Simple and Sweet Pumpkin Muffins

Fall inspired baking commenced this past weekend. Saturday morning Doodle Bug woke up with a hankering for a pumpkin muffin. I didn't want to eat at Panera's again (where I knew they had pumpkin muffins), so off we went on a Mother-Daughter quest for the elusive pumpkin muffin. We first went to Sweet Theory, a local amazing vegan bakery, but they were not open. We then walked down the street and around the corner to the fabulous Cool Moose Cafe. Cool Moose has FABULOUS muffins that they slather with butter and GRILL for your gluttonous pleasure, but blueberry and morning glory muffins were not on Doodle Bug's immediate agenda (no matter that mom's mouth was watering at the thought of the crunch of the grilled muffin crust).  So, off we went to Einstein Bagels, where at long last, the pumpkin muffin was discovered. She gobbled up her muffin in record time while I sipped my pumpkin spice coffee and reflected on the fun that we had seeking out our breakfast.

Finally! A pumpkin muffin!

Doodle Bug LOVES pumpkin. Have I mentioned that before? Probably at least 20 times by now. We first recognized her affinity for all things pumpkin last fall. I, on the other hand, do not enjoy the taste of pumpkin. I adore the spices used in fall baking, but the taste and texture of pumpkin does not strike my fancy. I find it hysterical that our little super, super, S-U-P-E-R picky eater loves pumpkin. It's great for her nutritionally, so I encourage the regular intake of this orange/slimy food (blasphemy, I know).

So, after our morning fun I decided to take a shot at my own pumpkin muffins for her. I found a great recipe online, and I just adapted it to make it a little healthier for my toddler that doesn't understand portion control when it comes to pumpkin.

Okay, so on with the recipe already....

Ingredients:

• 1 can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie)
• A few TBSP maple syrup (because our family has a slight obsession with the maple goodness)
• 2 eggs
• 1-1/2 cup applesauce
• 2-1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 TBSP pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda

Maple Vanilla Glaze Ingredients:

• A TBSP maple syrup
• 1/4  tsp good vanilla extract (I just Mexican vanilla) 
• a little confectioners sugar (maybe a TBSP)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine pumpkin, applesauce, sugars, and maple syrup.
3. add in eggs and beat until combined.
4. sift together flour, pumpkin pie spice,salt, and baking soda.
5. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet- just mixing enough to incorporate all ingredients. 
6. Use a large scoop and prepare muffin pans (either use paper cups or spray)
7. Bake for 25 or so minutes (until inserted tooth pick comes out clean).
8. Cool on wire racks before storing. 
9. Combine ingredients for glaze and drizzle over top.

   

   little minis

Yield: 24 muffins; about 80 mini muffins (bake minis for 10-15 minutes)


I have also made this recipe adding in chocolate chips-- that was a hit with my middle school students!

Enjoy!

Track Meet Muffins

What to do with leftover bananas from the husband's high school district track meet? Make banana muffins! I didn't already have a recipe that I LOVED, so I searched banana muffin recipes on my All Recipes app on my nifty I Phone until I found one that I could use as a base recipe. The recipe I decided on had a five star rating (with 2,058 ratings under its belt)! Wow, if that many people were impressed, I knew I just had to try it!

This was a use whatever is in the pantry/ refrigerator recipe, so I tried to add a little something for each one of us to make it incorporate our favorite flavors. For Doodle Bug I added raisins, for the husband I added my homemade spice blend, and for myself I added dried apricots and craisins. I always like to add in yummy extras to suit my family's taste buds.I also took the liberty of squeezing in a little iron and omega 3 by adding flax :)

This recipe is super easy! I'll include the original recipe ingredient list first-- then I will add my extra ingredients spin on it.

Base recipe from All Recipes:

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 large bananas, mashed
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg 
• 1/3 cup butter (softened)

What I added:

• 1/2 cup organic flaxseed meal 
• a handful of rasisins
• a handful of craisins 
• a handful of dried apricots
• 1/2 teaspoon homemade Pumpkin Pie spice blend (you can find my recipe here)
• 1/4 teaspoon ceylon cinnamon (once you go Ceylon, you NEVER go back!)
• 1/2 teaspoon Madagascar vanilla extract

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 and prepare muffin tins.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment,cream softened butter and sugar
• add mashed banana
• add vanilla extract 
• add egg
• In a small bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and spice blend.
• Fold in flour mixture, dried fruit, and flax (do not over mix-- will make tough muffins)
• For large muffins-- bake for 20-25 minutes or until inserted toothpick is clean

Yield:  approximately 17 large muffins

Enjoy!

Grab and Go Oat Muffies

LOVE to experiment with toppings!

On a money saving kick and needing to find cheap, yummy, healthy, and quick morning snacks, I hit Pinterest hard until I found pictures and recipes that inspired me to kick it full gear in the kitchen. Cheap, yummy, healthy, and quick-- now that's a tall order to fill.  I found solace in two blogs KatieGrauke.com and Sugar-Free Mom. I took ideas from both recipes, and raided my stocked pantry and refrigerator for a few extra ingredients. The whole purpose of these muffies focused on using what we already had in our fridge/ pantry... hence no extra money spending! I encourage you to take the "Everything but the Kitchen Sink Challenge" as well :)

I LOVE that these oat muffies can be personalized with many different toppings, but what I love MORE than the toppings is that they can also double as lactation support muffins! Oats, dried fruit, flax, brewer's yeast... all of these boost milk supply!

Blueberry!

