Monday, April 1, 2013

Pumpkin Muffins


About a month ago I saw a recipe for muffins that looked delicious (here). The recipe called for an entire large can of pumpkin puree and since I love pumpkin anything, I figured I had better give it a try. Well let me tell you they are so fantastic I've made the recipe three times since I found it.

I made several changes to the original recipe as we are trying to eat along the lines of the Mediterranean diet. (which I plan on learning and writing more about in the near future.)  One of the struggles for me with eating healthier is finding good alternatives for snacking so I was happy to find a healthy snack food recipe.

The Mediterranean diet encourages you to eat lots of olive oil, so I substituted olive oil for the margarine/butter in the recipe.  I also decreased the sugar by a cup and substituted whole wheat flour for white.  When I made them today I also added raisins with the chocolate chips which was met with happiness all round.


Here’s how to make our new favorite pumpkin muffins:

Combine: 
2 c. sugar 
1 1/2 cups olive oil

Then add: 
6 eggs 

Mix, then add: 
1 tablespoon cinnamon 
1 teaspoon cloves 
1 teaspoon ginger 
1 teaspoon allspice 
1 teaspoon nutmeg 
1 tablespoon vanilla 
1/2 teaspoon. salt 
1 tablespoon baking soda 
1 tablespoon baking powder 

Mix, then add: 
4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 
1 large can pumpkin puree 
3 cups chocolate chips
(and about 2 cups of raisins if desired) 

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes

This makes a lot, as you can see - one tray of mini-muffins, one tray of regular muffins, and two square pans full.  They freeze well in case you want to stretch out the snackfest.


What's your family's go-to favourite snack food?



p.s. This tastes fantastic with cream cheese icing (recipe here) - we tried it out for you at Easter dinner.

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6 comments:

  1. I am with you on the pumpkins; I have been making pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for the last 2 Thanksgivings. Yummy

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  2. Yum!
    I bet your home smells delicious when you bake these...

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  3. I think I might still have some pumpkin in the freezer... And with fresh milk!

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  4. These look so good. I would like to make them more diabetic friendly though. When I figure that out I will post you and let you know how they turned out. Thanks for sharing. Love your blog.

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  5. I love muffins. Blueberry muffins are good but so are pumpkin muffins.

    lisa

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