pumpkin squared

Tis the season — pumpkin season, that is. I have two great pumpkin recipes for you today: pumpkin polenta squares and pumpkin beer bread. These have been my quick grab and go breakfast baked goods for the past several weeks and I’ve really enjoyed them. Both recipes are plant-based which means you won’t find any eggs or dairy in them, and the pumpkin purée eliminates the need for any oil. Also, they both use maple syrup as the sweetener — you could replace this with your favorite sweetener of choice. You’ll have to experiment with the amounts until you find what you like.

You can make your own pumpkin purée if you like, or buy canned pumpkin. Make sure you don’t buy pumpkin pie filling by mistake. At this time of year, I think canned pumpkin is actually harder to find in the store, or at least they keep it well hidden behind the pie filling!

pumpkin polenta squares

ingredients

• 2 cups polenta or cornmeal
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon*
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves*
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice*
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg*
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger (optional)
• 2 cups pumpkin purée
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease an 8×8 glass baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cornmeal, baking soda, salt, and spices.
3. Stir in all other ingredients and mix to combine.
4. Pour mixture into baking dish and bake for 50-55 minutes.
5. Remove from oven when it is golden brown and firm to the touch. Place on a cooling rack for at least 10 minutes before serving.

*note: you can substitute 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice for the cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice.

pumpkin beer bread

adapted from Gimme Some Oven

ingredients

• 3 cups spelt flour (0r flour of choice)
• 1 tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 cup pumpkin purée
• 1 12-ounce bottle of beer (I used hard cider instead of beer)
• 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional)
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries (optional)

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9×5-inch bread pan with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper.
2. Stir flour, baking powder, salt, spices, maple syrup and pumpkin purée together in a large mixing bowl until combined. Slowly add in the beer, and stir until combined and smooth. Stir in cranberries and walnuts, if desired.
3. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. Let bread rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.

peanut butter chocolate chip fudge brownies

How’s this for a weekend treat? Brownies without flour, oil, eggs, dairy, or added sugar. Yup, you heard me right. And they’re ooey gooey, full of chocolate-y goodness, creamy peanut butter, and a little bit of a kick since I added a dash of cayenne. I was skeptical when I first saw the recipe on Ambitious Kitchen. How could peanut butter, applesauce, and cocoa powder ever bake up into a brownie? I don’t know what kind of mad science is involved, but what I can tell you is that these things are pretty amazing. Drop everything and try them yourself!

You can head on over to Ambitious Kitchen for the recipe. I used maple syrup instead of honey, and I added about 1/2 a teaspoon of cayenne pepper just to give it a bit of spice. If you have a peanut allergy, I’m sure you could substitute almond or cashew butter, or even sunflower butter to make it nut-free. I’m sure there are many things you could stir in to add or change the flavors–peppermint oil and chopped nuts come to mind. Well, what are you waiting for? Get baking!