Break out the Pumpkin, it's Muffin Time!
Bring on the cool weather! The heat was brutal this past summer in Japan, and the temperature is finally being reasonable. Plus, with it being fall that basically makes it okay to add pumpkin to literally everything. Am I obsessed with Pumpkin spice lattes? No. Do I enjoy pumpkin? Hell yeah! It has a mildly sweet and comforting flavor that pairs perfectly with spices. And I LOVE spices!
In Japan, pumpkins used for cooking are quite different than the ones in the U.S. The skin is a dark green and much thinner. This means, you can actually eat the skin and don’t have to bother slicing it off or whatever. Plus, they taste great; but I have to say a little different than the ones I’m used to in desserts. Over here, people aren’t as nuts about pumpkin flavored sweets. Sweet potato on the other hand….
I actually adopted this muffin recipe from Catz in the Kitchen. I kept the same measurements of most ingredients, added some, but also changed some of the ingredients to suit what I had in my arsenal. They came out nicely. My friends at least, were very pleased with them.
Spiced Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanila extract
1 1/2 cups rye flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp ground turmeric
1/3 tsp ground nutmeg
a dash of ground ginger
About a cup and a half (I honestly just eyeball it) of chocolate disks, chips, or chopped
Preheat oven to 200C or 400F
Beat the sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs together in a large bowl. Add the pumpkin puree, vanilla, and milk. Mix to combine. In a separate, smaller bowl, add the rest of the dry ingredients together and whisk to incorporate. Or, if you’re like me, just add the dry ingredients right into the wet stuff and forget about the second bowl. Lastly, add your chocolate right before the dry ingredients are fully combined, then finish the job until there are no more streaks of flour.
Prepare a muffin tin with pretty liners and scoop batter to fill about 2/3 of the way. Bake for 20-25 minutes, depending on your oven. You can always check for doneness with a toothpick. Enjoy with a mug of hot spiced chai!
