Tried and True Pin-spirations

I would like to share with you this delightful little recipe that I tried out today.
A week ago I was meandering around pinterest when I came across this picture.

How could I not try it out? Lucky for me, the recipe was super easy! And it was SO worth the 30 minutes I spent wandering around the grocery store looking for flax seed. (Is that sad that I have never cooked with it before? I didn't even know what it looked like!)
It's easy.
It's pretty healthy.
And it's Delicious!
Here is the recipe:
1 cup oatmeal, 1/2 cup peanut butter, 1/3 cup honey, 1 cup coconut flakes, 1/2 cup ground flaxseed, 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips, and 1 tsp vanilla.
Mix it all up, throw it in the fridge for half an hour, roll it into balls, and enjoy!
I didn't feel like buying mini chocolate chips. I used regular ones. And it was still so great. My pictures might not be as aesthetically pleasing, but they tasted just as good!

Thanks to smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com for sharing this awesome recipe! You should swing by sometime and look at that cute blog!

I wanted to share one more pin-spired cooking adventure that I went on this week. This one is a little different than anything I have ever done.
I was feeling a little needy of a really good pumpkin desert recipe to try this year. I couldn't just let Halloween pass by without making Something that tasted like pumpkin! I went to pinterest, and as usual, she delivered.
This is what I found

Pumpkin Monkey Bread. Looks good right? I wouldn't know. I pulled it out of the oven about 5 minutes before I had to go to work. I told my husband to wait until it was cool, try it, and if it was good to take it over to our friends house and share some of it.
By the time I was done with my 4 hour shift. It was gone.
I can only assume it was so good it made two grown men go a little bit crazy so that they couldn't help devouring the whole thing.
It's not a hard recipe, but it is a little lengthy. I would recommend planning to do this when you have a couple hours around the house so you can leave it to rise and then come back to it.
Pumpkin Monkey Bread
For the dough:

• 3 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup warm milk
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

For the coating:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 stick butter, melted

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and spices. In another large bowl, whisk together the milk, water, pumpkin, melted butter, sugar, and yeast. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add in the wet ingredients. Using a wooden spoon, gently stir until the dough comes together. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.
Spray a clean bowl with cooking spray and place the dough inside.Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about an hour.In the meantime, mix together the cinnamon and sugar, and melt the butter for the coating. Spray a bundt pan with cooking spray.
Once the dough has risen, shape the ball into a large rectangle. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into roughly equal-sized pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Dip each ball of dough into the melted butter and then the cinnamon-sugar mixture, layering them in the bundt pan as you go.Once you’ve used all the dough, cover the bundt pan and let the dough rise again for another hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the bread until golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before turning out on to a platter. To make the glaze, stir together the powdered sugar and maple syrup. Pour over the bread while it’s still warm.

For the glaze:

• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

Thank you sugarcrafter.net! You made two men very happy!
Do you have any great fall/holiday recipes you couldn't imagine not having? Please share! And don't forget to smile!