Canned pumpkin and squash are amazing, versatile, inexpensive, and nutritious ingredients to have on hand and to use year-round. While I’m a proponent of eating and cooking with the seasons, pantry staples have a purpose and should be relied on to nourish yourself. So, basically, you can make this recipe whenever you want - there’s are no rules :)
Recipe: Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate Chips and Pumpkin Seeds
Gluten free • celiac-friendly!
Adapted from King Arthur Baking’s Thanksgiving Muffins
Yields: 11-12 standard-sized muffins
Ingredients:
Note: For baking, I prefer to weigh my ingredients. I’ve been happier with the results, and I’ve found that I’m wash fewer dishes in the process. I’ve only made and tested this recipe based on weight, not volume. But, I’ve provided volume measures as an estimation. This recipe is forgiving.
227g (1 cup) pumpkin or winter squash purée
2 large eggs
106g (1/2 cup, packed) light brown sugar or dark brown sugar
35g (3 Tablespoons) avocado oil
21g (1 Tablespoon) molasses
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Apple Pie Spice or Pumpkin Pie Spice blend; or 1/4 teaspoon cloves + 1/4 teaspoon ginger + 1 teaspoon cinnamon. (I also added some freshly ground nutmeg)
113g (1/2 cup) soymilk, unsweetened (You could use any other dairy or non-dairy milk of choice)
80g (1/2 cup) dark or bittersweet chocolate chips
60g (1/2 cup) raw pumpkin or pepita seeds
175g (1 + 1/2 cup) 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill one-to-one mix for this recipe; I have not tested others)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions:
Line a standard-size muffin tin with baking paper or cups. Set aside.
In a medium or large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and baking soda together. Stir in the chocolate chips and pumpkin seeds.*
In a separate large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, brown sugar, oil, molasses, salt, spices, and milk. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
Add all of the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients and mix until all ingredients are well combined.
Cover the mixture and set it aside to rest/rise slightly, and preheat your oven to 400°F.
Once your oven has reached temperature, begin scooping the batter into the prepared pan: Approximately a 1/4-cupful, or a heaped muffin scoop works well here.
Bake the muffins for 20 to 21 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the middle of a center muffin comes out clean.
Remove the muffins from the oven, and tilt them in their individual wells to cool. This prevents their bottoms from steaming and becoming tough. When cool to the touch, transfer to a cooling rack.
Note(s):
I found that by tossing the chocolate chips and seeds in this intial flour mixture, it allows for even distribution of these ingredients in the muffin and prevents them from falling to the bottom when baking.
