Because  what else is there to do when you’re snowed in?

Cranking up the oven is the perfect way to take the chill out of a drafty house in the middle of a blizzard, so as the brunt of winter storm Jonas made its way through New Jersey I made a batch of my favorite (somewhat healthy) muffins.

This recipe is adapted from my aunt’s pumpkin bread recipe (she’s been making batches of the most delicious pumpkin loaves since before pumpkin was trendy). I’ve added some more nutritional ingredients, like flax meal and unsweetened applesauce, while keeping the hearty, spicy goodness of the recipe in tact.

These muffins are moist and full of wintry flavors, making them the perfect treat to wake up to on a snowy morning. Who says pumpkin is only for the fall anyway? (I’m looking at you, Starbucks.)

For the muffins:

Yields 12 standard muffins or 6 large muffins (pictured)

Wet ingredients

• 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 1/2 cups pumpkin purée

Dry ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/8 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 1/8 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1 tablespoon flax meal

 

Preheat the oven to 425°F, and whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, stir together the wet ingredients. Then, stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture in small parts, stirring until just combined after each addition.

Next, grease a muffin tin with cooking spray, and use an ice cream scoop to fill each cup 3/4 of the way to the top. For large muffins, bake at 425°F for ten minutes and another 20 minutes at 325°F. For smaller muffins, they may only need an additional 15 minutes in the lower temperature oven.

Let the muffins cool for about 5 minutes in the tin, then pop them out and let them continue to cool on a wire rack. Or eat one (or 3) while they’re still warm. Yum.

Happy baking!