Toddler-Approved Fall Recipes

Fall is officially here! Austin's 90+ degree heat may not feel like the start of the cooler season, but we can't wait to start cooking our favorite fall recipes anyway. Bring on the apple, pumpkin, and squash everything. Velvety Pumpkin Pie Smoothie One of the first things I make at the start of Fall is this incredible pumpkin pie smoothie from The Oh She Glows Cookbook by Angela Liddon. Since it's still HOT, HOT, HOT outside, this is the perfect way to ease into the season. I ate vegan for about 6-months to reboot my system after my daughter was born and absolutely fell in love with Angela's cookbooks. Highly recommend! Pumpkin Gingerbread This recipe by Elise Bauer at SimpleRecipes.com has been a favorite since my almost three-year old daughter was little, and we can't wait to make it every Fall! When I'm feeling guilty, I'll update it with a mix of whole wheat flour + whole wheat pastry flour, sub 1/2 coconut sugar, and cheat with pumpkin pie spice. No one ever knows the difference! I usually bake it into muffins and call it breakfast (and snack and usually dessert for later). Butternut Squash Linguine with Fried Sage My toddler LOVES pasta. To change it up (AND sneak in other vegetables), I add this recipe to our rotation every Fall. It's great with any pasta you have on hand, but we especially love it with shells. Some other variations we love include blending in a cup of soaked cashews for extra creaminess, adding green peas or chopped asparagus, and topping with a fried egg. Don't skip the smoked sea salt - it makes this dish! Caramel Apple Cupcakes Brought to you by our very own Julie H- 1st grade teacher, small business owner, and master cupcake baker! Ingredients: 2 ¼ c. flour 4 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1 tsp. Salt 4 eggs, at room temperature 1 c. packed light brown sugar 1 c. granulated sugar 1 c. vegetable oil 4 tsp. Mexican Vanilla extract 4 HoneyCrisp Apples, peeled and shredded 1.5 c. chewy caramel candies 1 TBS. heavy cream ½ c. chopped pecans, optional Directions: Arrange a rack in the upper 3rd of the oven and preheat to 350 degree F. Line 2 muffin pans with baking liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In a medium bowl, beat together the eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth. Slowly beat in the oil and vanilla. Stir in o the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the apples. Use an ice cream scooper to spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins until almost full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 21-26 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely. In a small, microwavable bowl, combine the caramels and cream. Microwave 1 minute, then stir. Repeat in 30 second intervals until melted and smooth. Let cool slightly. Place the chopped pecans on a small plate. Spread the frosting generously on the cooled cupcakes. Immediately after frosting each cupcake, roll the edge of the frosting in the chopped pecans to make a rim of nuts around each cupcake top.