Sugar-And-Pumpkin Spice Muffins

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Gently spiced and delicately sweet, these pumpkin muffins are a welcome treat on autumn mornings.

Sugar-and-Pumpkin Spice Muffins
Photo: Photographer: Antonis Achilleos; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Styling: Christina Daley
Active Time:
25 mins
Total Time:
1 hrs 40 mins
Yield:
22 muffins

It's easy to reach for canned pumpkin when baking—it's a reliable store-bought shortcut—but there's nothing quite like freshly roasted pumpkin in baking, especially in these pumpkin muffins. It's not all that hard to do either! Simply throw a whole sugar pumpkin in the oven, and let the heat work its magic. Then scoop out the seeds, separate the skin from the flesh, and mash—or throw it in the food processor for a quick spin.

In a hurry? You can use canned pure pumpkin puree. It won't be quite the same, but the canned stuff makes these Sugar-and-Pumpkin Spice Muffins into an easy weekday breakfast option, instead of a weekend baking project. Canned puree or not, don't skip the sprinkle of sugar and pumpkin spice on top of the muffins. The mixture forms a crackly and sweet muffin top that glistens beautifully and adds a nice crunch to these tender muffins.

Ingredients

  • 1 whole (3-lb.) sugar pumpkin

  • 2 eggs

  • 2 cups granulated sugar

  • ½ cup melted butter

  • ¼ cup milk

  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract

  • 2 ½ cups self-rising flour

  • 1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice

Topping

  • cup sugar

  • 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Directions

  1. Bake sugar pumpkin on a large rimmed baking sheet at 400°F until fork-tender, 45 to 60 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Cut pumpkin open; scoop flesh from skin. Discard skin and seeds. Mash with a fork; transfer 1 1/2 cups to a large bowl (reserve remaining pumpkin for another use).

  2. Whisk in eggs, sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir in self-rising flour and pumpkin pie spice until just combined. Divide among 2 (12-cup) muffin trays lined with 22 paper liners.

  3. Make Topping: Stir together sugar and pumpkin pie spice; sprinkle over top.

  4. Bake at 350°F until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 22 minutes. Cool in tray 5 minutes.

Tips

In a hurry? Use 1 1/2 cups pure pumpkin puree from a 15-ounce can.

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