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 1/4 cup homemade applesauce (sugar-free mom calls for 2   cups-- all I had left of Doodle Bug's applesauce was 1 1/4 cup)

• 1 mashed banana

• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar (husband is allergic to artificial sweeteners/ substitutes)

• 1/4 white sugar

• 2 Tablespoons softened butter

• 2 3/4 cups milk

• 5 cups oats

• 1/4 cup flax seed meal (we use the golden)

• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon

• 1 1/4 teaspoon All Spice

• 2 Tablespoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 Tablespoon Brewer's Yeast

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In a stand mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment), cream butter and white and brown sugar.
3. Add eggs (one at a time), beat well after each egg
4. Add vanilla, mashed banana, and applesauce and mix together
5. In a large mixing bowl, stir together oats, brewer's yeast, flax, cinnamon, all spice, salt, and baking powder.
6. Turn mixer on lowest speed and scoop (I use one of Doodle Bug's little cups) oat mixture into wet mixture. Mix only until all ingredients are incorporated. 
7. Pour milk into mixture and stir to combine.
8. Spray muffin tins and fill 3/4 full (I use a large cookie scoop).
9. Add toppings as desired and bake for 30 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Yield: 30-31 muffins 

Toppings I used:

For Doodle Bug and mom:

1. (16) I added frozen blueberries and dried cranberries to the mixture 
2. (6) For a few of the muffins I added frozen blueberries and raspberries

For husband:

1. (3) Dark chocolate, walnut, and coconut (left over from German Chocolate Cake) 
2. (3) Dark Chocolate chunks on top with dried cranberries in the mixture
3. (3) Peanut butter chips and walnuts added to the top 

TIP: When making these again I would use muffin liners- In the spirit of the challenge I didn't go buy them today, but next time I will-- would just make them easier to store/ freeze.

Morning Muffies

Little Miss Muffie is now starting to eat more solids due to the fact that in the past 2 1/2 months she has gone from teething zero to teething hell. Seven teeth (including 3 molars) in 10 weeks?? Am I just a naive first time mom, or is this some record of Olympic proportions?? So, if there are copious amounts of misspelled words or grammatical errors included in this post... chalk it up to serious lack of mama sleep. Yes, I know that I am an English teacher, but can't a lady get a night off?? ;)

Doodle Bug became so attached to her daily muffins that I am constantly challenging myself to find yummy new and creative ways to incorporate necessary fruits and veggies in her daily diet via muffies. For a few solid weeks muffies were ALL THE CHILD WOULD EAT! Now, even though she will eat other foods, she still loves to have her morning muffie. 


This week's muffins are inspired by Keeping Up with the Joneses: Banana Oatmeal Muffins. If you haven't checked out that blog... what are you waiting for... hit it up right now! They seem like such a sweet/nice couple... and they have just had their first child a few days ago! How exciting :)

So, here's what I made for my little bug this week. Hopefully they will keep her satisfied while I am in Atlanta this weekend for a Bachelorette Party! She has mama's milk in the freezer and muffies for a treat!

One Smart Cookie rendition of Banana Oatmeal Muffins 

Lil Miss Muffie's Morning Muffie

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not the quick cooking)
1 cup Greek yogurt
2 ripe bananas (speckled)
2 eggs
1/3 cup applesauce (I make my own, but you could easily use the prepackaged applesauce cups) This replaces the oil in the baking... yummier and healthier for Miss Muffie
3/4 cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt

Directions:

1.  In a food processor or blender, grind up the oats... make a "flour" consistency... it will be a little lumpy. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350.
3. In a stand mixer, beat together the brown sugar and applesauce. 
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
5. Add vanilla extract.
6. In a small mixing bowl, smash bananas and stir together with Greek Yogurt. 
7. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together oat "flour", salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
8. Add oat mixture alternately with banana mixture to egg mixture a little bit at a time. Beat between each addition. 
9. Spray muffin tins with non stick spray and use a large cookie scoop to fill each 3/4 full. 
10. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until inserted tooth pick comes out clean.

Yield: about 16-17 large muffins- think perfectly baked single serving of your morning banana/brown sugar oatmeal.  This recipe tastes more like a bowl of oatmeal than a muffin.

Little Miss Muffie will only eat Muffins

 **Little Miss Muffie herself... helping to gather all the ingredients for mommy**

Lately we have been calling Doodle Bug "Little Miss Muffie" because the child will ONLY EAT MUFFINS! She is 14 months old and currently cutting two molars, so I don't blame her for the picky eating. Due to her particular palate, I have recently become more adventurous with my muffin recipes. 

Goodbye are the days of blueberry and banana.... and hello to Mama on veggie patrol. 

My MIL and I have been making muffins back and forth for the past few weeks trying to make sure Little Miss Muffie is meeting as many of her food groups as possible. 

The most recent muffin creation has come from my husband's Nana's recipe for zucchini/carrot/bran bread. Lately MIL has been sharing many of Nana's recipes-- I wish I had met her...

Here's the recipe I used:

3 eggs
1 cup fresh applesauce (instead of oil)
1 1/2 brown sugar (packed)
1 cup zucchini grated and drained
1 cup carrots grated
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 bran cereal 
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon all spice

Preheat oven to 350.
In stand mixer beat eggs with applesauce. Stir in sugar, zucchini, carrots, and vanilla. 
In a large bowl sift flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and all spice.
Add bran cereal to the wet ingredients.
Mix in the dry ingredients. 

Bake in muffin tins for 30 minutes (makes 2 dozen)