Pumpkin Muffins

To roast your pumpkin (if you want to use homemade instead of canned) cut your pumpkin in half… horizontally, right across the middle…side to side of “the belly” area as my daughter calls it, so the top is intact and the bottom is intact. Place face down on a parchment or foil lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 35-40 minutes (it depends on the size of pumpkin used).

Check it, if it is all mushy they you are good to go…if not, then back into the oven it goes for another 15 minutes. Keep roasting until perfect. Once pulled from the oven, just let it sit as is for 30 minutes to cool, then scoop out the seeds (reserve for another use, and scrape all that beautiful pumpkin out leaving 2 “bowls” of pumpkin skin…which you can dry, then fill with decorations for fall/Halloween. Wonder if many, many years ago these were used as bowls??

Mash your pumpkin with a potato masher and place in a plastic bag until ready to use..keeps in the fridge for a few days or you can freeze it.

Scoop out 1 1/2 cups of pumpkin for this recipe and add ti it 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar.

Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add in the vanilla, then add in pumpkin mixture and eggs and beat until incorporated.

In a food processor, blend about 12 cookies until you have smooth crumbs, set aside.

In a medium bowl add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and cookie crumbs, whisk until combined. Add dry ingredients to your creamed batter and blend until combined.

Fill your muffin tin – either using cupcake liners or greasing your pan well.

In a small bowl combine topping ingredients, cut with a pastry blender or large fork or your fingers until you have a nice crumble, then sprinkle over muffins.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until tester inserted comes out clean.

Note – every once in a while you may get a pumpkin that is tasteless or just too watery…I always buy a few just in case. I roast them and freeze what I do not use for future recipes.