Ghost Marshmallows and Happy Halloween!!!

I wanted to share these neat Ghost Marshmallows that I made for our Halloween party and I just made a few for my son's lunch box for Halloween.  I got out the marshmallows and the mini chocolate chips.

I used a cake tester to poke the holes into the area where the eyes were going.  It makes the chocolate chips easy to stick in and they stick to the marshmallow.

Here is the finished product to make a tasty ghost.

I thought that they looked like they were sitting around a campfire but I used them for an edge of the plate to decorate a plate of cookies.

I hope that you try to make this tasty treat for yourself or your kids as a special treat in their lunch.  They are super cute and super easy!

If you want something a little healthier, try a Jack O Lantern Pepper like my friend Amy made for the Halloween party.  Isn't it cute!!!  Even better it was filled with her yummy dill dip.  She even put plastic wrap in so that the dip didn't come out of the jack o lantern. Cute and well thought out :)

Happy Halloween!!!

Harris Teeter Super Doubles Trips for FREE!!!!

Okay, I have been horrible about getting my posts up now that my camera is broken and I have to use my husbands.  My camera downloaded the pictures with a wire and my husband's needs a special card and takes me a little more effort to get them on the computer to work with but I am trying.  This trip was worth downloading the pictures as soon as I got home!!!

I got six cans of tomatoes, 4 burritos, cooked perfect chicken and cheese bites, Lindt chocolate bars, and two pop secret popcorn for free.  I am shocked that there was still stock on the shelves for all of these things but I was glad to get them in my cart for FREE!!!!

My main goal was to use a rain check for the Sorrento Mozzarella cheese which changed the price from $6.99 to $4.37.  I wanted to get them last time I was at the store but they were moved from where they used to be kept to the "fancy" cheese department which is all the way at the beginning of the store (and I left the rain check in the car).  I stopped there first today and grabbed my limit of three.  Are you ready for the great surprise???  Since they were in the "fancy" cheese department, I got an additional $2.61 discount because there was a 20% discount off the specialty cheese ($0.87 each).  That made each block only $1.50 each after coupon and they are 16 oz. cheese which is equal to two of the shredded ones!!!

I got the Scope which was on sale for $3.99 and used the $1.50 coupon off which made it $0.99.  Then I got the $1.50 zvr evic coupon so I made a $0.51 profit.  I got the Axe deodorant for $4.99.  I used the $2 printable coupon and the $2 zvr evic so it was $1.01 profit.  I got the Right Guard Xtreme for $4.59 and used the $1.50 coupon off which made it $1.59.  Then I got the $1.50 zvr evic coupon so it was only $0.09. 

The best money maker for the deal was the Cover Girl Eye makeup which are normally $3.79 but were on sale for $3.03.  I used the $1.50 coupon off any Cover Girl item and it made them $0.03 each.  Then I got the $4 off any 2 Cover Girl zvr evic coupon.

I added in the Pampers Easy Ups which were on sale for $8.49 and I used a $2 coupon and a $2.50 zvr evic coupon which made them $1.99 after coupons.

I paid my total at the cash register but there was an issue with two of the evic coupons coming off the total because there was a computer system issue that the store seemed to be having all day.  I went to customer service and they gave me the cash back!!!  With the total and the cash back, I ended up getting all the groceries for free and even got an extra $0.06 in my pocket!!! 

Total OOP $3.53- $3.59 cash back= -$0.06
Total Savings $77.57 + $3.59 cash back + 7.86 rain check= $89.02

Can you believe that I got all those groceries for free?  I really can't but I am super excited.  I have a few more rain checks to use so I can't wait to get back to the store.  I will try to post yesterday's trip soon!!

Thrifty Thursday: Stove Top Popcorn the affordable snack

Fall is here!! My favorite fall snack is popcorn.  What is yours??

I make my popcorn on the stove with a little bit of butter flavored popcorn salt in my big stock pot.

