Last night I wrote this whole post on 2012 and my feelings about all of the change and struggle that myself and everyone around me seem to be going through. I definitely questioned whether or not I really wanted to publish it because y’all know I have a hard time with the “putting myself out there” type of stuff sometimes. Then I hit publish and WordPress deleted my entire post and just published the title, “The Storm.” I quickly deleted the empty post, breathed a sigh of relief and took it as a sign from the universe that it wasn’t meant to be.

This should give you the general gist of the but truthfully I think I’m still in the middle of the storm and not ready to process it all. And I feel that so many around me have been in this storm with me fighting their own battle…sickness, breakups, career change, loss of pets, family struggles, etc. It’s overwhelming, really.

Moving on…in a totally different and less serious direction. My breakfast every single morning this week has featured pumpkin so I thought it would be nice to do a round up of my favorite pumpkin breakfast recipes.

Pumpkin Banana Oatmeal

1/2 cup old fashioned oats or 1/4 cup quick cooking steel cut oats or any oat base you want (this bowl was a mix of oat bran and quick cooking steel cut oats)
1/2 banana, sliced thinly
1/4 cup canned pumpkin
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1/2 teaspoon cinammon or pumpkin pie spice
Pinch salt
Dried cranberries, raisins or golden raisins
1/2 cup milk of your choice (I like almond)
1/2 cup water (sometimes I do 3/4 cup milk and 1/4 water if I want creamier)

Optional toppings: nut butters like almond or peanut butter, jam like Crofter’s superfruit spread, pumpkin or apple butter

Mix together all ingredients in a small saucepan and cook over medium low heat, stirring frequently until mixture has thickened. It should take 5-8 minutes to cook. Make sure you don’t crank the heat to high and boil the mixture because it won’t cook properly and will stick to the bottom of the pan.

Pumpkin Overnight Oats

1/3 cup old fashioned oats or museli (I like Bob’s Red Mill Museli and you can soak it for 15-30 minutes and be ready to go!)
1/3-1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup milk of your choice (I like almond)
1/2 banana, diced
1/4 apple, diced
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1 tablespoon chia seeds
Dried cranberries, golden raisins, etc.

Optional toppings: nut butters like almond or peanut butter, pumpkin or apple butter

Mix everything together in a bowl and leave in fridge overnight. I can usually get away with leaving them for 30 minutes to an hour if I make it in the morning. I use plain Greek yogurt and find that the banana and pumpkin butter on top sweeten enough for me but use vanilla yogurt or add honey if it’s too much for you.

Pumpkin Spice Waffles
(adapted from this recipe)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (a little more if you really love the spice)
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
7/8 cup milk (1/2 a cup + 1/3 cup)
1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled a bit

In a medium bowl, mix together flours, baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg, milk, pumpkin and butter. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined.

Cook according to your waffle makers directions. My tip for perfect waffles is to let them cook until they stop steaming. This made two big Belgian waffles.

Pumpkin Apple Muffins
(Recipe heavily adapted from The Gourmet Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Very small pinch of cloves (1/8 teaspoon)
1/2 (of a 15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup applesauce
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped
Extra brown sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle over the muffins before baking

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 12-cup muffin tin with liners (or cooking spray).

In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. In a separate medium bowl, mix together pumpkin, oil, applesauce, sugar and eggs. Add wet mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined. Fold in apples.

Divide batter between muffin tins, filling about 3/4 (or a tad more) full. Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon over the tops of muffins. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Muffins will keep for 3-5 days out or freeze well for a couple of months.

Yield: 12 muffins

Healthier Banana Pumpkin Bread
(Recipe adapted from Nancy Creative)

Ingredients:

FOR THE BREAD
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or go up to a tablespoon if you really want it spiced)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 very ripe medium banana, mashed with a fork
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
2 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

FOR THE GLAZE
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon pumpkin puree

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 5 loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.

In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt.

In large bowl, mix together pumpkin, banana, yogurt, oil, eggs and brown sugar. Add in half of the flour mixture and mix well before adding in the other half. Continue to stir gently until everything is well combined.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let the bread cool for about 10-15 minutes in the pan before removing it to cool completely on a wire wrack.

For the glaze, whisk together powdered sugar, milk and pumpkin and spoon over loaf once cool.

Yield: 8 servings

Enjoy!!! Let me know if you try any of the recipes!