Pumpkin muffins
Pumpkin muffins have a moist, silky golden-orange crumb, warmly scented with a spice blend of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Pumpkin puree gives them a natural color and keeps them soft for days, while a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds on top adds a pleasant nutty crunch.
- Difficulty
- Very easy
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rising or chilling
- 15 min
- Total time
- 55 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Batter
Pumpkin seed topping
Instructions
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a twelve-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Pumpkin batter is heavy and moist, so it needs a moderate heat to bake evenly right through to the center. The oven is ready when the heating light goes off for the first time.
Step 2
Stir together 250 g all-purpose flour, 5 g baking soda, 4 g baking powder, a pinch salt and 6 g pumpkin pie spice in a bowl. Mixing the spice into the flour first spreads it evenly, with no pockets that are too spicy or too bland. The dry mix is ready when it's an even light brown.
Step 3
In a large bowl, stir 300 g pumpkin puree with 100 g granulated sugar, 100 g brown sugar and 100 g eggs, then add 110 g vegetable oil, 60 g whole milk and 5 g vanilla extract. The pumpkin needs to be whisked smooth with the sugar first so there are no stringy lumps in the muffins. The mixture is ready when it's smooth, deep orange and as thick as a sauce.
Step 4
Sprinkle the dry mix into the pumpkin bowl and gently fold it in with a flat spatula just until the streaks of flour disappear. Pumpkin batter is naturally moist, so a little mixing is all it needs; overmixing makes the muffins dense. The batter is ready when it's thick, glossy and slides slowly off the spatula.
Step 5
Spoon the batter into the paper liners until they're about four-fifths full, then sprinkle 25 g pumpkin seeds and 10 g granulated sugar over the tops. The sugar on top forms a slightly crunchy crust, and the pumpkin seeds toast right in the oven. You've got it right when each muffin has a few pumpkin seeds and a speckling of sugar on top.
Step 6
Bake at 180°C for 20 to 25 minutes, until the muffins have domed, the tops are dry and slightly cracked. Pumpkin muffins can stay wet in the middle, so don't take them out too early. They're done when a skewer inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs and no wet batter.
Step 7
Leave the muffins in the pan for ten minutes, then move them to a rack to cool. Hot muffins have a very soft crumb, and a short rest helps them hold their shape and peel easily from the paper. They're ready when the liners come away from the muffins without taking any crumb with them.
Equipment
- Oven
- Muffin tin
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Kitchen scale
- Mixing bowl
- Wire cooling rack
Tips
- If you steam your own pumpkin, drain it very well or cook it dry in a skillet for a few minutes before mashing.
- If you don't have a ready-made spice blend, mix ground cinnamon with a little ground ginger, nutmeg and cloves.
- The muffins taste even better the next day, once the spices have had time to soak through the crumb.
Storage
The muffins keep for three days at room temperature in an airtight container, or five days in the fridge. You can freeze them for up to a month, thaw them overnight in the fridge, then let them sit out for a little while before eating.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The crumb is wet and sticky in the middle.
- The pumpkin puree held too much water or the muffins didn't bake long enough. Drain the pumpkin more thoroughly and bake for a few more minutes.
- The muffins taste bland, with little spice flavor.
- The spices were old and had lost their aroma. Use a freshly opened jar of spice or add a little more ground cinnamon.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
