Pumpkin Muffins!!

Okay, so, while preparing for my wedding, with all my spare time (HA!), I whipped up this pumpkin muffin recipe, and baked muffins for us to take to the hotel for snacks.  Clearly I'm a crafty over-achieving bride.  Geez.  It seemed logical at the time though, I swear!


Muffins!

Anyway, I'm so in love with my muffin recipe I wanted to share it. It's just so perfect for this time of year.  Not just because of the pumpkin, but the spices warm it up, and feed the cold soul.  Anyway, here it is!

Mel's Pumpkin Muffins
Makes: 24+ cupcake-sized muffins, or 12 giant muffins & 2 cupcake-sized muffins

Ingredients 

•  2 ½ cups flour (cake or all-purpose - cake will make a softer muffin)
• 1 cup instant oatmeal
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 ½ tsp. salt
• 2 ½ heaping tsp. ground cinnamon 
• ½ tsp. ground cloves
• ¾ tsp. ground ginger
• 1 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup currents or raisins (plumped)
•  4 eggs
•  2 cups pure pumpkin puree
• ¾ cup milk
• ¾ cup oil

For the topping: 

• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup instant oatmeal
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 heaping tsp cinnamon
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. Line 24 cupcake-sized cups.
2. Prepare topping by mixing the topping ingredients together, cutting or pinching the butter into the dry ingredients to make a crumble. Set topping aside.
3. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk until well mixed. 
4. In another medium-sized bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and milk. Add pumpkin, and whisk until fully combined. Stir in plumped currents.
5. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, mixing until just combined.
6. Fill cups almost completely full. Sprinkle topping evenly on all muffins. Bake in a pre-heated 375° oven for 25 minutes or until tested done with a toothpick inserted in the centre of the muffin. (my old crappy apartment oven takes 30 minutes)