, spiced pumpkin cupcakes perfectly paired with whipped Nutella buttercream.

Happy pumpkin season babes! If you need me, I’ll be creepin’ the construction crew at my future house. ????

Kidding. I bring them donuts. They totally know I’m not weird.

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Pumpkin Pudding Muffins Recipe

Pumpkin Pudding Muffins | somethingswanky.com

Yes, yes. I’ve put pudding mix in more baked goods.

I know some of you aren’t wild about pudding mix. Or you live in Australia where the stuff is totally unavailable (you guys should seriously put together some sort of national demand letter to Jell-O by the way, because not having instant pudding mix is crazy-talk!). But I looooooove adding pudding mix to my desserts. I totally throw it in anytime I can (obviously).

In case you’re a little late to the pudding mix scene, here are couple of reasons I love using it in my baked goods and one untested suggestion for a substitution if it’s not available to you…

Pumpkin Pudding Muffins | somethingswanky.com

So here’s the deal with pudding mix going into cookies, breads, muffins, and more: it makes the end result super moist… in the best possible way. “Moist” is such a risky word to use, isn’t it? But sometimes it’s the word for the job! And no way around it– moist baked goods = yummy baked goods.

The second thing I love about adding pudding mix is that it enhances the flavor of the treat. It either adds an extra layer of flavor (like chocolate pudding in a chocolate cookie = double the chocolate! Yum!), or it actually adds a NEW flavor (like cheesecake pudding in peanut butter cookies = peanut butter cheesecake!!). I love both functions.

And in regards to a substitute for pudding mix in baked goods? Well… I don’t think there’s much you can do to replace it for it’s flavor properties. But Averie once mentioned to me that she found using cornstarch worked in cookies in a way that might be similar to how pudding mix does! I haven’t tested that myself, and I’m not sure if she’s done it in more than the one cookie recipe. But it might be something worth trying if instant pudding mix is totally unavailable to you!

Pumpkin Pudding Muffins | somethingswanky.com

Thanks to pudding mix, these muffins are extra soft and fluffy, perfectly moist, and a little extra pumpkin-y. Give them a quick dunk in butter and cinnamon sugar for a perfectly cozy and sweet Fall breakfast!