{Playing Through Autumn Day 29} Pumpkin Muffins

One of the best things about the autumn is all of the delicious pumpkin flavored treats you can find anywhere you go. We recently decided to add our very own kitchen to the list of locations and whipped up a tasty batch of pumpkin muffins!

First things first: aprons on!

This is a really simple recipe and easy to manage for those little helping hands. The tot had a blast plopping the pumpkin into the bowl and then mixing all of the ingredients (see bottom of post for the full recipe).

Our finished product tasted as good as it looked! Of course, the tot had the honor of getting the first bite - after all that hard work, who could say no?

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

1 1/2 c. sugar

1 c. oil

3 eggs

1 can pumpkin (15 oz)

1 1/2 c. flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

Measure all ingredients in a big mixing bowl. Beat together well for 5 minutes. Pour into cupcake pans (fill more than 1/2 full). Bake at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes.

{Playing Through Autumn Day 5} Cinnamon-Apple Chex Mix

I'm really not a cook by any stretch of the imagination (thankfully, my wonderful hubby is a fantastic cook, lest we all starve) but I do like to flex my baking muscles in the fall and winter. One of the first things I make every year in the fall is super yummy Cinnamon-Apple Chex Mix (for the recipe, click here). This stuff is great because not only is it delicious, it's super easy to make and you can do the whole thing in the microwave. I find this fantastic because you can get that first taste of fall without having to fire up the oven, just in case your local weather is still flirting with the 80 and 90 degree temps. This year I was extra excited to make a batch, knowing that I would have a little assistant helping me get the job done.

I have learned in my years of cooking with kids to follow a few cardinal rules: (1) Get everything ready before you even let them know you're going to be cooking, (2) make sure the rules are clear from the beginning and then keep reiterating them throughout the process (ex: Pouring the boiling butter mixture into the bowl is Mommy's job.), and (3) have someone else do the snapping of photos! Your hands will be busy enough as it is. And of course, HAVE FUN!

Pouring is definitely something in L's skill set, and we've been practicing for just such an activity in the past several weeks to make sure she would get as much out of it as possible. I shouldn't have been worried - she's a total pro!

She also rocks at stirring - although it was great having Daddy on hand to help when things got sticky. Literally.

Another really fantastic thing about making Chex Mix is that it really takes very little time, so it kept L's attention without a lot of lag time. Even while I was zapping stuff in the microwave, she was able to keep stirring, which kept her happy and engaged.

Watch out, now! That butter mixture gets pretty hot! Luckily, L was ready to blow on it a bit to help cool it off.

The finished product was as beautiful as it was tasty, and our whole house smelled like cinnamon and brown sugar. Absolutely heavenly! Such a great way to spend an afternoon!

Do your kids enjoy cooking? What kinds of things do you like to create together?