What's for Dinner? And Snack and Dessert?

Pumpkin!!!! In the last year I've come to really love pumpkin. I often add it to my oatmeal and my yogurt and have recently tried some verrrryyyy good recipes and just have to share all of them. Hope you will give one of them a try!

First up for snack
Spicy Pumpkin Hummus

I made a few changes to this recipe. I plan to make it again really soon providing I can find pumpkin which seems to be a problem at this time of year! This was good as a dip for veggies but so far my favorite way to eat it, besides by the spoonful, is on a bagel thin...heaven! And for fun sprinkle a few pepitas on it too.

12 Servings

1 14 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 clove garlic
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/4 cup tahini ( I did not use this but plan to try it the next time)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, (more or less to taste)
1 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoons olive oil (thinking of leaving this out next time)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup plain yogurt

Place the garbanzo beans in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the beans are very finely chopped. With the motor running, add the garlic through the tube and process until very fine. Add the remaining ingredients and process until smooth. Taste for seasoning, adding additional salt and pepper; you may also want to add more lemon juice.

FABULOUS!

The dinner...

The Whole Enchilada Chicken Soup
Hungry Girl

I of course made a small change to this one too..can you tell I rarely leave a recipe alone. Sometimes because of what I have on hand sometimes because of personal preferences. This soup was so easy anyone could make it even if you don't like to cook and the flavor was pretty very different and quite good.

Ingredients:
3 cups fat-free chicken broth
1 1/4 cups finely chopped celery
1/2 cup diced sweet yellow onion
3 cups green enchilada sauce
One 15-oz. can pure pumpkin
10 oz. cooked boneless skinless lean chicken breast, chopped or shredded
1 cup frozen white (or yellow) corn ( because I didn't have any corn I used some white hominey that I had)

Directions:
In a large pot, bring broth to a low boil on the stove. Add celery and onion, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until slightly tender.

Stir in enchilada sauce and pumpkin. Once soup returns to a low boil, add chicken and corn, and mix well. Cook for an additional 3 - 5 minutes, until soup is heated throughout.

Optional: dash hot sauce, or more to taste
Optional toppings: shredded fat-free cheddar cheese, crushed baked tortilla chips, corn tortillas, green onions.

And finally something a little sweet. It's funny although I love pumpkin I'm not really a fan of pumpkin pie, but these cookies....oh yea....


Pumped up Pumpkin Cookies
Carrots 'n' Cake
You guessed it...changes made... these were very good and I think they would be fantastic to take on long ride. These were very soft and yummy...really good stuff.

Makes 12 cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 canned pumpkin
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed (next time I'm going to cut this in 1/2 they were plenty sweet with the dried cranberries)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup walnuts (may leave out next time)
1/4 cup raisins (used sweetened dried cranberries)
1/4 cup vanilla hemp milk (used vanilla lite soy milk)
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*F
Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl or food processor
Coat baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray
Use tablespoon to portion cookies onto baking sheet
Bake for 15-18 minutes



There you go....Enjoy!