Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Miss F's class is celebrating Halloween by wearing costumes (first time ever for her school) and having a Pumpkin Day. There are going to have all sorts of fun pumpkin themed activities, including tasting all sorts of delicious pumpkin treats. Miss F wanted to make pumpkin muffins and I suggested to add chocolate chips, because, why not? And I suspect the chocolate might break up all the pumpkiness. Happy Halloween everyone! This recipe was based off one from Betty Crocker.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

2 ½ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoons kosher (coarse) salt
1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground ginger
1 ½ cups sugar
2/3 cup canola oil
½ cup water
3 eggs
1 can (15 oz) 100% pure pumpkin
1 ½ cups chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 muffin tins with paper baking cups. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, water and eggs; stir in the pumpkin. Stir the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Stir in the chocolate chips. Use an ice cream disher to scoop the batter into the lined muffin tins. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then cool completely on wire racks.

Pin It Now!

Cherry Sour Cream Muffins

My mom had a hip replacement last week and Miss F is obsessed with pitting cherries with our new cherry pitter, so it seemed perfect to make a batch of cherry muffins to take to her for breakfasts. Miss F was very insistent that the muffins be divided evenly, four for her, four for Grammy and four for Grandad. I love baking with sour cream, it is so easy and the results are fantastic. I adapted this recipe from a blueberry muffin recipe from Food and Wine magazine.  I am going to be so sad when cherry season is over, it is the best time of the year for fruit.

Cherry Sour Cream Muffins

1 ½ cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
¾ cup sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup cherries, stemmed, pitted and halved

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the egg at medium speed until frothy. Add the sugar and melted butter and beat until pale yellow, 1 minute. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla until blended. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until almost blended. Using a rubber spatula, fold the cherries into the batter.

Fill the muffin cups three-fourths full of batter. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the pan and let cool on a rack.

Pin It Now!

Recipe Swap: Cinnamon Roll Muffins

It's another Blogger's Choice Swap, which means I got to troll through Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations to find whatever recipe I wanted to make.  I instantly gravitated to her recipe for cinnamon roll muffins, I loved the idea of making them in muffin form and not needing to use yeast.   These were quite a breakfast treat, Miss F was a huge fan and I was equally impressed.  They had all the components of a good cinnamon roll: warm cinnamon, gooey icing and they were messy to eat.

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

1 cup buttermilk
½ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 eg
3 cups flour

Filling Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Icing Ingredients
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons milk or cream

Measure the brown sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and egg into a mixing bowl. Add the buttermilk, then the flour; stir until thoroughly combined into a dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes. Roll the dough into a 12x24 inch rectangle and spread with the butter. Sprinkle with the brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll the dough into a log beginning with the wide side. Stretch slightly. Cut into two-inch pieces and put these pieces into greased muffin tins or cupcake liners. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Pin It Now!

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

When I saw this recipe on The Jey of Cooking, I pinned it on Pinterest immediately.  I thought they would be a perfect toddler snack and even more perfect for Miss F's lunch box.  Miss F helped me scoop, pour and stir the batter.  She was so excited to help so much in the kitchen.  She was a bit disappointed that we didn't use muffin liners, placing them is her favorite part of baking.  After they had cooled a bit she ate one and declared them delicious.  Then she started on her second, peeling off the breading and just eating the hot dog.  She did that 11 more times.  That's right, 11 mini muffin breading remnants on her plate.  So much for adding these to her lunchbox, I have a carnivore through and through.

Mini Honey Corn Dog Muffins
makes 24 bite sized muffins

2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons natural applesauce
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon honey
1 egg
½ cup buttermilk
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup cornmeal
¼ cup flour
¼ cup whole wheat flour
¼ teaspoon salt
4 hot dogs, each cut into 6 equal pieces

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a mini-muffin tin with non-stick spray.

