Pumpkin Muffins

I love autumn.

One of my favourite flavours of the season is pumpkin.

At the end of September I love to pick up a few sugar pumpkins at the local orchard, cut them in half and roast them letting the smell of pumpkin permeate the kitchen and then filling little freezer containers with cupfuls of pumpkin puree to use throughout the season.

The puree is perfect for whipping up a batch of muffins for school lunches... or a quick breakfast as we head out the door.

I will admit they are not the prettiest muffins I make but they are full of fall flavour and honestly we don't end up looking at them for long before they get eaten anyway.

I love my food processor for recipes like this one. The oats and pumpkin seeds get thrown into the processor and are whizzed up for a few seconds into a coarse flour. If you choose not to do this you could just add the oats unprocessed (use quick oats - not instant) and replace the ground seeds with a 1/2 cup of extra flour or whole wheat flour.

When I originally made this recipe I used ground walnuts instead of pumpkin seeds - I have also used hemp hearts - they are all good.

Pumpkin Muffins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a large bowl mix together:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup ground oats (a quick whizz in the food processor is all the oats need)
3/4 cup ground pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt

In a separate bowl whisk together

1 cup pureed pumpkin
1/4 cup canola oil (melted butter works too)
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk (or plain yogurt or milk if that's all you have)

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir together until mixed. Scoop mixture into a lined muffin tin and bake in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

As an option after mixing the wet into dry ingredients you can add a cup of cranberries (fresh or frozen) and stir them in - with this option you may want to increase the sugar if you like muffins a little sweeter.

Enjoy!