Something Sweet to Eat and Reads to Curl Up With!

One of the best bakeries in Frankfurt.  A little hole in the wall, totally cute and charming place with absolutely phenomenal, homemade cakes.  A gift from me to you, for those of you who live in Frankfurt.  Thank me after you've gone there and tried the cakes and other goodies ;-p

(Hi all, I was attempting to connect my cell phone to my laptop in order to upload photos from my week for this entry, but it wouldn't work!!!  I tried for over 30 minutes and had to give up.  Instead though, an AWESOME cold weather, impending weekend, recipe.  I highly recommend one of these with either a huge glass of milk or a warm mug of tea).

Super quick, easy and totally satisfying recipe of the week:

INGREDIENTS:

For pumpkin swirl filling:

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1 large egg

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For brownies:

1 (18 oz.) box brownie mix (I used Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies)

Oil, water and eggs as called for on box

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, beat all filling ingredients with an electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, mix brownie batter, oil, water and eggs as called for on box. Pour 3/4 of the batter into prepared pan. Pour pumpkin swirl filling evenly over batter. Pour remaining brownie batter evenly over filling. Swirl through batter several times with a knife for a marbled effect.

4. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Cool completely before cutting into 16 squares. Store covered in refrigerator up to 4 days.

5. Enjoy!

The two books I am reading right now...:-D

(and I absolutely recommend both.  Those for the top one, M Train, I DEFINITELY recommend reading her first book before this one.  Hands down one of the best books I have ever read in my entire life.  I've already read it twice and will certainly read it again.  And I had zero interest in Patti Smith when I picked it up.  The story is gripping, totally moving and beautifully written, and the writing itself is fantastic).