Pumpkin Muffins!

I love pumpkin. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin bread, pumpkin coffee, pumpkin smoothies, pumpkin butter... but my favorite by far is the humble pumpkin muffin. Specifically THESE pumpkin muffins. They are simple and delicious. They do not (usually) make a ginormous mess of my kitchen. They can easily be mixed by hand, and don't require too much attention.

The recipe I'm about to share with you is very accommodating. Don't want so much sugar? Leave some out. Want more pumpkin? Add it in. Accidentally added too much oil or pumpkin pie spice? That's ok! This recipe is so forgiving that you can bring it to a holiday party or a work potluck the first time you make it and get rave reviews. Just try it.

Cute muffin wrappers are a bonus

Muffin goodness!

Ingredients

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1  tsp baking powder
1  cup (ish) canned solid-pack pumpkin*
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice**
1 ¼ cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line or grease muffin cups.
2. Sift first 2 ingredients into a medium bowl.
3. Combine pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 ¼ cups sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.     Whisk until smooth.
4. Mix dry ingredients into pumpkin mixture just until combined. Do not over mix! It may be a little lumpy.
5. Stir together cinnamon and the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a separate bowl.
6. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling until approximately ¾ full. Sprinkle tops with cinnamon sugar mixture.
7. Bake until muffins are puffed and golden brown. Tester inserted in center should come out clean- approximately 25-30 minutes for normal muffins, 10-15 minutes for mini muffins.
8. Cool in tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

*I started out using 1 cup of pumpkin, but now I have a better method (for me.) I take a 1 cup dry measuring cup and squish as much pumpkin puree in there as I can without spilling, and use that much. It adds more pumpkin-y flavor and I love it! Also, please note that you can freeze the extra pumpkin for later use. I do it all the time!

**If you do not have pumpkin pie spice, make your own! You can find a bunch of recipes using google, just pick the one that sounds best to you.

Husband's note- these taste sweeter and more pumpkin-y when completely cooled.

Have fun!