I’ve been wanting to try this recipe for Pumpkin Spice Latte Muffins for a while. It has five things going for it:
- pumpkin
- espresso powder
- whole wheat pastry flour
- 3 Weight Watchers P+ per muffin
- it came from a site called “Cookin’ Canuck”
To top it off, the peanut butter banana honey muffins I like so much came from the same person, so I figured this would be another winner. And I was right! These are unbelievably fluffy in texture and rich with deep flavor, not to mention easy to whip together.
I started with dry ingredients: whole wheat pastry flour (which I love baking with as it brings a nice lightness to everything), baking soda, cinnamon (heaping teaspoon), freshly grated nutmeg (almost a teaspoon), cloves, and salt. I whisked.
Then I added the espresso powder to some very hot water, and stirred until all the powder had dissolved.
I put that aside to cool down to room temperature, and put the rest of the ingredients into the bowl of my stand mixer. This included Greek yogurt (2%), pumpkin, brown sugar (I used just a little less than the recommended 3/4 cup), canola oil, an egg, and the now-cooled espresso/water mixture.
I mixed on medium speed.
I added in the dry ingredients, and mixed on low speed.
The batter was nicely even and smooth. I scooped it into muffin cups.
Then I mixed natural cane sugar with cinnamon, and sprinkled it on top. I forgot to take a picture, though.
I’d heated the oven to 400 degrees. I put the muffins in and reduced to 375. The recipe said to bake for 25 minutes but I set the timer to 20. I checked early, which was good, because they were ready even sooner, maybe about 18/19 minutes.
They looked and smelled wonderful.
I let them sit in there just long enough to avoid burning my fingers, then got them out of the pan and onto a rack for cooling. Here’s a photo of a batch I made many months later, which is why they look so different:
These are wonderful. Fluffy light texture, deep rich espresso-pumpkin flavor, just delightful. Sophisticated, ever so slightly, but definitely a treat and a healthy one at that. I have to look at the rest of the recipes on this site. Two for two.
WHOLE WHEAT PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE MUFFINS RECIPE (original)
My version of Pumpkin Spice Latte Muffins (re-worked and re-adapted 12/3/13)
ingredients:
2/3 + 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (scant) freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons espresso powder
2 tablespoons hot water
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup plain low fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large egg
splash of vanilla extract
cinnamon sugar, for sprinkling (I used a blend in a grinder, but you can easily combine sugar & cinnamon)
directions:
Heat oven to 400 degrees, you will reduce the temperature later. Grease or line a 12-cup muffin tin.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, wheat germ, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, cloves, and salt. Whisk well.
In a small bowl, stir the espresso powder and the hot water until the powder dissolves. Let cool to room temperature.
Using a stand mixer (or a hand mixer), beat the pumpkin, yogurt, sugar, oil, egg, and vanilla at medium speed. Add the espresso mixture and beat again.
Add the dry ingredients and mix briefly on low speed, then finish mixing by hand, stirring just until no flour pockets remain.
Scoop the batter into muffin cups and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.
Put the tray in the oven and reduce temperature to 375. Bake for 15-22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins sit in the pan for 5 more minutes, then remove to a wire rack.
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