Healthy Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Muffins

These wholesome pumpkin muffins are my quintessential Autumn bake.

They’re rustic and homely, featuring warming spices and pumpkin purée. They’re a delicious mid-morning or afternoon pick-me-up, and if you’re after healthy ideas for breakfast, they’ll serve you well and are perfect for taking on-the-go (like this dessert-for-breakfast pumpkin pie overnight oats!).

Fun fact: unlike other’s abroad (US friends, I’m looking at you), it’s not common to bake sweet treats with pumpkin in New Zealand. So, if this is your first time using pumpkin this way, I hope these muffins squash (geddit?) any apprehension.

Gather Ingredients

• Homemade or canned pumpkin purée. For a DIY purée, simply blend boiled, skinless pumpkin until silky smooth. I like using butternut squash for baking, as it’s nice and sweet. If using canned (common in the USA), make sure it’s 100% pure pumpkin, without any added flavours or sweetener.
• Flour. For a gloriously rustic crumb, use a blend of flours: plain flour (regular or gluten-free) and almond flour (made from finely ground almonds). You’ll typically find the latter in your supermarket’s baking or nut section.
• Extra virgin olive oil. Replaces butter, making these dairy-free. Choose a mild oil to avoid a strong flavour (usually indicated on the bottle).
• Warming spices. A blend of ground cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, otherwise substitute in a pumpkin pie spice mix in equal measure.
• Pure maple syrup. To sweeten the deal (and dial up the fall flavours🍁).

You’ll also need the basics: eggs (size 7 or large, aka 62g each); baking powder to help the muffins rise; and salt to oomph the flavours.

Kitchen Tips

Giving these almond flour pumpkin muffins a try? Here are tried-and-tested tips:

• Measure flour accurately. Packing flour into a cup (aka pressing it up against the inside of a bag or container) is a one way ticket to dry, dense muffin. Instead, spoon flour into a measuring cup and level off with a knife.
• Use puréed, not mashed, pumpkin. By weight, a cup of puréed pumpkin is heavier and denser than a cup of mashed pumpkin. We don’t want to skimp on it, as that means less moisture and pumpkin flavour.
• Don’t over mix the batter, I repeat. For light and tender muffins, gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together with a spatula until just combined.
• Use non-stick liners, silicone muffin cases, or grease your tin well to prevent sticking. I find a quick brush of the pan with olive oil does the trick! Once baked, a cheese knife is great to help set free from the tray.
• Use an ice cream scoop with a trigger to load batter into muffin cups. It’s efficient, helps with even portions, and is less messy then using a spoon.

Serving & Storage

These muffins make a delicious breakfast slathered with almond butter or a lick of cream cheese. Otherwise, they’re also perfect as is for a sweet snack, paired with a mug of tea.