Fluffy Pumpkin Cake

Ok, so just a quick post from a quick experiment before I get back to the less-than-sane amount of work I have right now. Since this is my blog, can I gripe for like two seconds? I have no idea how I am going to get a dissertation grant proposal, a manuscript, all my finals/final projects, and all of my grading done by Dec. 9th...and all that only to start my competency exam reading which I have not been able to touch...oh Jan. 11th, you will be a good day! Ok, ok...#firstworldproblems for sure! I love what I am doing, I actually want to spend time on all the work I listed above, I just am useless after about 12-14 hours of work and I need about 30 hours a day!

So, now that you are stressed for me, go make this and don't even feel guilty for cutting yourself a large slice!

What I used:

1 box of angel food cake mix

1 can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

about 1/2 cup of water

splash of vanilla (literally, I just splashed some in, maybe about a TBSP)

pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon to taste (I tasted the raw batter until I liked it)

Optional (choose 1 or 2)- chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, pecans, cool whip

What I did:

Preheat the oven to 325 and spray a 13x9 pan with non-stick spray. Note that the batter puffs up and would likely boil over a smaller pan! Dump angel food cake mix and pumpkin in a large bowl (it will puff up). Add water, vanilla, and about 1 tsp. of each pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon. Stir until combined, then taste test the batter. Because this is an angel food cake it will have that slight sour taste, so you can add more spices if you want to down play that. The pumpkin flavor did not come through much for me when I tasted the batter, but did once it was baked. Pour this in the 13x9 pan and bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until the center is set and slightly firm to the touch.

Optionals: Chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, or pecans- approximately half-way through the baking time sprinkle 1/2 cup on the top of the cake...by not stirring them in you make the cake look prettier and get a hint of the flavor with less calories!

Cool whip- allow cake to cool and then top with cool whip as you would icing. Sprinkle with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. If you serve the cake warm you could top individual pieces with the cool whip.

This was great- fluffy and light and probably perfect for ending a Thanksgiving Dinner! It did seem to get gooey as time went on, so unfortunately this is probably one to make the day you plan to serve it. Enjoy!

Chipotle Chicken Chunky Chili

Ok, confession- I've been withholding this one. Not because I don't want anyone else to enjoy it- and you will enjoy it! But I've been a little busy with classes and teaching and grants and...I digress. So I made this a couple weeks ago, loved it, planned to share it, but didn't. Then tonight I pulled out the frozen half of the batch and had some for dinner- and here I am deciding that the dissertation grant can wait, this is too good not to share! Like pumpkin spice latte good! Like Hershey's dark chocolate Kisses good!

What I used:

• 3 slices turkey bacon
• olive oil
• 1 lb chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces (I suppose you could use chicken breasts, but thighs are cheaper and flavorful!)
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• cumin, salt, pepper
• white cooking wine
• 1/3 white onion, diced (less if you are not a big onion fan)
• about 1/3 cup diced green pepper
• 1 15oz can chicken broth
• 1 15 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 15 oz can creamed corn
• 1 cup diced potatoes
• McCormick White Chicken Chili packet
• McCormick Chipotle Grilling marinade (ok, its something like that)
• flour (optional)

What I did:

In a large stock/soup pot (i.e. what you typically make chili in) cook turkey bacon until crispy (or as crispy as turkey bacon gets). Remove and set bacon aside, but do not rinse pan...there won't be much fat but you want whats there. Add just about 1 tsp-1Tbsp of olive oil (more or less depending on the fat in the pan). Add chicken and garlic, salt and pepper (err on the side of too little seasoning) the chicken, then cook until chicken appears cooked but not brown on the outside. Add peppers and onions and continue to cook adding about 1/2 cup of wine before the chicken gets browned- you want it juicy! Add broth, fill the can with water and add that. Bring to a boil and add potatoes and cook until potatoes are al dente, adding water if needed. Reduce heat to low simmer and add 1/2 the McCormick White Chicken Chili packet, 1/4 the Chipotle marinade packet, beans, cooked turkey bacon (torn into bite sized pieces) and creamed corn. If you want it thicker, mix about 1/3 c flour and 1/3c water together in a bowl, then stir into pot. Just simmer until reduced to your desired thickness. Check the flavor and you can add more of the packets or more salt and pepper as desired. It will have just a bit of a peppery kick.

This freezes and reheats well and has a very comfort food feel, but for what I typically budget for dinner in terms of WW points. I'd serve it with a salad or a fruit salad as it's pretty heavy...filling and delicious! Enjoy!