A Creative Week part 2

PUMPKIN WHOOPIE PIES

We were at a bonfire/fireworks party on Saturday. This was a fellowship get-together for the church and was held out at Bruce and Lynn Cheyne's home near Alford, Aberdeenshire. A beautiful part of the country. And it was a perfect autumn night for fireworks. Crisp and clear and cold.

I decided I would make these Pumpkin Whoopie Pies from the Hummingbird Bakery book "Cake Days". Wasn't sure how they would turn out, never having made whoopie pies of any kind before. And to be honest I am not the world's best baker. I think you could describe my cooking, in general, as inconsistent. But I do love to have a go when I have the time.

My first attempt was a disaster. I made them too big and underestimated how much they would grow. And so they grew and grew and grew until they all joined up into one solid rectangle! I tried to rescue them and they did taste OK but they didn't look very pretty. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture but they did look very funny.

My second attempt worked much better and I have to say (even though I have to say so myself) they did taste delicious. Especially the filling which is a cream cheese mixture with Marshmallow Fluff added. Give me a spoon and I could have tucked into the filling all by itself.

For those of you who love cookery books or love baking, the book that this recipe came from is a beautiful looking book with great pictures. Better than that, any recipes I have used have turned out well, especially the Red Velvet Cupcakes!! This isn't a great picture but if you're like me I like a visual. There are a couple of Hummingbird Bakery books and I love this one. And it's pink! It looks great on my shelf.

And this is how those whoopie pies should have looked!

PUMPKIN CREAM CHEESE MUFFINS

I also made some Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins (a bit of a pumpkin fest). These were truly scrumptious. You can't tell from the pictures but they have a cream cheese filing in the middle so that when you bite into them you get this gooey, delicious surprise. They are a little bit fiddly to make as you have to prepare the filling ahead of time and freeze or chill it, but worth the effort. You fill the muffin cases enough to cover the bottom, then a spoonful of the filling, and then you top them up with the rest of the mixture. The topping is also nice and crunchy.

If you are interested in the recipe for these you will find it at http://annies-eats.net/2010/10/08/pumpkin-cream-cheese-muffins/. One thing I will say is that I made twice as many muffins as the recipe suggested and still had some mix left over. So you could maybe half the amounts in the recipe unless you like a lot of muffins!

If you have any comments to make on my posts can you please make them here on the blog. I would love to hear from you, especially if you have a go at any of the things I have made.

Have a lovely week!