Pumpkin never goes out of season and, in fact, is more desirable now because it’s not EVERYWHERE! Pumpkin puree is always on the shelf as well; don’t use pie mix, make sure it’s the puree. Also note that Olympic Dairy has a great line of creamy yougurt, Greek-style Krema. This fall they sent over pumpkin for us to try and we decided to mix some of it up into muffins. It was a limited edition and it’s off the shelf now, but the plain works just as well!
INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
1 cup pumpkin or plain yogurt (we like Olympic Krema)
3 cups pumpkin purée (NOT pumpkin pie mix but canned fine)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 lb. unsalted butter, melted
4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
3 Tbs. ground cinnamon
3 Tbs. ground ginger
Pinch cloves
1-1/2 cups golden raisins
Optional – 1 cup chopped peacans or walnuts
Heat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, yougurt, pumpkin purée, brown sugar, sugar, and butter. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and pepper. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, stirring until just mixed. Gently fold in the raisins and nuts. Grease and flour a muffin tin (or line it with muffin papers). Scoop 1/2 cup batter into each tin so that the curve of the batter is even with the rim of the cup. (Refrigerate any extra batter in an airtight container for up to a week.) Bake the muffins in the middle of the oven until firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into them comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Remove the muffins from the tin when they’re cool enough to handle.