I use a container of popcorn salt that I got through our big popcorn machine which looks like this:

But given that most people don't have an industrial popcorn maker (and I don't want to clean it), most people can buy the seasoning on the store shelf that looks like these or use salt and melted butter.

Great storage tip is to get a nice jar (like I have which is from my parents and looks to be from a jar of Planter's peanuts but any jar will do) and fill it up.  Keep in the fridge for storage and if you don't eat it very quickly, keep the rest in the freezer.  It will make sure the popcorn is fresh when you go to use it.

It makes a healthy and high fiber snack at a low cost.  The best part is that a whole bag of popcorn is under $2 and it makes lots and lots of snacks.  I bought my last bag for $1.88 at Wal-mart and the one before that for $1.87 at Harris Teeter. Add a little bit of oil to the pot and you have a tasty treat.

A bag of chips costs between $3 and $4 and it lasts for about one sitting in this house.  It doesn't have a lot of nutritional value and doesn't fill you up.  Although we are a family who loves our chips, we also keep a bowl of popcorn on hand at all time for snacks.  It makes for a quick and easy snack that is as easy to grab as a bag of chips.

If you want to skip the oil, you can go with the microwave version but the salt doesn't stick to the kernels this way and you have to use alternate seasoning methods.  You can microwave in a paper lunch bag or there is a handy microwave popcorn popper that I got at Target for around $10 in the section with the microwaves and you put in 2 tbsps of popcorn and pop for two minutes.  You get a great fluffy popcorn with no mess or fuss!!!

Try some Kettle Corn to mix it up a little for a sweet treat!!!  For the recipe, click here.  There is another popcorn that I have tried which is great for the fall weather which is Cinnamon and Sugar Popcorn. Click here for the recipe!!  They are both tasty but Kettle Corn has become our after our son is asleep snack to have hot out of the pot but we only make it after I have already made this popcorn during the day so that we only have to clean the pot once.

I hope that you try this thrifty snack in your house.  With a little preparation, you can have this one hand and save tons of money with a filling treat!!  I hope that you try some popcorn soon.

Kid Arts and Craft: Ghost and Pumpkin Jugs for Halloween

I had a bunch of milk jugs that I was saving to craft with but I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them.  I did see a craft to make a sandwich holder from the bottom of the milk jug in my All You Magazine.  If you were just inspired or confused, here is a link so that you can make your own.  Of course, I am not sure why that meant that I was keeping every container that came into the house but I had a huge collect when it came time to recycle and I decided that I was going to make ghost jugs for the front porch for Halloween.  They are simple and free but provide great decoration that can be recycled after the holiday.  If you want to see some inspiration, check these websites:

Ghost Jugs

Orange Jack o' Lantern Jugs

Jack o' Lantern Jugs

I went searching on the computer to find some different ideas and I liked the ghosts the best because they seemed the easiest.

First step was to remove all the labels from the milk jugs which was easier said then done.  I pulled them off and then scrubbed them under hot water but they weren't coming totally off.  The great news is that they don't have to be totally off because they are on the back side of the ghost as long as you get one without two stickers.  This one only had a little sticker left.

The second step was cleaning the inside so I poured a mixture of water and bleach inside just to make sure that everything was cleaned and sanitized.  They were really hard to dry out so I made sure to keep the top on while we were decorating them. See how this side doesn't have any stickers.

Then we decorated the jugs.  I just used a sharpie and colored in the areas that I drew.

Here were three of them but my son was still thinking about the last one that he wanted to make when it was time to cut the holes.

Then, my husband cut the holes in the back and dried out the inside.  My husband is a neat freak so he used a compass to get a perfect circle and cut it with his extra sharp utility knife.  Look as those holes:

Don't worry about yours being so neat because they are in the back of the ghost and no one but you will see them.  After they were cut and cleaned, I had to feed the lights into the back until they fill the milk jug.  I wasn't really great at it but I used one strand for two jugs.  Here is what the wires look like:

I put two on either side of the front porch by the posts.  These are the ones that I did.

