Fast and Easy Apple Crisp

Today at work I held my granny smith apple in my hand and stared at it. I really wanted some apple flavor, but I didn't feel like just eating a plain apple. Still not quite sure how to solve this dilemma, I stuffed it in my bag and headed home early (snow today!).

After I woke up from my nap, I still wanted the apple. I meandered into the kitchen.... saw my roommate's oatmeal sitting out. Apple crisp! Of course! But I only had two apples (a honeycrisp and the granny smith). I decided to make a "mini crisp." My roommate and I had them after our dinner, and we both enjoyed them thoroughly.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

To make this seriously fast, easy and delicious crisp, you'll need:
3 ramekins
2 apples, peeled and sliced
2 Tbsp of granulated sugar (originally I had 3 Tbsp, but I thought it was a bit sweet)
3 Tbsp of brown sugar (packed or unpacked, who cares)
1 packet of instant oatmeal (I just happened to have maple and brown sugar flavor on hand) OR 4 Tbsp of instant oatmeal
2 1/2 Tbsp of melted butter
pumpkin spice
cinnamon
1/4 c water

After peeling and slicing the apples, place the pieces in the the ramekins, filling them almost to the top.

Combine the granulated sugar and 1 Tbsp of flour with 2 shakes of pumpkin spice and 2 shakes of cinnamon. Sprinkle this evenly over the apples.

Combine the melted butter, the rest of the flour, oatmeal, and the brown sugar in another bowl. It should make a paste-like substance. Spread this evenly over the apple slices.

Pour the water evenly in the three ramekins, place the ramekins on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.

Enjoy a la mode or a la nude (no ice cream).

Special thanks to my sous chef/hoover vacuum, Luna!

Amazing Pumpkin Muffins

To thank my coworker for giving me her tickets to the Blazers game on Friday night, I decided to make some pumpkin muffins. She loves pumpkin treats, and muffins are *relatively* healthy and not as daunting as a pie. Everyone at work commented on how delicious they were, and I have to agree! 

* In every picture I took, the muffin turned out looking like a warped goblin. I didn't think it looked appealing, so there shall be no pictures!

Muffin mix:
1 15 oz. can of pureed pumpkin
1 1/2 c of flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 c vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 3/4 tsp of pumpkin spice
1 1/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Pecan Streusel topping: (I HIGHLY recommend taking the extra three minutes to use this on the muffins)

1/4 c of chopped roasted pecans (If you buy prepackaged pecans at the store in the baking aisle, chances are they've already been roasted)
3 Tbsp of brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp of flour
2 Tbsp of butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. combine baking powder and 1 1/2 c flour

In a separate, larger bowl:
1. mix pumpkin, vegetable oil, eggs, spices, sugar, salt and baking soda
2. add the flour/baking powder combination to this
3. stir until all lumps are out and it is a smooth, batter-like mixture.
4. Pour into greased/oiled/whatever muffin pan (makes 12 large to normal sized muffins). I filled mine up at LEAST 3/4 of the way, and I still had batter leftover.

Streusel
1. Soften butter
2. Mix butter, chopped pecans, flour, and sugar.
3. Sprinkle on top of muffins

Bake for 30 minutes, turn off heat in the oven and let them sit for a few more minutes.
Remove pan, wait a couple of minutes, then remove muffins and set on cooling rack.

After they had cooled significantly but were still a bit warm, I placed them on a plate and covered them. I know this is supposedly a no-no, but with cookies or other items you want moist or chewy, this is a great way to ensure that happens.

Enjoy!