Pumpkin Apple Muffins

I’m pretty sure Mother Nature is in the middle of a raging case of PMS and since I’ve recently experienced my own bout of the same, I ain’t mad at her.

I’m just going to pretend that the 90-degree weather interspersed with days of heavy, dark clouds and rain is totally normal and completely Fall appropriate.

And I’m going to bake pumpkin recipes to my heart’s content.

And this one is going to the top of my favorites list. Or, at least, to the top of my favorite pumpkin recipes list.



One warning. As Alton would say, muffins aren’t supposed to be sweet. (Blah, blah, blah.) I like sweet and these are. Two cups of sugar. Need I say more?

And, on top of that (pun intended), there’s a sweet streusel topping that bakes into a crispy, sugary crust. Oh, mama. (Everything should have crispy, sugary crust. Everything.)

These are seriously wonderful. And especially delicious right out of the oven. Oh, who am I kidding? These were especially delicious cold the next morning. That’s right, I scarfed one as I was walking out the door to work, crumbs flying every which way.



I find it impossible not to eat the goods. No matter how often I stand in front of a mirror and curse my expanding waistline, I can’t keep my fingers off. It’s a problem. Just one of many.

Pumpkin Apple Muffins

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned or cooked pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups finely chopped peeled apples

Streusel
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 teaspoons cold butter or margarine

Directions
In a bowl, combine the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, pumpkin and oil. Stir into dry ingredients until just moistened. Fold in apples. Fill paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.

In a small bowl, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes (mine only needed 25, so keep an eye on 'em) or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Eat eight by yourself. (To make me feel better.)

(You can go here for a printer-friendly version of the recipe.)

(In case you live under a rock, tomorrow’s the big day.)
(This is very exciting.)
(Okay, I'm done now.)