And here are the ones that my son made.

We also made two pumpkin jugs.  I mixed up orange paint and white glue (because I saw it on the internet and everything on the internet is true...well, it didn't work out great for painting)

We painted them but it took a little while to dry so we decorated and cut the holes the next day.

Those went on the porch after my husband cut holes in them and I didn't get the lights in them so they blew away.  Oops!!!  Don't let Daddy in on the craft if you don't give good directions but it teaches a lesson to everyone.  Make sure that you get lights in them because otherwise they are really lightweight and you might find them at the end of the driveway when you get home.  They got chipped up and a little messy but here is what they look like with most of the damage being on the back side.  We used stickers instead of markers which were in one of our Halloween books.

We had a ton of fun and these got to sit outside to decorate our house.  I don't know if I would try the pumpkins again unless I had a better paint recipe but I would do the ghosts every year!!!  I hope that you try it too.  If you don't have any milk jugs for this year, make sure you set aside a few for next year because it is super fun.  I might have had just as much fun as my son did and we both wanted to do more but I didn't want the front porch to look like a recycling center.  Did you make any ghosts or pumpkins this year?

Shared on November Fun: Afterschool Blog Hop

Corn Tortillas

My husband loves corn tortillas!  He is a big fan and doesn't really like the flour tortillas.  I went to the refrigerator to get out corn tortilla for dinner and realized that we were out.  So I went to the basement freezer, there was a huge pile of frozen tortillas in the basement freezer which were all flour.  We were totally out of corn tortillas and I already had all of dinner ready without the tortillas.  I was thinking about selling this as taco chicken over rice with cheese and lettuce but I decided that I had enough time to do the impossible.... attempt to make corn tortillas for dinner.

I don't know if you read my previous attempt at corn tortillas but the best thing that could be said is that it didn't go well.  I might have cried at one point in the process but I am not sure.  I know there was a lot of screaming but that is mostly because both my parents were "helping" me.  I just didn't know if I had this in me tonight while trying to make a fast dinner because I had to get out the door for a early childhood class through the county.

Rather then ruin my dinner plans, I forged ahead.  I started with a new recipe that I saved knowing that I would attempt this sometime.  I got out all the ingredients which was pretty easy because it was corn flour, water and salt.

I mixed the dry ingredients in a bowl until they were combined.

Adding the warm water slowly and mixing until the dough combined until it was the consistency of cookie dough.

I took dough by spoonful from the bowl, rolling each piece of dough into golf ball sized dough balls.

I used the silpat that I had to put all of the dough balls on and covered with a damp towel.

So far, so good!  Everything was going smoothly and the dough looked a lot different then last time so I was hoping for the best.  I pulled out the tortilla press.  Yup, I even have a tortilla press because I was serious about making this work.  I added this to my Christmas list a few years back after making flour tortillas with a rolling pin.  My suggestion would be to get the 8 inch press and not the small press because it is always better to have more room, then not enough.  If you don't have a tortilla press, feel free to try it with a rolling pin but it is way more challenging.  You can try pressing with the back of a skillet in the folded plastic bag too.

I grabbed a plastic bag from my drawer and cut it down the sides so that it would open like a book.

I put the dough ball on the plastic bag that was placed in the tortilla press with the opening following the same lines as the tortilla press.

I shut the tortilla press and it pushed out the dough.  This was one of the problem steps before because the dough was too dry but this time it was actually more wet and spread better.  I remembered that the dough ball needed to go a little farther towards the back and not in the center because the dough thins too much if it gets closer to the front because of the pressure.

I peeled the tortilla off of the plastic bag and put it on the heated griddle.  I found that they stuck a little without nonstick spray or oil.  The nonstick spray tended to burn so the oil was easier to use but harder to keep applying.  Cook the tortilla on one side for a little less then a minute.  I did a little shake to make sure that it wasn't attached to the griddle.  If you started to get little bumps like this one, make sure you press them down or it would stay doughy in those areas.

