Pumpkin Butter Morning Glory Muffins

65 CommentsSunday • March 29, 2009 • by Ari

For as long as I can remember rainy days have made me want to do two things: bake and jump in puddles. Today I did both, jumping in two huge puddles after teaching 5th grade all morning, then taking a long, hot shower before making a batch of Pumpkin Butter Morning Glory Muffins. Needless to say, today was a good day.

I don’t know where morning glory muffins get their name, but since these ones are packed with whole wheat flour, wheat germ, grated carrots, diced apples, raisins and walnuts, “morning glory” seems an apt name. What’s more glorious than a muffin like this in the wee hours of the day? You can bet your bottom dollar I’ll be eating one of these tomorrow morning as I sip a mug of coffee and watch the beginning of a Stargate SG-1 episode.

Pumpkin butter from Silverman’s Farm adds oomph to these muffins, giving them a touch of spice and a lot of moist, rich flavor. If you don’t have an establishment like Silverman’s Farm nearby, Trader Joe’s sells a pumpkin butter that I hear is pretty good, or you could try your hand at making it from scratch with a recipe like this. (Edit: Also, Stonewall Kitchen’s Maple Pumpkin Butter would be great in this recipe. Thanks to Kristina for reminding me about this one!)

Next up, a luscious homemade Tiramisu made with Storyville coffee. I hope to post the recipe on Wednesday or Thursday – until then!

(Psst, sign up for free updates via Feedburner if you want to be notified when the tiramisu recipe is published.)

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Don’t forget about the monthly book giveaway! February’s winners have been posted on the giveaway page. March’s book giveaway includes one copy of Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Breads, by Bernard Clayton.

Pumpkin Butter Morning Glory Muffins (My Recipe)
Ingredients: Makes 16 regular sized muffins or 8 jumbo muffins

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 cup pumpkin butter (Edit: Yes, apple butter would work!)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups grated carrots
• 1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 cup raisins or currants
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and lightly spray your muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray like PAM.

In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, egg whites, olive oil, pumpkin butter, vanilla and brown sugar. Make sure the brown sugar is thoroughly incorporated.

In a large bowl combine the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Now stir in the grated carrots, raisins, walnuts and chopped apple pieces. Add the pumpkin butter mixture and stir until the batter is just combined. Don’t over-stir the batter.

Spoon batter into muffin tins, filling each cup about 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes for regular sized muffins (cupcake sized) and for 25-30 minutes for jumbo muffins. The muffins are done when golden in color and when they spring back when lightly pressed.