pumpkin spice pecan waffles

i'm a big bath & body works candle fiend. well, correction: i'm a fall and winter bath & body works candle fiend. when september rolls around, i make my annual pilgrimage to bath & body works to pick up pumpkin, spice and autumn themed candles, and i enjoy the hell out of them well into the holiday season. nope, this post is not sponsored, i'm just super pumped about candles. anyway!

one of my favorite scents is pumpkin pecan waffles. i honestly didn't set out to make these waffles after the candle scent. it truly wasn't until i was mixing up the batter that i realized it! so light a fall themed candle and get to work on these waffles; they're delicious, oh so perfect for fall and quite a wonderful way to wake up on a saturday morning.

oh, and can i please mention that these are the first waffles i made in my new waffle maker? they're not perfect, but they're waffles. yes, the pinnacle of being 25 is having a waffle iron. go adulthood go.

pumpkin spice pecan waffles

2 cups flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice (or a little less, your preference)
4 egg yolks (save egg whites)
1 cup pumpkin
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 + 1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup melted butter
pecans (optional)

in a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. add yolks, pumpkin, vanilla, milk and melted butter. beat 4 egg whites until stiff peaks form, then fold into the batter. cook in a waffle iron according to your waffle iron's directions. top with butter, syrup, pecans and a dash of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. enjoy!

pumpkin spice whoopie pies

 happy halloween everyone! is halloween on a friday not the best thing ever?!

let me tell you something about the behind the scenes of this post. i made these, and they're delicious. i got out my nikon, set up my little shooting area, got some plates/props i'd never used before, and i was feeling really great about it. look at me, photographing these whoopie pies like i work for national geographic. i'm gonna use manual and make the aperture look stellar.

and then i looked back at the photos. oh god, i thought, these look like biscuits. or dog treats. no, no, no. absolutely not. and so then, i decided i wasn't going to post the recipe at all. the pumpkin didn't bring out as much orange as i thought it would in the cookies, and though i considered adding dye, i felt it unnecessary. more processed garbage in our food, who needs it?

so here they are in a photo from my phone. i did my best to make them look not biscuit like. they look a little funny. but they taste like cakey, warm icing goodness.

if you still need a quick treat to whip up for a party tonight, or y'know, just because you want a sweet treat, these are just the trick! i've written before about the simplicity of making cookies from boxed cake mixes (see pumpkin butterscotch cookies here, and lemon white chocolate cookies here!), and they're pretty foolproof. you can make your own cream cheese icing (i recommend this recipe) or use premade.

you will need:

• 1 box of spice cake mix
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons pureed pumpkin (i used 3, but it made the dough a little stickier than i liked)

preheat your oven to 375. combine all ingredients in a bowl. take the dough and begin rolling it into 1 inch balls - place on a greased cookie sheet. bake 9-12 minutes, or until cookies are firm. let cookies cool for at least half an hour. pipe (or spoon) your icing onto a cookie, attach another cookie, and voila! dog biscuits! i mean, pumpkin spice whoopie pies!

pumpkin butterscotch cookies

remember my post about the only cookie recipes you'll ever need? click here to view it.

after an experiment with the same base recipe as the lemon & white chocolate cookies, i think it can be said without a doubt that just about any boxed cake mix can work for this: red velvet, strawberry, chocolate, you name it. if you follow the recipe outlined in my previous post, you can substitute any flavor and filling combination you desire.

at one of my multiple target trips last week, i saw the pumpkin cake mix on display. could that be more perfect? nah, i don't think so. and what goes perfectly with pumpkin? butterscotch! substitute white chocolate chips for butterscotch, semisweet or whatever tickles your fancy. i thought pumpkin and butterscotch was the perfect fall combo.

if you want a fall dessert that's a little less involved than pumpkin spice cupcakes, but still festive, please try this out! these are ready in seconds and are gooey, crusty and perfectly soft dreamy cookies that are nearly effortless. they are way too easy to make to put off. do it. now.