Pumpkin-Pumpkin Pancakes

These pancakes are not only shaped like pumpkins but the batter is also made with pumpkin puree. If you aren't feeling adventurous at 7:00am, or are short on time, you can use Bisquick mix and add orange food coloring to the main batter to compensate for the lack of orange coloring brought in by the pumpkin puree. The allspice and ground cinnamon enhance the mild pumpkin flavor and are great with melted butter and warm maple syrup. All in all, a festive breakfast that will put you in the mood for Fall.

Serves: 4
Start-to-Finish: 40 minutes
Recipe By: Idea from My Sister's Cucina. Recipe from Ruth from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
3 TBSP brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree (pumpkin pie filling and pumpkin puree are not the same. Pumpkin puree can be found in the baking section or canned vegetable section of most grocery stores)
1 egg
2 TBSP vegetable oil
2 TBSP vinegar
2 drops green food coloring

Directions:

1. In a bowl, blend together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar. (Pumpkin puree is fibrous, so you need to blend it very well to make the pancakes smooth. I used an immersion blender for this but it was mostly because I was itching for a way to use it for the first time. You could also use a hand mixer.)
2. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
3. Stir both mixtures together just enough to combine.
4. Scoop out 1 cup of batter into a separate bowl.
5. To this 1 cup, add 2 drops of green food coloring. (This batter will become your pumpkin stems.)
6. Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium high heat.
7. Pour the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. (The batter makes 'puffy' pancakes so by only using 1/4 cup and spreading it out in the pan with a spoon it will make the pancakes flatter.)
8. Add a stem to your pumpkin pancakes using the green colored batter.
9. Brown on both sides and serve hot.