Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

I love Fall weather. I love Fall Baking. I love Baking in Fall Weather!!! Ladies and Gentleman let the Season baking begin! I needed an EASY but DELICIOUS recipe for a friends Halloween party...I was limited on time but still refused to buy a pre-made dessert because that's something Martha Stewart would never do ( not sure if I should follow ALL things in her footstep though)...that being said I found this recipe in one of my Weight Watcher books and read the ingredients and said "NO this is too easy to be true!"...only 3 ingredients!!! 1. box of cake 2. pumpkin puree 3. dash of Cinnamon....THAT'S IT! Since I cheated and used a pre made box I decided to make homemade frosting...I first used this recipe http://www.countryliving.com/recipefinder/pumpkin-cream-cheese-frosting-4014 but I wasn't sold on it...So I halved this http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/cream-cheese-frosting-ii-2/detail.aspx recipe and used half of the first one to make the PERFECT cream cheese pumpkin frosting!!! Definitely going to make these again for Thanksgiving! Enjoy and Happy Fall Baking!

Recipe:
Cupcakes:

 1 (18.25 ounce) package spice cake mix

 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin

 Dash of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Simply mix the pumpkin, cinnamon,  and the spice cake mix together with electric mixer until well combined. (At this point you may also want to throw in some nuts or raisins, if you like.).
2. Spoon into paper lined small muffin/cupcake tins, 2/3 full. (The batter is very thick and doesn't "settle", so you may wish to smooth the tops if you care what the finished product looks like!).
3. Bake at 350* 18-22 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Frosting:

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree
• 1 Tablespoon of fresh orange juice

Directions:
In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, and then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar.

Chipotle Pepper Chicken Pasta

I don't eat pasta everyday, but when I do I enjoy EVERY bite! I used wheat pasta, I trained myself to actually pretend to like the cardboard taste. The sauce on this recipe turned out delicious, but not what I expected. Oddly enough, it tasted like scampi sauce but without any scampi sauce ingredients....eh whatever it was good. I added a little corn starch to the sauce when cooking to make it thicker. The sauce recipe has white wine in it, I recommend using a dry white wine like Chardonnay..."I cook with wine, and sometimes I even add it to the food!" Happy Cooking!

Recipe:

• 3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Cubes
• Chipotle Pepper spice mix
• 1 pound pasta
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 whole Green Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
• 1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
• I cup of Mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 whole Large Red Onion, Sliced
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• 1/2 cup White Wine
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• Cayenne Pepper To Taste
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
• Salt To Taste
• Chopped Fresh Parsley, To Taste

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain when pasta is still al dente; do not overcook!
Sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons Chipotle pepper spice over chicken pieces. Toss around to coat. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a heavy skillet over high heat. Add half the chicken in a single layer; do not stir. Allow chicken to brown on one side, about 1 minute. Flip to the other side and cook an additional minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a clean plate.
Repeat with remaining chicken. Remove chicken, leaving pan on high heat.
Add remaining olive oil and butter. When heated, add peppers,mushrooms, onions, and garlic. Sprinkle on remaining spice mix, and add salt if needed. Cook over very high heat for 1 minute, stirring gently and trying to get the vegetables as dark/black as possible.  Remove all vegetables from the pan.
With the pan over high heat, pour in the wine and chicken broth. Cook on high for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in cream, stirring/whisking constantly. Cook sauce over medium-low heat for a few minutes, until cream starts to thicken the mixture. Taste and add freshly ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, and/or salt to taste. Sauce should be spicy!
Finally, add chicken and vegetables to sauce, making sure to include all the juices that have drained onto the plate. Stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until mixture is bubbly and hot. Add drained fettuccine and toss to combine.
Top with chopped fresh parsley and chow down!