These are one of my most favorite of all Fall treats! I first had pumpkin chocolate chip muffins at a coffee house in Muncie, IN, while I was in grad school. It was called the MT Cup. Christy, (who just happens to have a pumpkin pancake recipe up today), Cindy and I would go there a lot and they had pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. So, so good. I started making these when I still lived in Indiana and I try to make them a couple of times each Fall. I can’t believe I didn’t remember them this year until Christy mentioned them Monday.
What a fun week — starting with a pumpkin recipe and ending with one!
This recipe is from the old stand-by Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook (the early 90’s edition). Below, I just upped the pumpkin by a 1/4 of a cup, added chocolate chips and topped the muffins with pecans.
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Dry:
1 3/4 cup flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of cloves (1/8 tsp or less)
Wet:
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup of milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 – 1 cup chocolate chips (depending on how chocolatey you want them)
1/4 cup pecans
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, stir together dry ingredients and make a well in the center. Combine wet ingredients (egg, pumpkin, milk & oil). Add pumpkin mixture all at once to flour mixture. Add chocolate chips. Stir until just moistened. Spray muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray (or line with paper cups). Fill 2/3 of the way full. Sprinkle top of each muffin with pecans. Bake 20-25 minutes until golden. (You can also use a toothpick in the center to check for doneness). Remove from pan and serve warm.
In kitchen gadget news…
Yesterday, I was wandering around Linens n Things (because I like both “linens” and “things”) and I saw one of those deals that a right-minded person can hardly pass up. A two-piece Calphalon Knife Set with a Chef’s Knife and a Santoku Knife for $29.95.
They have the same deal going at Cooking.com if you’re not by a Linens n Things. Plus, I think Cooking.com is doing a flat rate shipping special right now.
Close eyes and sighs, mmmm. See? Our love of the pumpkin goes way way back to the mid 90’s. Though our fondness for the muffin could have started with our crushes on the cute boys at the coffee shop, the frequenting of said coffee shop, and hence mutating into our fondness for the pumpkin.
Huh…I never really thought of it that way…
*laugh*
i want to move to your house! pumpkin mania. when are you and j coming to visit?
Dave, it sounds like you’re going to get plenty of tasty things in about a month! 🙂
Probably not for a while — i just started a new job (well, Monday) and I’m going to be taking time off for the holidays…probably no extra time off for a while.
But, you guys could always come visit Portland sometime, you know!
I forgot to mention that I have a lovely memory of being totally down in the dumps, having just come back late on a Sunday night from a trip to LA. Waiting for me at my house, was none other than a bag of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins and a 3 page handwritten letter of everything I had missed while I was away. It totally cheered me up!
Awwww…I’m nice! 🙂
Ok, I made these last night for everyone coming over. Though I did not eat any 🙁 they were quite the hit, and quite gone by the end of the night. I added ginger and allspice to make them pumpkinier.
Oh, good! I’m glad you liked them! Yeah, you know, in Muncie I never added pumpkin pie spices really, but today I made another batch and added more nutmeg (about 1/4 tsp) and some ground cloves (maybe 1/8 tsp) as well as changed the sugar to 1/4 cup white sugar + 2 tbsp brown sugar. I think I liked them even better!