Pumpkin Muffins (Take 2)

Fall is here! One of the biggest indicators of the autumn season is the arrival of pumpkin everything--lattes, pies, you name it! I was in the mood for some pumpkin flavor of my own and thought way back to January, when my blog was still brand new and I made Pumpkin Muffins for the very first time. They were nothing less than magnificent, and really encouraged me to keep on baking. So I decided to make them again, this time making them with butter instead of oil and swapped out some of the white sugar for brown sugar because brown sugar improves everything!  I also tossed in some vanilla extract and nutmeg.

I started out by mixing the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in my stand mixer bowl.  In a separate medium sized bowl, I added the eggs, white and brown sugars, pumpkin puree, melted butter, and vanilla extract.  I beat the liquid ingredients until the mixture was smooth.

Next, I gradually added the liquid ingredients to the flour mixture while mixing.  I let the batter stir for 1-2 minutes until it was combined.

I scooped the batter into cupcake pans lined with papers and set them in the oven for about 17 minutes, when the toothpick test indicated they were ready.

Yes, yes and YES!  All of the swaps and additions made for one amazing muffin. They were great before and even better this time around; they came out so sweet and tasty that I'm avoiding stepping into the kitchen so I won't devour another!  Yet again, brown sugar proved to be just the right ingredient to add in, and I can't wait to share some of these with everyone I see in the next few days.  Pumpkin muffins have got me in the fall spirit, and now I think it's time to do some decorating around the house.

Pumpkin Muffins Recipe

Ingredients:

3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 can pumpkin puree (15 ounces)
1 1/2 cups melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt  in a large bowl and mix.  Beat eggs, sugars, pumpkin, and butter in a medium bowl until smooth then pour into the dry ingredients. Mix until blended, then scoop into cupcake pans lined with papers until 2/3 full.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until browned.  To test if a muffin has finished baking, poke the top of a muffin with a toothpick and it see if comes out clean.  Delicious.