Inside-Out Pumpkin Muffins

Inside Out Muffins Goin’ Out of My Gourd
Maybe it’s the weather. Maybe it’s the fact that Fall is officially here. Then again maybe I’m just impatient since it’s not even October yet, but I have done gone pumpkin crazy.

I’ve noticed recently that any time I am in a position to be choosing a flavor for something, like a latte or a cookie, I find myself choosing the pumpkin option without fail or forethought.

This past weekend, I was overcome with the need to make pumpkin bread. Yes, the temperature was in the low 90s but I needed a pumpkin fix and it was worth a hot kitchen to get it.

Fall is my favorite time of the year so some version of my fall food mania is an annual occurrence. Of course, similar mania happens in the Spring with its fresh peas, and Summer with the arrival of stone fruit. I guess it’s fair to say that I’m just a year-round lunatic.

The intensity of my pumpkin craving is turned up a notch this year, and I am laying the blame at the feet of my flock. Thanks to the girls, there are no more squash plants of any kind. I am feeling a bit desperate.

The good news? There are many possibilities out there to satisfy my need for pumpkin. This recipe for Inside-Out Pumpkin Muffins is from my King Arthur Flour newsletter and is a perfect way to soothe any pumpkin addiction as well as a craving of equal intensity…

Inside-Out Pumpkin Muffins
Adapted from King Arthur’s Flours
Yields 12 regular muffins or 16 leaf muffins

Instead of being iced, these nicely spicy pumpkin muffins have a sweetened cream cheese center that bakes right along with the muffin. Moist, delicious, and attractive!

Ingredients
For the Muffins
1 cup pumpkin purée (about half a standard 15-ounce can)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup boiled cider (for best flavor), or dark corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice; or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves + 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup milk
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour

For the filling
8-ounce package cream cheese; low-fat is fine
1/4 cup granulated sugar
a few drops Fiori di Sicilia flavor, optional

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with muffin papers, and grease the papers. Or lightly grease a maple leaf pan.

Make the batter
To make the batter, whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, brown sugar, oil, boiled cider or corn syrup, salt, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and milk. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the flour and mix until well combined.

Make the filling
Place the cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat on low power for 40 seconds. Stir in the sugar and flavor.

Assemble the muffins
Drop about 2 tablespoons of the batter (a cookie scoop works well here) into each muffin cup, spreading it to cover the bottom. Dollop on a heaping tablespoon of filling, then cover with another 2 tablespoons of batter.

If you’re using maple leaf molds, drop about 1 1/2 tablespoons of batter into each of the 6 molds. Add a scant tablespoon of filling, and spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons batter on top. The recipe will make 16 maple leaves, so you’ll need to bake in batches.

Bake the standard muffins for 18 to 20 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out crumb-free. Bake the leaf muffins for 16 to 18 minutes, testing them the same way.

Remove the Inside-Out Pumpkin Muffins from the oven. After 5 minutes, gently loosen the edges of the leaf muffins, and turn the pan over onto a cooling rack; the muffins should drop out. For regular muffins, simply transfer them to a rack to cool.

 

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