Combine butter, applesauce, sugar and honey in a bowl and mix until combined. Add the eggs, mix again, then add the buttermilk and stir together until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix together the baking soda, cornmeal, flours and salt. Add half of the mixture to the wet ingredients, stir until combined, then add the remaining half and stir again.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of batter into each mini-muffin cup. Nestle one hot dog piece into the middle of each cup. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cornbread is golden brown. Cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes then transfer whatever is not being served to a cookie rack.

Store the leftovers in the refrigerator. To reheat, microwave for 20-30 seconds. If reheating from frozen, microwave for 1-2 minutes, until warm all the way through.

reprinted with permission

Pin It Now!

Banana Peanut Butter Oat Muffins

Miss F is still a huge fan of muffins. And she is an even bigger fan of helping to bake the muffins. Her assistance is normally putting all the muffin liners in to the tin while I mix all the ingredients, but she is also great at stirring. I doubled this recipe because I had a lot of overripe bananas. In one batch, I left the plain. The other got an addition of 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, which made Miss F an even bigger fan. This recipe is from Baking Bites.

Banana Peanut Butter Oat Muffins

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
¾ cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup mashed banana (about 2 med.)
6 tablespoons peanut butter
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oatmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, brown sugar, eggs, mashed banana, peanut butter and buttermilk until very smooth, making sure all egg has been well-incorporated. Pour into flour mixture and stir until no streaks of flour remain. Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin tin, filling each just about up to the top. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly pressed. Remove muffins from tin and cool on a wire rack.

Pin It Now!

Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins

It's strawberry season! The strawberries at our local grocer are no longer coming from Florida or California, they are coming straight from Froberg Farms just down south of Houston in Alvin. Last week, Froberg opened up to the public for strawberry picking. I cannot wait to head down there and fill up a bunch of buckets. Miss F is excited as well. These muffins are delicious, the cream cheese is such a wonderful combination with the fresh berries.  I am so happy that strawberry season is here!  I adapted this recipe from Bo's Bowl.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins
makes 24

2 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ cups sugar
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter, softened
2 eggs
½ cup milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a mixer cream together the cream cheese, butter, and sugar. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla and mix until just combined. In a bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and the salt. Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix until just combined. Be careful not to over mix. The batter will be thick, almost like cookie dough. Fold in the strawberries. Spoon batter into a paper lined muffin pan. Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 of the way full and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are golden. Cool on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes.

Adapted from Bo’s Bowl

Pin It Now!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

When I saw these on Annie Eats and had a baby shower in just a few days, I knew they would be perfect. Miss F got all excited that they were her muffins, but she was quite disappointed when she bit into the cream cheese portion of the muffin.  I had a few issues with these, the muffin itself was super dense, the cream cheese shriveled up, which was unappetizing and the spice level wasn't near where I would want it.  If I make them again, I will certainly double up on the spices.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
makes 24 muffins

3 cups flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons nutmeg
¾ teaspoon ginger
1 ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 cups canned pumpkin
1 ¼ cups vegetable oil
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, salt, baking soda and sugar. In a small bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin and oil. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.

Fill lined muffin tins half full. Cut the cream cheese into 24 equal squares. Place a cream cheese square into each muffin tin. Fill each muffin tin with the remaining batter.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the muffin part.

Let cool in pan for 5 min. before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Adapted from Annie Eats

Pin It Now!

Mini Banana Muffins

It's my turn to host playgroup for the toddlers this week. I plan on taking full advantage of this glorious weather, so we are meeting at a local park. These muffins are easily eaten by toddlers and their moms alike. They are super easy to make and even easier to tote along to the park to soak up the sun.

Mini Banana Muffins
makes 30 mini muffins

2 to 3 brown bananas, peeled and mashed
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup natural applesauce
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, add bananas, sugar, egg, and applesauce and mix well.

Stir in baking soda, powder, salt and flour. Mix well.

Line the mini muffin tins with paper liners. Fill each muffin cup 2/3 way full. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool.

Pin It Now!

