Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

We are finally in full FALL mode here in the bay area (just wait the weather will change once I post this to being hot again). We have fog and cold and sweaters and boots! It is wonderful and I love it! Since the weather is finally cooperating, I decided to make something pumpkin and of course it had to be muffins! 

These muffins are so so so amazing! Like I am not even joking I probably could have eaten all of them but Hailey was staring at me, so I decided not to. As I am writing this post I would like to state that I have only eaten one (the muffin that is pictured) along with part of Hailey's mini muffin (without chocolate chips). Not bad right?!

Alright well I guess I better give you all the recipe so you can go make some pumpkin deliciousness and eat it for breakfast, snack time, lunch dessert and after dinner dessert?! I think that would work out nicely!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

1 cup canola oil

1/2 cup applesauce

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon apple pie spice (or pumpkin pie spice....I just didn't have any)

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine wet ingredients until well incorporated. Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl.  Gently mix in dry ingredients into wet until everything is mixed nicely! Fold in chocolate chips and fill muffin tins (either greased or with muffin paper thingys) 3/4 of the way full. Bake at 400 for 15-17 minutes (do not over bake!) Let cool in muffin pan for 5 minutes or until you can transfer them to a cooling rack. 

Hope you enjoy these delicious muffins as much as Hailey and I do!

Happy Fall!
-Kir

First Day of Fall Y'all!

Photo Credit 

Today is the first day of Fall y'all!

While Fall hasn't quite made its way to San Antonio, the weather has cooled down a bit (the high is only 90 degrees today), but I am still excited nonetheless.

I love, love, love, all things pumpkin! Pumpkin muffins, pumpkin slice lattes, pumpkin pie! Yummy!

My Spring To Do List kind of crashed and burned when I started studying for the CA Bar.

I wasn't able to cross too many items off of my list because I was so busy studying, but I did have a lot of fun trying new things and blogging about them; so I thought I'd make a new list for Fall!

1. Buy a new pumpkin candle and burn it non stop.

2. Go apple picking.

3. Decorate my apartment for fall.

4. Bake something pumpkin-y

5. Go to a haunted house or take a ghost tour or go to a corn maze.

Any fun plans for autumn? Chime in with a comment below!

XOXO
Meg

PS: Congrats to Lauren from a Touch of Southern Grace! She is the winner of the Pink Cameo Ring from Dill and Scout Boutique.

Four Fabulous Pumpkin Candles from Lick Your Face 8!

In case you've missed the memo... I'm obsessed with anything and everything that smells like pumpkin! Kir and I devoted a whole entire week last month to reviewing pumpkin scented products and sharing pumpkin recipes. If you missed our self proclaimed "Pumpkin Week," you'll definitely want to check it out!

Thank goodness pumpkin scented home fragrance products are seasonally appropriate from the beginning of September to the end of November, because I love the smell so much! (It is probably appropriate throughout December as well, but I always switch over to cinnamon and clove candles for Christmas!)

My latest pumpkin obsession comes from the collection of soy candles by Lick Your Face 8! 100% soy wax candles burn evenly in 3.75 ounce tins, adorned with clean, crisp, professional looking labels. These candles are the perfect stocking stuffer, gift for a friend, or a treat for yourself. At only $6.50 (plus shipping) these candles are a steal of a deal!

I had the opportunity to test drive four incredible pumpkin scents, all of which were different and distinct from one another. 

Frosted Pumpkin:

Delectably sweet, this candle will satisfy every cupcake craving you've ever had, (without one calorie consumption!) This candle smells just like gobs of sugary, cream cheese frosting atop a fancy, couture pumpkin spice cupcake. The sweetest of the four candles, this little tin is perfect for those with a sweet tooth!

 Pumpkin Crunch Cake:

 With strong notes of pumpkin a hint of spices, this candle was the most "pumpkin-y" to me! Like a mouth-watering pumpkin pie fresh out of the oven, this candle screams all things fall, autumn, and Thanksgiving dinner! My mouth is watering just thinking about the scent of this one!

Pumpkin Roll:

My whole entire little apartment smelled of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves! This candle is all spice with a hint of pumpkin. I accidentally left the lid off (the candle was not burning!) while I went to work one day and when I came home my house was filled with the wonderful pumpkin pie spice scent! The aroma is so incredible it provides fragrance even unlit! This candle is perfect for any cinnamon lover!

