Pumpkin Puffins

Years ago we used to make a favorite recipe called "Cinnamon Puffins."  These Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins are a pumpkin version of my old puffin recipe, so I am dubbing these the Pumpkin Puffins!  So yummy! 


The recipe came from Martha Stewart.  I did make a few changes to the recipe as follows:  I did not have unsalted butter, so I used salted.  I only had 1/4 cup brown sugar in the house, so I used 1/4 cup of brown and 1/2 of white sugar.  I used a mini muffin pan instead of making standard-size muffins.  Instead of brushing the baked muffins with butter, I dipped them in the melted butter and then rolled them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Pumpkin Puffins

Yield:  12 muffins or 48 mini muffins

Ingredients:

For the Muffins:

• 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 1 1/4 cups pure pumpkin puree
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs

 For the Topping: 

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 °F.  Butter and flour 12 regular muffin cups or  48 mini muffin cups.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and allspice. In a small bowl, whisk together buttermilk and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping down bowl as needed. With mixer on low, add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions pumpkin mixture, and beat to combine.

Spoon 1/3 cup batter into each muffin cup and bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean, 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine granulated sugar and cinnamon. Let muffins cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack. Working with one at a time, remove muffins from pan, brush all over with butter, then toss to coat in sugar mixture. Let muffins cool completely on a wire rack.