Spiced Pumpkin Apple Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel

You know how annoying it is when stores put out Halloween decorations months early?

Or how odd it feels to see Christmas items on display in mid-October?

 

This post feels a little like that — early, seasonal, and maybe a bit premature.

But I couldn’t help myself.

If pumpkin in August is wrong, I don’t want to be right.

I just missed autumn — the cooler air, the falling leaves, and everything pumpkin-spiced. Call it my personal utopia.

Fortunately, I had six (well, had) cans of pumpkin puree in the pantry waiting to be used.

I must have inherited the hoarding gene from Mother Lovett. At least my pumpkin doesn’t expire until 2012 — Mother Lovett’s might have been far older.

And she probably would have used it anyway.

 

I paired the pumpkin puree with juicy, grated apples and whole wheat pastry flour to make super moist, fluffy muffins. They turned out delicious — and undeniably orange.

You never know when a pumpkin emergency might strike. Last year I searched for canned pumpkin during a shortage and came up empty. My mom saved the day with a can she had — later I discovered it had expired the previous year. Clearly she inherited the expired-goods gene.

 

After that experience, I went back and bought every can of pumpkin I could find. Yes, I bought them all — the person who emptied the shelves. Sorry (but not really).

 

Pumpkin Apple Muffins

Makes about 12 muffins

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 egg

1/2 cup grated apple

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/4–1/2 cup milk

3 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. In a separate bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, egg, grated apple, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined.

Start by adding 1/4 cup milk and fold it in. If the batter still seems too thick, add more milk a tablespoon at a time until it reaches a scoopable consistency. Stir in the melted butter.

Spoon the batter into a muffin tin lined or greased, filling each cup about three-quarters full.

Bake for 15–20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool slightly before serving.

 

 

Clearly I need a muffin rehab intervention. If you imagine me experimenting day after day with new flavor combinations, you’re right — I do have a soft spot for testing different muffin ideas.