Thanksgiving has come to an end but I’m still over here whipping up treats that remind me of fall! I actually made these Maple Pecan Bites up with enough time to get these on the blog and share them with you before Thanksgiving but with all that we’ve got going on in the house right now, it just completely slipped my mind. Thankfully, these are an any day treat …..and guess what? Christmas is around the corner! (Crazy, right??)
Well, I must say – I can certainly understand why children are meant to be had when we are young and in our prime! My sweet little Mazzy has been with us a little over a week and it has been such a joy to hear her precious voice coming up the stairs each morning. However …..it’s pretty exhausting! I do remember being tired as a new mom but as an “older” person now, it’s triple the effect. I wouldn’t change it for the world though and I am enjoying every minute, even the little fits and whines because I know it’s short lived. And I’m sure I don’t need to remind you all that have little ones that everything we do, takes more than double the time if I were to do it alone. Right?? We made Christmas cookies last night with my youngest daughter and the process of just rolling the dough out took forevvvvver! Again, it was a fun memory and I treasured each long minute of the process but it reminded me that nothing can really be done without adding an additional 30 minutes to our schedule with each activity we do! My sweet Mazzy will be gone in a week and my heart already aches just thinking about how empty the house will seem. Christmas and all the fun festivities are right around the corner so that will be a great distraction with my daughter and grandbaby gone.
These little treats will be a good “drown my sorrows” indulgence too! They are a perfect little bite of deliciousness, loaded with healthy fats to somewhat make you feel a little better about popping one in your mouth ….because I promise you, you’ll feel like you’re going way off track with these sweet treats!
Whether you keep on hand or make up for a get together, make sure you keep them stored in a container in the freezer. They become softened at room temp, although still great ….they’re better eaten right out of the freezer. Don’t worry – it’s not like eating a piece of flavored ice, it just helps them stay solidified and chilled. I will warn you though, it’s hard to grab something out of the freezer without popping one of these into your mouth so make sure you are armed before you go in to pull out some meat to defrost — or these bites will be gone before you know it!
- 1/2 cup almond butter
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp coconut oil, melted but cooled
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
- Combine all ingredients (except pecans) in a bowl using a whisk ....to a smooth consistency.
- Place 18 mini cupcake liners in a mini cupcake tin.
- Using a small scooper, place a scoop of almond butter mixture into liners - the small scooper should measure out about 1 tbsp.
- Once all “batter” is evenly distributed, sprinkle pecan pieces onto each cup.
- Place into freezer for minimum of one hour.
- Keep stored in freezer until ready to eat.
