Pumpkin Muffins and Chocolate Cherry Brownies and a Deco Phone Case

I've seen a number of awesome looking recipes on the link ups I've done over the past few weeks.  So I decided to try a few this weekend.  One was successful, one was not.  Both were easy 2-3 ingredient recipes, so I had T help me make them.

First up was pumpkin muffins.  They turned out well.  All we used was a box of spice cake mix, a can of pumpkin, and 1/2 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice.  Just mix it all together, put it in a cupcake pan, and bake according to the directions on the cake mix.  I made 12 muffins with this, even though the cake mix said it would make 24 cupcakes.  I also baked them 6 minutes longer than the box said, as the toothpick I initially inserted was not clean.

My only improvement for next time will be to use a bigger can of pumpkin.  I used a 16 oz can and the muffins are slightly drier than I would like.  I want them to be more like the ones from Dunkin Donuts, which are really mushy and pumpkin-y.

And I will be glazing them in the morning before breakfast.  Just mix together 2 tbsp. milk, 1 tbsp. melted butter, 1-2 tsp. vanilla extract, and a cup of powdered sugar.  You may have some left over depending on how much glaze you put on each muffin.

 Next we made chocolate cherry brownies.  They are not so good.  The only two ingredients are brownie mix and a can of cherry pie filling.  You also bake these according to brownie box directions.  They are very gooey, and not in a good, ooey-gooey way.  More like a gluey gooey.  They are edible, but I have some improvements so they taste good.

First, make the brownie mix according to the directions on the box, with the eggs and oil and water.  I always use the fudgy brownie directions instead of the cake like brownie directions.  Instead of cherry pie filling, use plain canned, jarred, or frozen cherries.  And it never hurts to add half a package of chocolate chips.  These taste much better.

You can see how gluey gooey these are, even in a picture

Oh, and on a totally unrelated note, I made an awesome Hello Kitty Deco phone case.  It is spectacular, and if anyone is interested, I can do a tutorial.  Or you can buy it from my Etsy shop, even though it is not listed yet since my digital camera is MIA and I am not comfortable listing items for sale with a cell phone camera.

The case is pink and covered in pink and blue faux pearls. I love it.