After flipping, let the tortilla cook on the other side for a little less than a minute.  If the tortilla was not browned enough, you can flip it back over but it probably cooked either way.

I took the hot tortillas and placed them under a towel on a plate.  We tried some hot off the griddle and they weren't as tasty as the ones that had a little time to steam under the towel.  They were very flavorful and my husband took the opportunity to have some extra tortillas for dinner because they were such a great treat.  I even enjoyed them instead of eating my normal flour tortillas. 

Homemade tortillas are so much better then store bought even though they are a lot more work.  They are worth doing a little ahead of time so that you have a few in the fridge to pull out use.  My husband and I agreed that they were almost as good as the fresh ones that we used to get in Mexico.  Who knew that we would be trying to reproduce the food from our trip to Mexico... of course, I will skip the horrible sunburn that I got.  But stop to enjoy corn tortillas if you get a chance to make these.  They are well worth the time and effort and I hope to make them again soon!

To check out the original recipe, go to Good Cheap Eats here and see her recipe and instructions.  I followed almost all of directions exactly so there aren't a lot of changes but she has some great pictures.  Good Cheap Eats is the recipe that I use for my pizza dough, rolls and now corn tortillas.  Check out a bunch of her other recipes while you are visiting.  I am sure that you won't be disappointed.  I know that I never have been!!!  My recipe is listed below.



Homemade Corn Tortillas


2 cups Maseca or instant corn masa flour
¼ tsp salt
2 cups warm water (might not use all)
a gallon sized plastic bag
8 inch tortilla press
hot griddle

Measure out two cups of Maseca and 1/4 teaspoon salt into a bowl.  Add the warm water and stir until it becomes the texture of cookie dough (might not use all of the water). 

Roll the dough into golf ball-sized balls. Place under damp towel until ready to use.

Heat a griddle and start pressing your tortillas. Use a cut gallon sized bag to line the tortilla press since the dough will stick to the press and cause a mess. After pressing, the tortilla will pull away from the plastic bag.

Lay the tortilla on the hot griddle. Cook for about 50 seconds and then flip. Cook another 50 seconds. Remove from griddle and keep tortillas warm by covering them with a dry cloth towel.  Serve warm or refrigerate leftovers.

Month End Coupon Organization

Can you believe that it is already the end of the month?  I am not sure where the time has gone but that is what the calendar says!  Of course, don't take my word for it....you can check your calendar too. Remember to print coupons because some go away at the end of the month....also remember to check back in a few days and see what new ones have appeared!!

Check the following sites:

• coupons.com
• Smartsource
• Redplum
• Coupon Network
• Eat Better America
• Betty Crocker
• Cooking with Kraft (limited to AL, FL, GA, SC and TN)
• Pillsbury
• Campbell's
• Everydaysaver

This is a good time to remind you to clean out all of the expired coupons and put them in the recycle bin!!  I try to remember to clean out my coupon basket but I usually end up going to the store and realizing that so many are expired that I can't find the ones that I am looking for before I get organized.  Make sure that you get cleaned up so that you can find the coupons you need to save money!!

Make sure you don't miss a coupon!!  Keep this list for next month too because the new coupons are normally loaded at the beginning of the month so it is a great time to go back and check.  Please let me know if there are any other coupon websites that you like to visit and I will gladly add them to the list.  Hope you all had a wonderful month and I look forward to hearing all about it!!!

Menu Plan Monday 10/28

Monday- Cheese Ravoli with garlic bread
Tuesday- Chicken and Rice Casserole
Wednesday- SW Spiedies with white rice
Thursday- Leftovers before Trick or Treating
Friday- Pizza
Saturday- Leftovers/ ??
Sunday- Leftovers/ ??

I can't believe that it is already the end of the month but I feel like I say that a lot.  Is it the sign that we are old now when the months pass so quickly?  Well, I am getting old so that would be an explanation.  We have a busy week with Halloween and all of the Halloween events at school.  I don't know how many meals with go as planned but I am hoping for a quick menu this week and very little time in the kitchen since we are going to be so busy.

