top of page

Spooky Spirits and Tricks & Treats

Updated: Dec 28, 2020


Halloween is here, little Halloweenies! Ariana of Cup of Oj and I bring you a spooky pairing to haunt your Halloween and the rest of the Autumn season. Ariana is a Las Vegas-based blogger and Type 1 Diabetic (and my dear friend) who brews up low-carb cocktails (know this season as Oct-tails) in her witches lab.


She has concocted some scary delicious cocktails that go just splendidly with some recipes that I'm sharing with you ghouls and goblins!


 

1. Brown-Butter Pecan Swedish Oatmeal Pancakes with Pomegranate Syrup



One of my favorite breakfast spots in my hometown makes the most delicious Swedish Oatmeal Pancakes, so I decided to make my own but with an autumn-twist on them!


Dry Ingredients:

-2 cups rolled oats

-1 tsp cinnamon

-Pinch of salt

-1/4 cup of sugar

-1 tsp baking powder

-1/2 cup almond flour

-1/2 cup crushed pecan pieces


Wet Ingredients:

-2 Flax Eggs (2 tbsp of ground flaxseed mixed with 6 tbsp water - let sit for 20 minutes to thicken)

-2 tbs browned butter

-1 tsp vanilla

-2 cups "buttermilk" (I used almond milk and added a squeeze of lemon juice - the acidity thickens the milk a bit to act like buttermilk!)


Directions:

-Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl

-Add in wet ingredients slowly and mix (using a spatula to mix works well!)

-Let the batter stand for 30-45 minutes to thicken

-Ladle onto the oiled grill (I used vegan butter to oil it up)

-Cook until the cake starts to puff up a bit and flip!

-Brown on both sides

-Serve how ya like!


Here are the directions I used to make Brown-Butter - it's a lot easier than it sounds! P.S you can use vegan butter to make brown butter as well!


Have these pancakes for a socially-distanced brunch and pair em with a Maple Pumpkin Pisco Sour from Cup of Oj

 


2. Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes



My mom makes the best twice-baked potatoes to date, but I had to give them a try of my own but with sweet potato and a lot less bacon grease. These will be great for Thanksgiving dinner and can also be made as a sweet dessert for my sweet-toothed spooky spirits.


Ingredients:

-2 sweet potatoes (keep a note of the shape/size because they need to be cut in half lengthwise, and this could be hard with a longer, thinner tater)

-2 cups kale

-2 tbs greek yogurt

-2 tbs butter

-1/4 cup grated gruyere cheese

-1 shallot

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Chives for garnish


Directions:

-Preheat over to 375 F and put potatoes on pan, making sure to poke them all over with a fork, so they don't explode. Cook until soft all the way through, about 45 minutes.

-Take out and let cool for 15 minutes, then cut in half. Scoop out the yumminess inside and add to a large bowl.

-Chop up the shallot and add to a medium-hot pan with oil

-Add in kale (frozen works!) and sautee altogether

-Add the kale and shallots to the sweet potato and mix

-Add the yogurt, butter, cheese, and salt and pepper to taste!

-Once combined, scoop back into the sweet potato skins and baked at 375 F for an additional 15-20 minutes or until browning

-Add some sour cream and chives and extra cheese, of course!


Make these as an appetizer for your Thanksgiving dining and have a Cinnamon Spiced Vodka Pear Cider from Cup of Oj

 

3. Persimmon Banana Walnut Muffins with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting


These persimmon banana muffins turned out way better than I expected because, as a fruit, persimmon is meh but as a fruit combined with sweets and bready goodness - DELICIOUS! The muffin part is completely vegan, but I did use real butter in the frosting, which can easily be substituted for Miyoko's Vegan Butter.


Muffin:

*makes about 8 muffins


Dry Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup white sugar

- 1 1/2 cup almond flour

- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- 1 cup walnut pieces


Wet Ingredients:

- 2 ripe bananas

- 1 ripe Hachiya persimmon peeled (this will feel like a ripe tomato when it's ready!)

- 2 tsp vanilla

- 1/3 cup coconut oil

- 1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water and let sit for 15-20 min)


Directions:

-Preheat over to 375 F and line muffin pan

-Mash bananas and persimmons together in a bowl

-Using a handheld mixer, add in the sugar, coconut oil, egg, vanilla extract, mixing well after each addition

-Sift the baking powder, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a separate bowl and add to the wet ingredients until batter starts to form

-Fill muffin cups 3/4 of the way and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean once inserted all the way through


Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:


Ingredients:

-1/2 cup cream cheese (I used dairy-free cream cheese from KiteHill)

-4 tbsp softened butter (Miyoko's Vegan Butter will work great as well!)

-2 cups powdered sugar

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 tbsp cinnamon


Directions:

-Sift powdered sugar and cinnamon together and set aside

-Cream the cream cheese and butter with a hand mixer until fluffy

-Add vanilla extract

-Incorporate sugar and cinnamon into the mixture using the hand mixer

-Mix on high for 1 minute and put in the fridge to set for 30 minutes


I then used a Ziploc bag (I know, I know, I'm trying to get rid of this plastic, but it's hard!) and filled it with my cream cheese frosting and cut on a tiny corner, and piped the frosting onto completely cooled muffins. Enjoy!


Pair this sweet treat with a Spooky & Spicy Chocolate Chile Cocktail from Cup of Oj!



 

Make sure to tag me @balanceandbolus and #balanceandbolus on Instagram if you try out these recipes! Have a safe and Happy Halloween :-)

bottom of page