Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffies

I love Panera. I generally eat there once a week. However, I'm not fond of their baked goods. What I've had has generally been very good but I just don't make a habit of buying/eating baked sweets that aren't of my own creation. With that said, my mother was raving about the pumpkin muffie she had on a recent vacation. For those not familiar with muffies, they are panera-speak for muffin tops (no, they're not the top of regular muffins with the rest discarded a la Seinfeld, they're baked in a shallow muffin tin). They also have a consistency somewhere between a cookie and a muffin; hence muffie, clever, huh? I found this recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip muffies and even though the first signs of summer just around the corner and it doesn't fit seasonally, it was just too good to pass up. The recipe calls for dropping rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets. I made one batch that way but found they didn't rise well so I made the rest in a muffin top pan, which I highly recommend.

In a related lawyer geek moment, I singed my thumb on a hot tin and as I was icing it down wondered if I qualified for worker's compensation.


Ingredients

• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Combine pumpkin, sugar, milk, and vegetable oil. Stir until combined.
2. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well.
3. Add vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts.
4. Drop by spoonful on parchment paper lined cookie sheet or fill muffin top pan to top and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.

Chocolate Chip Muffin Tops

After quite a few weeks of fruit flavored baking, I decided to make chocolate chip muffins this week. I found this recipe which, interestingly enough, calls for melted instead of creamed butter. Otherwise this recipe is pretty much like a standard chocolate chip cookie recipe but with a more liquid dough. I also decided to use a muffin top pan instead of regular muffin tin. I think they came out pretty well, they certainly smell delicious.

In blog related news, I ordered a kitchen aid stand mixer. I've lusted after them for years but have been put off by the high price. That is, until now. ShopKitchenAid.com is having a 30% off the entire store special if you enter coupon code REBCC30 at checkout. Surprisingly, this includes their outlet store, which sells refurbished models. I ordered a refurbished heavy duty / professional series 5 quart 475 watt bowl lift stand mixer for $139.00 shipped after coupon. Unfortunatly it's indefinitly backordered but I'm hoping that it will be available in two weeks as the site states. When it gets here I'll have a full report, until then here is this week's recipe.


Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup light-brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 (11 1/2 ounce) package milk chocolate chips


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Grease muffin top pan
3. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt.
4. In another bowl, stir together milk, eggs and butter until blended.
5. Make a well in center of dry ingredients.
6. Add milk mixture and stir just to combine and eliminate flour clumps.
7. Gently stir in chocolate chips.
8. Spoon batter into greased muffin cups.
9. Bake until golden brown and edges are slightly more brown. A toothpick should come out clean. Because each muffin top pan is different, you're going to have to keep your eye on them.
10. Cool in pan 5 minutes then remove to wire rack.