Today, my husband stayed home from work to help us clean up after our pumpkin party on Sunday.  We got to have an extra fun time because we went to a storytime with the whole family.  Then, there was a short trick or treating where they got some special treats to bring home with them.  After that, we stopped at my son's favorite store so that he could show my husband around since he had never been.  We decided that we were super hungry and we took our gift card and went to Mike's American Grill for a super yummy and special lunch.  My husband got his favorite meal, I got my favorite salad and my son got chicken tenders and french fries.  We were stuffed and happy and realized that we haven't been out to that restaurant since our little one was super little.  He is getting better at sitting in a restaurant so that is a good sign.  Hope you have a tasty week planned!!

Weekly Goals 10/27

I tried to get as much done over the weekend but that wasn't as successful as I was hoping.   I had a bunch of things that I needed to get done and not much done but I did get a nap.  I do like a good nap but unfortunately that didn't put me ahead for the week.  I still had grocery shopping and preparation for the Pumpkin Party.  Plus, I had trouble getting into my book club book which I put off until the last minute and luckily book club was moved back so I have plenty of time to finish.  Not the best start to the week but every week has to start somewhere.  How was your week??

Last week:

Family Goals

• Spend time with family- We had a busy week but enjoyed a lot of inside time since the weather got colder and we are all fighting off the cold.
• Swimming Lessons (last week)- We had a great class this week and stayed after to play.  Sadly, it was the last class and I think that my son might start to miss the pool soon.  It was a nice transition from the summer months but I am not sure if we are going to do it again.
• Make Ghost or Jack O Lantern light- We made our Ghost lights and painted our Jack O Lanterns on Monday and decorated the Jack O Lanterns on Tuesday.  They are out decorating the porch now and super excited to say that it went over really well with my son and I think that we might make these every year going forward because it is a cheap and easy craft that goes outside (for a change).
• Make Ghost and/or Bat Halloween crafts- I spray painted toilet paper rolls and we were going to make ghosts or mummies with the white ones and bats with the black ones.  I did have a few pipe cleaners so we might make one spider also.  Then, I decided to save them for the Halloween party so that all the kids could craft with them so we did some other activities.
• Get to preschool on time everyday- Traffic is getting worse and we were really close to being late on Tuesday but we tried our best to get to school on time every day.  We were awfully lucky to make it there everyday because there was a lot of traffic most of the week.

Personal Goals

• Cut coupons- I got the one coupon insert cut on Monday so that I would be prepared for the week and in case I needed to go shopping.  I was trying to be organized and luckily I only had one.
• Get coupons on Friday- I went to CVS and library on Friday but the papers weren't there.  My husband went and there were only two papers left!!!  UGH!  This seems to be our new problem.  I better get out and go to the store or library to get some more.  My husband was only able to get two papers and I didn't make it back out to the library since I was trying to get ready for the party.
• Go to Jazzercise - I was trying to get things done this week and feeling horrible so I didn't exercise.  Hoping to feel better next week and make it at least one or two days.
• Sub at Lamb Class- It was a last minute subbing job but I got to go in and work in a different class this time.
• Go to Book Club- Book club was moved back a few weeks so I didn't go which was for the best since I didn't finish the book yet
• Shut off computer 6 nights to save energy- I shut off the computer most nights and tried to turn it off when I was going to be gone from the house.
• Finish reading book club book Thirteenth Tale- This book has been really hard to get into and I have had trouble picking it up and staying interested.  I tried my best because we had book club on Friday but it was postponed.  If I don't finish it before the first book club meeting, I am not going to be finishing this book.  It takes a lot for the book to go in that category but I am not sure why this book is not holding my interest.  It is better once you get farther into the book but I only made it to around 300 out of 400 so I still have a little to read next week.
• Read next book by Debbie Macomber in the pile- I didn't want to pick it up and not work on the book that I was currently reading so I stayed with the Thirteenth Tale all week!!

