Pumpkin Muffins

I love pumpkins! That is a total understatement. I mean I really love pumpkins. I love the color, the flavor, the smell, the actual thing. It goes on and on with me. I collect them and I treasure my collection. They are on display year round but in September, I pull them off their shelves and distribute them around the house to celebrate pumpkin season (which does not end until after Thanksgiving.)

My daughter loves muffins. Being that she is becoming quite a picky eater (:-/) with a very limited palette, I get very excited when I find something she likes. She likes muffins and other breakfast breads. (She can put away waffles like nobody's business.)

So the natural muffin of choice for Fall is of course, Pumpkin! Luckily, (deep sigh of relief) she likes them! (I spent a very long time and took some very beautiful pictures of some savory zucchini muffins that she would ONLY spit out at me. I think "savory" is the off-putting word for her. Personally, I did not find them too great either, so I am not going to share that cooking experience. Bummer.)

I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com and it calls for honey and whole wheat flour. Therefore they are somewhat more healthy than what they could be. There is only 1/2 cup of sugar (brown sugar) in the whole recipe which I think is pretty good and the whole wheat flour adds some essential nutrients. It also calls for raisins which are a favorite in my home. (A favorite of Everleigh's that is, I won't eat them unless they are in a baked good!) I used golden raisins because that is what I had. Also, we are a nut free home so the walnuts were eliminated.

Here is the recipe directly from the source:

Pumpkin Wheat Honey Muffins

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raisins
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan, or line with paper liners. Place the raisins in a cup, and add enough hot water to cover. Let stand for a few minutes to plump.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in the center, and put in eggs, pumpkin, oil and honey. Mix just until the dry ingredients are absorbed. Drain excess water from raisins, and stir in along with the walnuts.
3. Spoon into muffin cups so they are about 2/3 full.
4. Bake for 18 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool in the pan before removing from cups.