Pumpkin Cinnamon Buns with Maple Glaze

Pumpkin Cinnamon Buns

PUMPKIN RECIPE KLAXON. Since I made my pumpkin loaf last year I haven’t done anything pumpkin-y on the blog. Well over the last couple of weeks I’ve made a few different pumpkin things. And I mean pumpkin here, not “pumpkin spice” which actually has nothing to do with pumpkin and is just a combination of spices used in pumpkin pie, so stop it. With Halloween coming up next weekend (I still don’t know what I’m doing for it…) I felt this was the best time to be putting these recipes up. I’ve got 2 different ones lined up as well as some ghoulishly green (matcha) cookies that’d be great at any Halloween party! Having had that rant about pumpkin spice, one of the main ingredients is cinnamon, so Pumpkin Cinnamon Buns are a very logical step.
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Sweet Potato, Coconut & Chilli Soup

Sweet Potato, Coconut & Chilli Soup

I’ve started on the autumn food. I’ve jumped in head first and I’m as good as swimming in the piles of coloured leaves after a few of the things I’ve made this week (more of those to come soon). I’ve also gone veggie for the month of October (partly in solidarity to a couple of workmates giving up smoking for Stoptober and partly because of wanting to see whether I could). The main issue is lunch options. Most shops have them, but due to my (completely rational) hatred of cucumber and not being keen on cold egg, it’s better to make my own. I’m good with this anyway as I try to make my lunches each week as it is. This is one I’ve made countless times, and when I got to the shop to find they’d not got any butternut squash, it was my go to fall back option. Sweet potato, coconut & chilli soup is warming, creamy and has a nice little kick.
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Pumpkin Spice and Pecan Loaf

Pumpkin Spice Loaf

Pumpkin season is not over yet. It’s thanksgiving for you guys across in the US this week, right? That makes me feel better about baking with the stuff. I’d originally hoped to do some things in the run up to Halloween, but without my own place and baking stuff it ended up not working. On my list, as well as the more standard pumpkin pie, was a Pumpkin Loaf with Cinnamon Drizzle. What I’ve ended up doing was a Pumpkin Loaf with a cinnamon swirl (see here for similar) and stuffed with pecans then drizzled with icing. It was good, really good. Oh and I baked it in my still broken oven, which means I’ll be doing it again soon to make sure I get the temperatures and times exactly right.

Pumpkin Spice Loaf

Just a month or so ago everyone started raving about pumpkin spiced latters again, yawn. I’m not a coffee fan, and even if I was, places like starbucks aren’t exactly my cup of tea. I typed that, I realised what I’d done, I then took a sip of my tea. Tea > Coffee, there, I said it. But yes, I do however love cinnamon, as I wittered on enough in the last post, I’ll save you from that again. I also discovered that the Tesco at the end of my road sells tinned pumpkin, something that I struggled to find in the entirety of Leeds city center (it also sells buttermilk, which I could only grab from M&S in leeds). This is all great news, so it meant I got to finally bake up some pumpkin goodness.

Pumpkin Spice Loaf

I came across a recipe for a tray bake, here, added some pecans, the cinnamon “swirl” and turned it into a loaf. I bought the loaf in to work for the Children in Need Bake Off, to find I was the only one who had. Er, oops? But it at least helped raise a little for charity.

Pumpkin Spice and Pecan Loaf
 
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Author:
Serves: 1 Loaf
Ingredients
  • • 110g margarine
  • • 220g dark brown soft sugar
  • • 135g bread flour
  • • ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
  • • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
  • • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • • 175g tinned pumpkin
  • • 2 eggs, beaten
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to: 180°C and either grease or line a loaf tin.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer (or by hand) cream together the margarine and the sugar.
  3. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth.
  4. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. (Optional – if you want to do the swirl, mix some cinnamon with brown sugar. Add half the batter, spread some of the cinnamon sugar mix on top then pour the rest of the cake batter on top of this).
  5. Place in the center of the oven and bake for approx. 35 mins or until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  6. Allow to cool before removing from the tin.
  7. Drizzle with icing if desired.
 

 

 

Nuts and Nuts and Nuts for Candy (Cinnamon Sugar Cashews)

I like nuts, and I also like a Blood Brothers reference. Specifically I really like Cashew nuts. I also really like Cinnamon. Also it’s November so brace yourselves for me continually talking about cinnamon, cinnamon and yup, you guessed it, more cinnamon. I only did 2-3 posts about last year. THE SHAME! If you want to see them they are here, here and here. They are all tasty recipes that I still highly recommend. I will rebaking a couple of them this year.