Home Management Goals

• Clean dishes, counters and floors at least 5 days of the week- I cleaned up all week and we did a major cleaning on Saturday so that things would be clean for company.
• Clean dishes one night and not wait until the morning- My husband and I washed and dried all the dishes on Monday night which was a good start to the day since I had to sub the next day and was a little more busy before leaving the house to try to make it to school on time.

Blog Goals

• Post one post everyday (schedule 7 posts so that can spend more time with family)- I had lots of posts up for this week and got the last few up at the beginning of the week.
• Review book reviews completed during the week (if done)- I put up the review of all of the books that I have read last week and did a rough draft on the Thirteenth Tale.
• Work on a few posts to work ahead for the coming week- I worked on a bunch of the drafts that I had to get most of the rest of the month scheduled.
• Post Sunday Weekly Goals, Menu Plan Monday, Kid Wednesday and Thrifty Thursday Tip- I got them all scheduled and up.

This week:

Family Goals

• Spend time with family
• Pumpkin party with friends
• Make Ghost and/or Bat Halloween crafts and others with friends
• Get to preschool on time everyday 
• Go to Doctors appointment
• Halloween Parade at school

Personal Goals

• Cut coupons(if I ever get them)
• Get coupons on Friday 
• Go to Jazzercise (maybe Thursday if I am not spending that time making another costume for Halloween)
• Shut off computer 6 nights to save energy
• Finish reading book club book Thirteenth Tale (for real this week!!)
• Read next book by Debbie Macomber in the pile

Home Management Goals

• Clean dishes, counters and floors at least 5 days of the week
• Clean dishes one night and not wait until the morning

Blog Goals

• Post one post everyday (schedule 7 posts so that can spend more time with family)
• Review book reviews completed during the week (if done)
• Work on a few posts to work ahead for the coming week
• Post Sunday Weekly Goals, Menu Plan Monday, Kid Wednesday and Thrifty Thursday Tip 

Baked Sweet Potato Cubes

I had a half of a sweet potato in the fridge leftover from dinner with my sister in law which was calling to me one day for lunch before it went bad because it was pushed to the back of the fridge.

We went to a friends house one night when they made us this dish.  Both my husband and I were a little leery of the sweet potatoes but I couldn't get enough after I tried them.  I went home with the recipe that night and I have made them and few times since then because they are so tasty.  I even made them for my parents once.  My mom who is also not a fan of sweet potatoes did try them and also loved them.  She left my house with the recipe and has made them at her house.  It is a recipe that is promised not to disappoint.

I cut up the potato into small cubes and added them to a small baking dish.  Normally when I make this as a side dish to have with dinner, I use a few potatoes depending on how many people you have to feed but I only had a half a potato for this which was perfect for my lunch.

 I splashed with a little olive oil.  Then added 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp cumin.

Stir the potatoes and the seasonings until they are well coated.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes.  Not to give away my secrets but this is often the dish that gets put in the oven with others on the holidays so it gets baked at any temperature that the other dishes get cooked at and can cook until your desired done-ness.  I like my potatoes (and pretty much everything else) to be a little browned and crispy around the edges.

I was excited to have this great lunch treat which I had all because the oven was already on and my sister in law left the other half of her sweet potato!!  I hope that you go out and get some sweet potatoes so that you can make these great sweet potatoes for yourself soon.

Baked Sweet Potato Cubes

2-3 sweet potatoes
Olive Oil (few tbsps to coat)
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Cumin

Cut up sweet potatoes into small cubes.  Place in baking dish.  Coat with olive oil and add seasoning.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until potatoes are soft and crispy.  Serve hot.

