Pumpkins + Apples = YUM

I'm not a fan of scary movies, and I haven't worn a costume in years... but I do like candy and just about anything that has pumpkin in it so... Happy Halloween, everyone! :-)

I woke up around 8 this morning, and in an odd turn of events, Bryan was ALSO up shortly after 8. He usually sleeps until 9 on the weekends, so in a weird but pleasant way my morning has been sort of thrown off. We've been "marathoning" Mario Galaxy all this week, so he's been playing since he got up, and I've been in the kitchen (typical, lol) making breakfast and all kinds of delicious goodies, namely Apple Pumpkin Bread.

It might sound like I did something special with the bread but I really didn't - it was a box of Kroger Pumpkin Bread mix, 1 cup of apple cider, 1/2 cup of egg substitute and 3 tablespoons of applesauce. Mix and bake per the package directions and presto! Apple Pumpkin Bread. Bryan and I each had a slice this morning with some faux-butter spray and it was delicious. I ran my version through the Points tracker on Weight Watchers.com and came up with 3 Points per slice. Not bad... but definitely just a treat!

Anyway, we didn't really have anything planned for this evening other than a sort of fall-themed dinner, so I invited our friend Jess over to join us. Jess LOVES Halloween, and this year it's a pretty big day for her - she just started a new job, her boyfriend is having a birthday, and they're celebrating their one-year anniversary. For unfortunate but unavoidable reasons relating to their busy schedules they can't be together this weekend, so I thought she might enjoy our company in lieu of his. She's bringing champagne and our plan is to celebrate, have some good food, and then get our geek on with a little Wii or some Rifftrax.

So, the dinner! I'm making Apple, Cheddar and Turkey Meatballs, Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges, and Spinach Salad with Apple and Red Onion. Everything is Weight Watchers friendly, which ROCKS... although the meatballs and the salad required some minor modifications to make them as such (like using 2% milk cheese in the meatballs and reducing the olive oil in the salad dressing). I get nervous serving food I've never made before to company, but really, Jess is the sweetest dinner guest ever so if it sucks I'm sure she'll be understanding and open to getting pizza. :-P

Oh! I almost forgot dessert! You cannot have company over for dinner without serving a dessert, so that's in the oven as we speak. We're having this crazy spice cake that I'm making with Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix, and some other fun, healthy ingredients - the "recipe" is below. The cake itself turned out to be 3 Points per piece, so I'm debating how we're going to finish it off. I'll let you know what I did when I post pictures of everything tomorrow.

What's are you all doing this Halloween? Do you have any fun Halloween traditions in your family? Whatever you do, have a great day!

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Apple-Pumpkin Spice Cake
2 cups Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix
1/2 cup apple cider
6 tbsp egg substitute
1/4 cup canned pumpkin

Mix all the liquid ingredients in a bowl; add the cake mix and blend per the package directions. Pour the batter into a prepared 8 x 8 baking pan or into a cupcake pan prepared with paper lines. Bake per the package directions. Cool completely, and top with fat-free Cool Whip (0 Points!) or whipped frosting. Either of these options could be used plain or with vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg to up the spice factor.