Handmade by Hilani: Jessica Seinfeld

Panic Mode! That was me this past October. I bought 13 cans of canned pumpkin because last year, 2010, there was a shortage. I love making anything pumpkin, who doesn't. It's a double duty winner, makes the house smell great, and a small effort of mixing ingredients makes for great yummies (is that a word)!

I received, as a gift, years ago the Jessica Seinfeld Deceptively Delicious cookbook because my youngest wasn't a fan of veggies or fruits. I was grateful for the gift, seeing my friend knew I was struggling with 'mealtime'.

Now that he's older, he's more willing to try new foods, but man, it was touch and go there for a while. I dusted off the cookbook recently because I'm in search of having healthier snacks on hand. As a busy mom, I find I enjoy grabbing a quick snack to hold me over until I can have a meal. If I prepare something healthy ahead of time, I'm better off. I've only got "me" to look out for "me" during the day.

So, with plenty of canned pumpkin leftover, I decided to try her Donut recipe, with a twist. I'm not an owner of a donut baking mold so I created donut texture muffins instead. Plus, the recipe called for pureed sweet potato, which I did not have, so I substituted more pumpkin.

Below is the recipe:
Prep Tim - 8 Minutes
Bake Time - 20-25 Minutes
Cool Time - 10 minutes

Preheat Oven to: 350

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray

1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup of sweet potato puree (I substituted pumpkin)

1/2 cup nonfat milk, lowfat or 1% buttermilk

1 large egg WHITE

1 tablespoon trans fat free soft tub margarine spread, melted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup all purpose flour or whole wheat

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cinnamon or pumpkin spice (I used cinnamon)

1/4 cup confectioners's sugar (I didn't have this on hand, so I used sprinkles)

Instructions

In a large bowl, beat together the sugar, pureed items, milk and egg white, margarine, and vanilla.

Mix in a separate bowl, flour, baking soda & powder, spice

Mix both together on low.

Pour batter into a gallon-sized plastic bag (or pastry bag if you have on) and cut the bottom tip off of one side of the bag. Squeeze the batter through, into the donut hold. **If using a muffing in,just pour an ice cream scoop worth into each greased section. Bake until the tops are lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted. 20-25 minutes.

When done, cool on a rack. When cool, dust with confectioners' sugar. I happen to have Valentine's Day sprinkles on hand.

Store in an airtight container at room temp. for up to 2 days and freeze for up to a 1 month.