Low-Carb Cinnamon-Glazed Pumpkin Scones #FoodieExtravaganza

This month's #FoodieExtravaganza challenge is all about Pumpkins, in honor of National Pumpkin Day on Oct. 26th! Pumpkin is such a versatile squash, just right for many dishes, savory as well as sweet.   Check out the many ways Foodie Extravaganza bloggers how found to enjoy it:

• No-Bake Pumpkin Cookies from Caroline’s Cooking
• Butter Roasted Pumpkin Seeds from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Vega Malaysian Red Pumpkin from Sneha’s Recipe
• Pumpkin Saffron Rice from Palatable Pastime
• Roasted Kabocha (Japanese Pumpkin Fries from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Low-Carb Pumpkin Pecan Scones with Cinnamon Glaze from Reviews, Chews & How-Tos
• Chicken, Pumpkin & Bean Enchiladas from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Apple Pumpkin Bundt Cake (Vegan) from Veggie Fun Kitchen
• Coconut Curry Roast Pumpkins from Food Lust People Love
• DIY Pumpkin Spice Latte with Almond Milk from Hardly a Goddess
• 15 Minute Ravioli with Pumpkin Cream Sauce from Faith, Hope, Love & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice

For the past month or so, my husband and I have been eating keto so I wanted to find a way to enjoy my favorite autumn flavors in a way that wouldn't derail our progress.  When I came across this recipe from All Day I Dream About Food, I knew this might do the trick.  The only alterations I made were to switch up the Swerve sweetener for monkfruit sweetener (a natural granulated sugar made from monkfruit) - neither of us like stevia and find the monkfruit to be a low carb sweetener that tastes closest to sugar without strange aftertastes. The other change was to sprinkle pecans on top rather than incorporating them with the scone dough.

The result  was a quick to make scone that does a nice job as a grab and go breakfast, snack or dessert, and one batch kept well in the refrigerator for several days without getting hard or stale.

Low-Carb Cinnamon Glazed Scones with Pecans
Makes 1 dozen scones

2 1/2 cups fine almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup Monkfruit sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup. pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Glaze:
1/4 cup powdered monkfruit sugar
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking liner.
In a large bowl, combine almond and coconut flour, monkfruit, baking powder and salt.  Add in pureed pumpkin, melted butter and pie spice, stirring until a soft dough forms.
Shape dough into a 6x8" rectangle about 3/4" thick, patting lightly into shape. Cut into 6 squares, and diagonally cut the squares to form triangles.
Separate the triangles so they aren't touching, and bake about 25 minutes, until firm and lightly browned.
Remove to a rack and let cool completely.
Whisk together powdered monkfruit, heavy cream and cinnamon to create a drizzle.
Drizzle over the top of the scones, and sprinkle with pecans.
Store in the refrigerator in a sealed container for up to one week.

Posting day for Foodie Extravaganza is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out HERE.

Chicken & Mushrooms Vegetable Medley #FoodieExtravaganza

The September Foodie Extravaganza, hosted by Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm, is a celebration of National Mushroom Month!  Be sure to check out everyone's entries:

• Chicken & Mushroom Vegetable Medley by Reviews, Chews & How-Tos 
• Chicken and Mushroom Puff Pastry Pie by Food Lust People Love 
• Mushroom Quesedillas by Caroline's Cooking 
• Mushroom, Sausage, and Spinach Strata by Karen's Kitchen Stories 
• Mushrooms In Green Herb Sauce by Sneha's  Recipe
• Portabella Mushroom Cheesesteak Sandwich by Simple and Savory
• Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy by A Day in the Life on the Farm 
• Steak with Porcini Mushroom Gravy by Palatable Pastime

Yield: 4Author: Lynda Hardy

Chicken & Mushrooms Vegetable Medley

I am sharing a fast meal with you, full of summer vegetables, mushrooms, chicken, and rice. For this I use leftover rice to make it even faster on a busy weekday night, making this a one-skillet dish.

ingredients:

1 lb boneless chicken breasts, chopped into bite sized portions

3 T. avocado oil

1 cup chicken broth

1 package sliced button or cremini mushrooms

1/2 pint grape tomatoes

2 zucchini, sliced and quartered

1 bunch asparagus cut into 1" pieces, woody ends discarded

Salt & pepper to taste

Penzey's Mural of Flavor to taste

2 cups cooked rice

instructions:

1. This is easiest if you chop all the vegetables before you start cooking.
2. Saute chicken in half the avocado oil until browned and close to done.
3. Add remaining oil and the mushrooms and cook until tender.
4. Add asparagus, zucchini, and tomatoes, saute for a minute, season and add the broth. Simmer until the broth is reduced by half, then add the rice, and continue to cook on low until heated through.