** Add additional seasoning for larger potatoes or more potatoes.  Season to taste.

Shared on Saturday  Night Fever at Yummy Healthy Easy and 

Church Supper at Everyday Mom's Meals

Pumpkin Scones

I had some pumpkin left in the fridge and I was trying to figure out what to make with it.  I had made a ton of pumpkin muffins and we were quickly loosing interest.  I have a few options and I was having a hard time picking which one sounded the yummiest.  I decided on pumpkin scones after figuring out that it was a lot different then muffins.

I usually follow the recipe the first time that I do a recipe and then change it as I see fit the next time but this time I decided to make these scones the same way that I make all of my other scone recipes so I barely followed the recipe and even changed the recipe a little.  Check out the original here so that you can make her wonderful recipe which even includes a beautiful glaze (that I was too lazy to make).  I made them with egg wash and sugar topping which I use on almost all of my scones.  I was tempted to make the glaze but I thought that I would try it a little different.

I didn't have pumpkin pie spice so I made my own with the spices that I had on hand which included cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves.  Luckily, I had lots of great spices to make my own.  I should have added a little extra cinnamon so I added that to the recipe below so that I would make it a little spicier next time.

I mixed the dry ingredients including 2 cups of the flour (saving 1/4 cup for later), sugar, salt and baking powder.  Then, added my spices.

Then, I mixed in the butter with my favorite new kitchen tool- the pastry blender.

Then, I added the pumpkin, cream, and egg.

I saved some of the egg white in another bowl which I whisked to a foam.  I save that to do an egg wash on the top of the scones.

I stirred the wet and dry ingredients together and they came together quickly to a dough but it was really sticky.  The problem with scones is that in order to make the dough easier to handle you have to add more flour but adding too much flour leads to a tough and dry scone.

I added an additional 1/4 cup of flour to the dough to handle and move to the pan after kneading it and working it in a little bit.  It was still sticky and a little hard to handle so I put the egg wash on top because it make the dough not stick so that you can press it down flat.

After it was done, it was much prettier then when I started.  It was a nice even and shiny.

I sprinkled the sugar on top of the dough.  I was tempted to put cinnamon and sugar on top but I didn't know how that would cook and brown.  Then, I scored the dough so that it would be easier to cut after it was cooked.

I baked the scones and they puffed and browned quickly.

I took my first piece shortly after they came out of the oven.  It was pumpkin goodness and very tender.

My review is that I think that it needed a little more cinnamon which I added to the recipe below.  It might need a little more cloves too because I love them!!  It might also need a little more sugar to make up for not having the glaze on top.  It was tasty but there were a few changes that I would make next time to add to the extra tasty treat.  Of course, none of those things stopped us from eating all of the scones.

I hope that you try your hand at these great fall treats too!  Check out the original recipe here for the glaze if you want to add them to your scones for an even tastier treat.  Just sad that I don't have any more pumpkin to make another batch!!

Pumpkin Scones

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/4 c flour
1/3 c sugar (maybe a little more next time)
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp cloves
6 tbsp cold butter

¾ c pumpkin puree
3 tbsp cream
1 egg

DIRECTIONS:
 
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices. Mix in the butter with a pastry blender or two forks until they are fully incorporated and no longer stick to the pastry blender or forks.

Add the wet ingredients (pumpkin puree and cream) to the mixture.  When adding the egg, get some of the egg yolk in a separate bowl and dump the rest of the egg into the mixture. 

Fold the ingredients together using a rubber spatula.  Make sure all the dry ingredients are moistened. After it is fully mixed, add up to an addition 1/4 c flour and make sure the dough is together and not sticky.

Use whisk to fluff up the egg whites until they are foamy.

Put the dough on a cookie sheet and press down with your hand.  If the dough starts sticking to your hands, add the foamy egg whites to the top to help press and spread the dough evenly.  Top with sugar.

Score the dough where you want the scones to be cut after they are baked in about 8 triangles.

Bake for 15-20 until golden brown.  Remove to cool and serve.

Shared on Saturday  Night Fever at Yummy Healthy Easy and 

Church Supper at Everyday Mom's Meals