Cinnamon Candy Cashews

Anyway, I’m having oven issues. The thermostat on our new oven is, to put it lightly, fucked. I burnt a batch of my Peanut Butter Cookies last week with the oven set to 140 for 5 minutes, and by burnt, I mean black. The tray was also too hot to hold through my oven glove. This means that the large amounts of baking and recipes I’d intended to be flooding you with are going to have to wait until this is fixed. I can’t risk things like cakes/cookies etc when I just plain can’t guarantee what my oven will do to them.

Cinnamon Candy Cashews

However, I can still do a few things, if I’m just very careful. For instance these Cinnamon Sugar Cashews don’t need to rise and/or won’t collapse in on themselves if checked often. So if I set my oven to 40 (FORTY, SERIOUSLY?) then it isn’t too bad. These make a great snack, any time of year, but I made them to take with me to the Battersea Fireworks display last Saturday, which was phenomenal. I also made a huge batch of Mulled Cider (it was tasty, but could have been mulled a tad longer, I was in a rush). I’m still experimenting with roasted nuts so used recipe from here as a base.

Cinnamon Candy Cashews

Other than the oven being tricky, and needing a bookcase plus bedside table (anyone got any spare?) I am thoroughly enjoying having my own place again and being a resident in Clapham.

And while I’m a Londoner now, I just want to give a huge shout out to the guys across at Leeds Indie Food, as they successfully got funded through kickstarter and their site went live this morning. Go check it out!

Nuts and Nuts and Nuts for Candy (Cinnamon Sugar Cashews)
 
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Author:
Serves: One small bag or bowl
Ingredients
  • 250g Cashews (pecans and almonds would also work, as would a mix)
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 cup light brown granulated sugar
  • 1.5 teaspoons cinnamon
  • Couple of pinches of nutmeg
  • Couple of pinches of salt
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 150°C (I did it on 40 due to my thermostat being messed up) and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
  2. Beat the egg white with the water until it forms stiff peaks.
  3. Fold in the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt carefully so you don’t knock all the air out.
  4. Fold in the cashews until they are well coated.
  5. Spread the cashews out evenly over the baking sheet and place in the center of the pre-heated oven.
  6. Bake for 45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes to ensure they are evenly roasted.
  7. Remove and allow to cool slightly before serving. These are great slightly warm but also just as tasty cold.
 

 

Butternut Squash Soup

It’s autumn, basically my favourite time of the year. I can start wearing knitwear every day and put pumpkin in everything (once I get a kitchen I want to do a pumpkin cake with cinnamon drizzle). However until I’ve got my baking stuff it’s a bit tricky. Tim’s kitchen is perfectly stocked for actual cooking though. The other great thing about this time of year is that it’s such a great time of year to make soups and one-pots. They are such a cheap option, being hearty, warming and filling. While I write up the intro for this recipe the soup is currently sat bubbling away on the stove.

 
Autumn E17
 

Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash Soup

I spent Sunday pottering around E17, where I am lucky enough to be staying at the moment (we put an offer in for a flat in Clapham on Friday, so fingers crossed). The area looks great at this time of year, as it’s one of the more “green” parts of London. Well, green in the summer anyway. Right now it’s a wonderful array of different colours.

Butternut Squash Soup

I was first introduced to pumpkin soup when I was backpacking in Australia. A few people in my hostel were working on a pumpkin farm and bought some leftovers back, turning it into a rich pumpkin soup. The main pumpkins sold in England are display pumpkins rather than cooking ones. Butternuts make a great substitute for a similar type of soup however. Roasted squash soup (perhaps with a tiny bit of chorizo to add some smokiness) makes a great thick soup.

Butternut Squash Soup

My only issue here is not having a blender means it ended up being a chunkier soup than I’d normally make.

Butternut Squash Soup
 
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Author:
Serves: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • Ingredients:
  • 1 large butternut squash, halved and roasted.
  • 1 large red onion, minced/chopped finely.
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed.
  • 1 carrot, diced.
  • Chorizo (optional)
  • 1tsp paprika
  • 1.5 litres Veg Stock
  • Crème Fraiche (I tend to put a dollop in each bowl)
Instructions
  1. Preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan assisted), drizzle oil over the deseeded butternut halves, place on a baking tray and roast for around 45 minutes.
  2. In oil, fry the onions until soft over a medium heat (add the chorizo now if using). Add in the paprika, carrots and garlic and fry for a further couple of minutes before adding in the scooped out squash.
  3. Drop the temperature to low. Pour over the veg stock, cover and simmer for about 90 minutes, stirring occasionally. The squash should start breaking down. At this point, either mash it up or blend it.
  4. Dollop crème fraiche on top to serve. I also sprinkle paprika over the top.