Mini Blueberry Muffins

In honor of the teeny tiny blueberries I got on my last Costco run, these mini blueberry muffins suited them perfectly. Baking the blueberries brings out their sweetness since they weren't super tasty on their own, Miss F rejected them on more than one occasion. She did not reject the muffins, they were gobbled up with glee. She loves anything that is teeny tiny in size, perfect for her!

Mini Blueberry Muffins
makes 30

2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup natural applesauce
1 egg
¾ cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Cream the butter and the sugar. Add the applesauce and egg and mix to combine. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk and mix until it forms a smooth batter. Gently fold the berries into the batter.

Spoon the batter into lined mini muffin tins. Bake the muffins for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown.

Pin It Now!

Peach Oat Muffins

Miss F is obsessed with the Banana Applesauce Oat Muffins, so I decided to try another flavor as I was getting bored making them nearly every week. She was not as much a fan of the peach muffins. And she loves peaches. She is a peach monster. I think she ate a whole peach while I was chopping them for the muffins. I thought they were fantastic, but I guess it is back to the old muffins for Miss F.

Peach Oat Muffins
makes 12 muffins

¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup whole-wheat flour
¾ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ cup natural applesauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs, lightly beaten
¾ cup white sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
3 peaches, pitted and chopped

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a muffin tin with baking cups.

Combine the flours, oats, spices, baking soda and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the applesauce, oil, eggs, and sugars. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir to combine. Fold in the peaches.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.

Pin It Now!

Strawberry Streusel Muffins

Does anyone remember Ragamuffins? They were a childhood favorite and I cannot find them in Texas. I miss the fake, crunchy strawberry "flavored nuggets". These muffins worked well with the frozen stash of strawberries we had picked at Froberg Farms. Miss F has already eaten two, one for breakfast and one for lunch. I myself had to sneak one minutes after they came out of the oven.

Strawberry Streusel Muffins
makes 12

Muffins:
1/3 cup sugar
¼ cup butter, softened
1 egg
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup fresh strawberries or frozen strawberries, chopped

Streusel:
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl. Add the egg and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture, together with milk. Stir in vanilla, followed by strawberries.

Fill 12 paper-lined muffin cups with batter.

Streusel: combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Cut in the butter, using a fork, until large, moist clumps form. Sprinkle a generous teaspoon over the muffin batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until browned.

Pin It Now!

Banana Applesauce Oat Muffins

I made these for Miss F to have a borderline healthy breakfast muffin on hand. And I added the chocolate chips to ensure she would eat all the healthiness of them. Having eaten one about halfway through the cooling process, I am sure if she is not a fan, I will be more than happy to eat them for her. These were amazing. They are very moist and full of flavor. I might try them next time with all whole wheat flour since there is such a minor amount. My best advice: make these now!

Banana Applesauce Oat Muffins
printable recipe

1 egg
3 mashed ripe bananas
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup natural applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup quick cooking oats
¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners.

In a large bowl, combine egg, bananas, brown sugar, applesauce and vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir the oatmeal into the flour mixture. Gently stir flour mixture into the banana mixture. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove muffins from pan and place on a wire rack to let cool before serving.

Pin It Now!

Blueberry Muffins

I got a pint of gorgeous Texas blueberries to make some baby food for F and I got another pint for C and I. I am over blueberry pie for the moment (two in one month is a lot of pie!), so I decided to whip up a batch of blueberry muffins to have for breakfast for the week. I think C is going to have one for dessert tonight. Nothing wrong with that...







Blueberry Muffins

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup whole milk
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups blueberries (7 1/2 oz)

Special equipment: a muffin pan with 12 (1/2-cup) muffin cups; 12 foil or paper muffin liners

Preparation

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F. Put liners in muffin cups.

Whisk together butter, brown sugar, milk, and egg in a bowl until combined well. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add milk mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in blueberries gently.

Divide batter among muffin cups and bake until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.

Pin It Now!