Good morning, muffins!

I woke up earlier than usual this morning--I'm a night owl--and was craving muffins. I remembered a recipe I received at a weight class I had attended and mixed up a quick batch. I'll share my recipe at the end of this post.

Since Ana and I both love to get creative in the kitchen, I thought we'd share some of our favorite cookbooks with you. We love all food, but do try to make healthful choices (it doesn't always work). Write in and share your favorites, too!

The Cake Doctor
Oh my, you will love this. My mom sent me my copy and it's frayed I've used it so often. You can whip up amazing cakes faster than you dreamed possible. I think the secret is the homemade frostings. Yum!
Proven winners: 
* Double Chocolate Rum Cake
* Incredible Melted Ice Cream Cake w/Chocolate
      Marshmallow Frosting
* Pineapple Inside-Out Cake
* Strawberry Cake w/Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
* Fresh Banana Cake w/Caramel Frosting
* Fiddler on the Roof Cake





Weight Watchers Best One-Dish Dinners 
This magazine-style cookbook is new, but I am excited to try many of the recipes. This is the one for you if you love the ethnic tastes of Greek, Mexican, Asian, and Indian.
My picks to try:
* Pesto Pizza with Red Onions, Mushrooms,
      and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
* Club Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
* Manicotti Florentine
* Mexican Lasagna
* Beef Keema
* Szechuan Shrimp Stir-Fry




  

Hungry Girls 1-2-3
Ana made a hearty bowl of Pumpkin Oatmeal from this recently purchased book. These recipes are designed to keep you satisfied, which is important in our part of the world with the cold weather setting in.
These sound tempting:
* Holy Moly Cannoli
    (click the link and scroll down for the FREE recipe)
* Queen-of-the-Castle Sliders
* Chili Cheese Dog Nachos
*  Shrimp & Grits . . . for Hungry Chicks!







And now for those sweet, yummy (and low-fat woo-who!) muffins...
Good Morning Muffins (makes 24)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Line muffin cups with 24 cupcake liners.
3. Add to large mixing bowl:
   1 box of yellow cake mix*
   2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
   1/2 cup water
   1 (15oz) can pumpkin**
4. Mix ingredients with electric mixer on low for 1 minute. Scape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Continue mixing at medium speed for 2 more minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
5. Spoon batter evenly into liners. Sprinkle lightly with sugar.
6. Bake for 25 minutes, or until done. Serve warm or at room temperature.

* I use a mix without pudding. The bonus is those mixes usually cost less.
** Use 100% pumpkin. I'm not sure if pumpkin pie filling will work.
Other notes: You can vary the flavor of the muffins by using different flavored cake mixes. Chocolate works well, just omit the pie spice. I've also used spice, banana, and caramel mixes. A light sprinkling of turbinado sugar gives the muffins a crunchy topping. Adding raisins, mini-chocolate chips, or nuts will increase the fat and calories. Experiment and let us know what your favorite is!

<3,
Vi & AnaB