Mini Pumpkin Spice Muffins

For the muffins:
Place a rack in the center position of the oven and preheat to 375 F. Spray a 24-count mini muffin pan with baking spray; set aside. Recipe makes 48 so if you have two pans then prep both.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, milk powder, baking powder, salt, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. Add the shortening and use the flat paddle or BeaterBlade attachment to mix until the shortening is no longer visible. Add the pumpkin puree and beat just until all the ingredients are fully incorporated. Use a #50 scoop to portion half of the batter into the prepared mini muffin pan. Bake muffins for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. Repeat with the rest of the batter.

For the topping:
In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Just before serving, dip the top of each mini muffin in melted butter, followed by the cinnamon sugar.

Notes:
1. Recipes makes 48 mini muffins.
2. If you prefer, you can substitute 1 sifted box of dry spice cake mix (15-16 ounce size box) for the first 9 ingredients listed. So basically just add a can of pumpkin puree to a box of dry cake mix. Then bake as detailed above.