That's all there is to it!  The vegetables can, of course, be switched up depending on the seasons or what you have on hand.  I came across the asparagus / zucchini / mushroom mixture several years ago at a restaurant who labeled it a 'low carb alternative' to the usual onions and peppers in fajitas, and I've loved it ever since.

Stacked Enchiladas with Fried Egg #FoodieExtravaganza #CrazyforChiles

This month's #FoodieExtravanza, hosted by Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla, was super exciting for me in a couple of ways.  First, the challenge dish is ENCHILADAS which guarantees I'm going to love every single variation in the link up (below).  But, secondly - Camilla set several of us up to receive some complimentary Don Enrique brand dried chiles from Melissa's Produce, an online fresh produce store that ships a good part of their stock US wide.

It was wonderful to have the opportunity to experiment - the sent assortment included several types of chiles, including some scary hot Carolina Reapers, but for my enchilada dish I decided to stick to flavorful and smoky rather than crazy hot, while using a few varieties to give the sauce some depth.

Armed with a pair of gloves to protect my skin and face while handling the chiles, this is what I came up with for my enchilada sauce.  Should you want a hotter sauce, simply switch out some of the chiles for hotter varieties:

Smoky Enchilada Sauce
(makes approx. 4 cups - you can halve the recipe as desired)

8 dried guajillo chiles (moderate, smoky, sweet)
8 dried ancho chiles (dried poblanos, mild, smoky)
2 dried pasilla negro chiles (mild, earthy, fruity)
1-2 dried oaxaca chiles (mild, smoky)
1 T. oregano, dried
1 T. cilantro, dried
2 T. ground cumin,
2 squares dark chocolate, minced (I used Ritter Sport Dark Chocolate w/Espresso)
hot water

To prepare the chiles:
Cut off stems, slit open chile and remove seeds. (I found kitchen shears to be the easiest way of doing this, scooping out the dried seeds with a gloved finger)

Heat oven to 400F.  Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper, lay out the dried chiles in a single layer, and toast for 3 minutes, until fragrant but not burned. (It won't take longer than that!)

In a large bowl, put the toasted chiles and cover with hot water, weighting them down with a plate to keep submerged.  Set aside for about an hour until they are softened.

Into a blender or food process, combine the chiles, 2 cups of the water used to soak the chiles and 2 cups fresh hot water, along with the remaining ingredients. Puree until very smooth (it may take a couple tries to completely puree the chile skins).

Before using, make sure you all the sauce to simmer for awhile - it will finish off the flavors.

Store in the refrigerator for up to a week, or freeze for later use.

That was the hard part!  Making these stacked enchiladas is easy - MUCH easier than making a rolled up casserole.  It does take several pans, though, and a short order cook style of quick preparation, but you'll have dinner on the table in a flash, especially if you can enlist  the help of others present to help with the steps.

The word 'enchilada' describes the key factor that makes for an enchilada (or enchilada sauce) - it means 'covered in chiles' and, according to Rick Bayless, a person might be called 'enchilada' (or 'enchilado') to explain that state where you've eaten something full of chiles and are desperately seeking something cooling to sooth the burning!

An enchilada is a tortilla covered in chile sauce - after that, everything else is optional.

The very easiest version I've made is meatless - just corn tortillas, diced raw onion, and sauce.  With that platform, add whatever suits you - seasoned meat, beans, cheese, vegetables, olives, sour cream....  The possibilities are endless!

One traditional version tops the works with a fried egg, one of my favorite ways to enjoy these.

Stacked Enchiladas with Fried Egg
per serving:
3-4 corn tortillas
cooked crumbled Mexican chorizo
enchilada sauce, simmered
oil, heated in pan as for deep frying (I used coconut oil)
diced onion
sliced black olives
1 egg, sunny side up

Using tongs, cook a tortilla in the hot oil for a minute or so (it should still be pliable), then dip in the simmering enchilada sauce to cover.  Place on a plate, add a thin layer toppings as desired.

Repeat this process, using 3-4 tortillas and layering toppings, ending with a layer of toppings, and then a fried egg.  The runny yolk will break over the rest of the toppings, creating a rich and very satisfying finish for this simple dish.

This is comfort food that is sure to make you smile!  Check out how others are making their enchiladas:

An InLinkz Link-up