Pumpkin White Chocolate Muffins

I have a confession to make..... I am not a big fan of anything that is made with pumpkin.  I can't lie I have carved enough of them over the years and saw the lovely ooey gooey insides that it didn't help with my aversion to pumpkin-made things.  So, unless I asked to make them for something I didn't, until recently.

I was discussing with my husband want he wanted me to make for Thanksgiving dinner.  He had this look like he wanted a pumpkin pie, but he knew it would be a waste to make an entire pie just for him.  I told him I would see what I could find on the internet.  I thought I could find something that was a mini version or something similar.  I figured it wouldn't be hard since I have found recipes for mini cheesecakes and individual pineapple upside down cakes.  I didn't search long before I found a recipe for muffins.  I found it originally on Pinterest, then found the original post on Culinary Concoctions by Peabody.  Here is the direct link to the web page....  http://www.culinaryconcoctionsbypeabody.com/2012/09/04/pumpkin-white-chocolate-chip-muffins/

If you don't feel like going over the page here is the recipe:

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins

1/2 cup of walnuts, chopped
1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
4 oz unsalted butter, melted
6 oz white chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, spices, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
3. In another bowl, mix together the eggs, vanilla bean paste, pumpkin, and unsalted butter. Add in the chocolate chips and nuts.
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix until the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not over mix.
5. Scoop batter into greased or paper cup lined muffin cups. Bake for about 20-22 minutes or until puffed and springy to the touch. Cool then remove from cups. Makes 12 muffins.

I only made a few slight adjustments to fit my needs.  First was I didn't add the walnuts.  Truth, I just don't care for baked goods with nuts in them.  The second item I changed was the vanilla bean paste.  I just used pure vanilla extracted.  I did this mainly because I didn't know what vanilla bean paste was or how to make it.  The extract worked just fine in my opinion.  One thing I found out was if you use regular muffin tins, you can get about 18 muffins instead of 12.

This is a picture of one the many batches I made.

Ok, I will admit these muffins have definitely changed my mind about pumpkin.  They were soooo good.  The white chocolate gave them a very nice sweet taste.  They have been something I have made several batches.  They even have made me think of trying some more things with pumpkin.  I guess I need to hit the internet again and see what I can find.

Next time I will talk about a blueberry lemon loaf that I tested out with some very good results.

Until next time...... Happy Baking!

Happy Holidays!

I realized I missed Thanksgiving, but I have been working everyday since then.  Things are starting to get a little hectic for me, so I am going to apologize now if I seem to disappear until after Christmas.  But, I do have a few things happening between now and then. I'll get to them in a moment.

First things first...... I made and delivered my first order for Thanksgiving.  From my understanding everything was good.  I never a got am official yes, but I am assuming if something was wrong I would have been told.  I made 2 pies and 6 creme brulee.  I am hoping this order may lead to others.  We shall see. (keeping fingers cross)

Pumpkin Pie

Maple Pecan Pie

I have 2 Christmas parties coming up in the next few weeks.  One of them has a Mexican theme, so I will be making a Strawberry Margarita Cake and somethings else.  I haven't decided yet what.  I have come across a few things that seem very promising.  I need to bounce the ideas off a few people and get their input.

The second one is "Breakfast with Santa" for the kids.  I need to make a breakfast item.  Believe it or not I am completely stumped at the moment.  I know I will think of something, but right now I am lost.  I'll let you know when I figure it out.

Lastly I will be making for myself and family a lemon meringue pie for Christmas.  I know it isn't scream holiday, but I like it and have fun making it. (also with the left over yolks, it gives me an excuse to make creme brulee again.....shhhhh, don't tell though)

Well, until next time..... Happy Baking!