There is nothing more appealing than waking up in the morning to the smell of baking and fresh brewed coffee. Impress guests with this simple but tasty spiced muffin recipe that can be assembled in advance. The addition of pumpkin puree keeps the muffins moist and flavorful without a lot of fat. It's the perfect way to use leftover pumpkin around the holidays.
Prepping in Advance
To make things easier on busy mornings, the dry ingredients can be mixed together the night before and the wet ingredients can be pre-measured and stored in the refrigerator.
Using canned pumpkin makes preparation simple but be sure to use pure pumpkin puree instead of pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling already has spices and sugar added - using plain puree allows you to add seasonings to your taste.
Making Large Bakery-Style Muffins
The secret to large muffins like ones found at bakeries is to fill the muffin cups almost to the top. Scoop batter into the cups, filling them to just below the edge of the cups. Grease the muffin tin, including the top, so that the muffins release easily once baked. Let the muffins cool for about 15 before removing so the tops don't break off. Use a knife to cut apart any muffin tops that fuse together during baking.
To make a small batch of muffins, fill the empty muffin cups with water. This will allow you to bake one or two muffins instead of a full batch.
Pumpkin Spice Muffins
Makes about 8 large muffins
- 1-1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1-1/2 cups fresh or canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1/3 cup neutral oil, such as canola or safflower
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- Oil or cooking spray to grease muffin tin
Topping:
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease muffin tin (including top of tin) and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and spices. Stir with a fork until thoroughly combined.
- Add pumpkin puree, oil and eggs, and stir into the dry ingredients until smooth. Gently fold in nuts until distributed throughout batter.
- To make topping: In a small bowl, stir together sugar and cinnamon. Reserve chopped nuts in a separate bowl.
- Spoon batter into greased muffin cups, filling them to about ½" from the top of the cups. Sprinkle the batter of each muffin with cinnamon/sugar mixture and a spoonful of chopped nuts.
- Bake muffins for 25 to 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove muffin tin from the oven and let cool at least 15 minutes before removing the muffins.
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