 

 Apple Pumpkin Butter:

This was my favorite candle of the bunch! Crisp, tart apples juxtapose sweet pumpkin and spices, making this an incredibly complex fragrance! I love apple candles in general, so the combination was so deliciously good!

Lick Your Face 8 makes incredible candles! I can't wait to try out more of their fragrances soon! Next week I'll be reviewing some of their beauty products, so stay tuned! 

Have a fabulous weekend!
-Meg

Bathe in Pumpkin-y Goodness - Artisan Soaps from Red Pisces

It has been "lather, rinse, repeat" with the Small Town Sisters this week! And we have loved every second of it! Test driving handcrafted beauty products for our faithful readers is so much fun and sampling all of the pumpkin flavored products has been a real treat!

Our final soap sample for our self proclaimed "Pumpkin Week" comes from Red Pisces, a fabulous shop in Frederick Maryland. Red Pisces features a wide variety of traditional soaps, specialty cupcake shaped soaps, as well as other hand crafted goodies.

The Moist Pumpkin Spice soap is made with real pumpkin, which is apparent from the delicious scent. The soap creates a wonderful lather and left my skin feeling soft, with the subtle smell of pumpkin pie.

Adorable packaging!

The Melted Halloween Cupcake Soap has the most incredible smell! My whole bathroom smelled of spicy orange and licorice! This soap glided on more like a body wash than a soap -- it had a luxurious texture that left my skin feeling super soft. It also left me smelling insanely good! This soap featured cute sprinkles, gold glitter, and a jumbo star anise, making it look like a fancy couture cupcake (without the calories!)

Looks good enough to eat!

Red Pisces features a wide variety of soaps and other bath goodies! They even have some manly soap for the main man in your life!

-Meg

Pumpkin Facial Masque by Versailles Skincare Products

This Try me size Pumpkin Facial Masque is not just perfect for this time of the year but perfect for you face as well. Versailles Skincare Products produces this amazing handmade product, made with real pumpkin, plus it is a vegan formula. The packaging is cute and professional and the 0.25 oz product is enough for two applications. Thank you so much to Versailles Skincare for letting me try this masque out ( I love it!)

                                                    

The product

Looks and smells like Pumpkin!

Got my Pumpkin Facial Masque on!

As you can see in the photos of myself trying on this facial, it should be applied thin and can even be applied to the face plus neck area. However, be cautious when applying if you have sensitive skin like I do (hence why I did not apply it to my neck area). Although I do have sensitive skin, this Pumpkin Facial Masque gave me no problems and left my skin feeling great! I thought my skin felt soft and gave my complexion a smooth look after trying this masque. Also, I love the fact that directions are given on the back of the packaging as well as the list of ingredients (which are easily found in most households)!

If you are eager to find a great masque for yourself or for a special lady in your life, then take a look at http://www.etsy.com/shop/VersaillesSkincare. More information on this product, check out VersaillesSkincare on Etsy!

Enjoy!
-Kir

What's on my English Muffin? Pumpkin Butter from MMMandMore

It has finally cooled down here in San Antonio, so now it seems appropriate to start savoring all of those delectable fall treats! I love all things pumpkin (can't wait to try Kir's pumpkin bread recipe) and was so excited to receive a sampling of handcrafted pumpkin butter from MMMandMore!

The pumpkin butter is packaged in mason jars (soooo rustic chic!) and adorned with a scrap of checked fabric and a hang tag. 

This autumn spread smells like a fresh baked pumpkin pie. With strong notes of cinnamon and cloves, I was more than pleased to top my morning English muffin with this delightful delicacy. It spread evenly and consistently and tasted fresh and sweet. The pulpy pumpkin-y goodness made for a delicious addition to my morning breakfast! I'm already looking forward to tomorrow!

This butter is made with all natural ingredients: pumpkin, apple juice, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and sugar! Nothing artificial or impossible to pronounce here! 

MMMandMore's pumpkin butter would make a wonderful hostess gift during the fall months or treat yourself to a jar! Pumpkin not really your thing? Be sure to check out their sauces, jams, apple butter, and sweet potato butter!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf

I have been dying for something pumpkin lately and although I do love me some pumpkin pie, my husband on the other hand is not the biggest fan. Therefore, I figured I would make him some bread that he can have for breakfast or even for a snack when he works from home on occasion (he loves that it has chocolate chips in it)!

This Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf Bread (known as Harvest Bread to my husband) is super easy to make and besides the pumpkin, I had everything else on hand (which you all know I love). This bread is perfect for the Autumn season and will really satisfy your pumpkin craving!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf

1 2/3 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup pumpkin puree (keep in mind this is not the same as pumpkin pie mix)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips (plus some for topping)


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a loaf pan.
2. Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. In a medium bowl combine pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, sour cream and oil until smooth.
4. Pour wet ingredients into flour mixture, whisking together until combined.
5. Pour mixture into greased pan, topping with chocolate chips.
6. Bake for about 70 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
7. Leave in pan, cooling on wire rack for about 20 minutes. Then pop out loaf from pan and cool for another 10 minutes or so on a wire rack.
8. Stuff your face and enjoy!

Bread mixture in the greased loaf pan

Topped with a few chocolate chips

Cooling in pan on wire rack

Cooling for another 10 minutes out of loaf pan

Slice and enjoy!

-Kir

Our New Fall Fragrance -- Pumpkin Pie and Lavender Solid & Roll-On Perfume from Urbbody

We normally don’t stray from our tried and true fragrances, but when Cate from Urbbody offered us the opportunity to try her Pumpkin Pie and Lavender Perfume, we didn’t think twice! With the marriage of spicy pumpkin pie and sweet aromatic lavender, who wouldn’t want to smell this tantalizing! This fragrance comes in a solid and a roll-on perfume. Meg tried the roll on; Kir tried the solid… 

Roll-On Perfume

To me, the smell of pumpkin pie is the epitome of fall – it embodies cooling temperatures, the changing color of leaves, firesides, and family. The scent of lavender reminds me of my mom – we always had lavender growing in our yard growing up and she would make dried lavender sachets to tuck in our drawers. The combination of the two in this roll on perfume is intoxicating! At first roll the scent has strong lavender top notes with a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg. Throughout the day though the pumpkin pie and spices make a debut and linger about on wrists, earlobes, and necks. This is my current go to fragrance and I will be wearing it for the rest of autumn!

 The rollerball perfume glides on skin effortlessly, while the fragrance absorbs quickly without leaving any trace of a sticky residue. The packaging is clean, simple, and professional. I’m looking forward to trying some of Urbbody’s other products in the future!

 

-Meg

Solid Perfume

This Pumpkin Pie and Lavender Solid Perfume is perfect for Autumn. It smells warm and inviting with a hint of pumpkin pie and lavender. What more do you want during this time of year. Not only does this solid perfume smell amazing, but this scent of Pumpkin and Lavender are the top "arousing" scents to (straight) men (time to cuddle *hint hint). This wonderful perfume is handmade with beeswax, lavender essential oil, fragrance oil, vitamin e, and meadowfoam oil. My husband absolutely loves this smell!

Now if you're like me and never used a solid perfume before do not get turned off! I was a little skeptical at first just because I had never tried any solid perfume, but I am actually thinking I prefer a solid perfume over a spray now. Don't be afraid, I promise you will enjoy it! 

This product is perfectly sized to carry in your purse without taking much space!

This perfume is so soft without any leftover oily residue!

For more information on this perfume and other products by Urbbody, check out their Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/urbbody. All of their products are handmade without any weird chemicals (which you all know I am a huge fan of!) Great job Urbbody, I love this product!!! And lucky for you Urbbody is offering 25% off with code: PUMPKINTIME

Enjoy!

-Kir

Put On Your Pumpkin [Facial] Mask from Garden Therapy

My skin has been all out of whack lately, so I was so excited to try My Garden Therapy’s Pumpkin Pie Facial! What’s better than slathering pumpkin pie on my face? Nothing – that’s what! I am a mask addict and have countless tubes and tubs under my sink, some of which get old and have to be thrown out over time.  No such problem with this facial – it’s a powder! Just mix a few tablespoons of water with the powder and viola, a fresh facial right at home!

This mask smells like fresh pulpy pumpkin – ya know when you’re taking out all the goo when you carve pumpkins! I love the fact that it has goat milk powder and pumpkin powder to nourish my skin and walnut shells to exfoliate! 

Besides having a major hankering for some pumpkin pie, after using this mask, I noticed my skin felt tighter, brighter, and my red blotchy face looked healthier. 

My Garden Therapy makes all of its products in small batches using all natural ingredients. I love that I know exactly what I just put on my face!