Real Pumpkin...Not Canned

My aversion for anything in a can has been heightened over the years. Sometimes knowing can be a real pain in the pantry. On the other hand...avoiding preservative filled and other overly processed foods has opened me up to some real flavors that I have been missing over the years. It has surely boosted the nutrition factor in our diets.

Last year I made my first real pumpkin pie with... real pumpkin. I used pumpkins that came in our organic produce box that was being delivered to the house. It really isn't that hard to pre-cook a pumpkin. It takes about 1/2 a minute to split the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds. About the same amount of time it would take to open a can with a can opener. Was that really so hard? Then I just place it face down in a little water inside of a pyrex dish. I bake it for about 45 minutes at 350 and it's ready to go. While it cooks I pre-measure out all of my ingredients.

On a side note...I rinsed and set some of the seeds aside on a paper towel. I wrap them up when they dry and save them for next year. You could also roast the seeds if you wanted too.

So, this year I had one little sweet pumpkin survive the weevil infestation. I've been staring at it for a week on my counter. It's been calling to me to cook it and put it into something yummy. I found the winner this morning. Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins. OH YEAH!

The recipe I found called for canned pumpkin (of course) but I have found if you just leave out the additional water it calls for and add a tad more sugar...then you are good. I also made some other minor changes (wheat flour vs. white, added ginger because it is the best spice in the world...etc.) I'm officially claiming this as my recipe since I modified it so much. Try it and find out why real pumpkin is better than the stuff in the can with a thousand ingredients.

Makes 12 Muffins

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup organic white sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 small sweet pumpkin cooked and scrapped out
• 1 1/2 cups wheat flour (or you could use Red Mill Rice flour to avoid gluten)
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (I was out of baking soda...you can substitute more baking powder if this happens to you. The substitution ratio is 2 parts baking powder to 1 part baking soda)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
• 
  

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease and flour muffin pan.
2. Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add mashed pumpkin. In separate bowl mix together the baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.
3. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Sprinkle tops with extra brown sugar. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

Enjoy!