Pecan pie muffins

Easy & yummy as pie

It's Saturday morning and you want to bake a sweet something. But you don't have the usual cast of characters like bananas, pumpkin, or blueberries - so what's a baker to do? If you have pecans in the house like I did, you're in luck!

Not only do these muffins come together easy-peasy (no hand mixer needed — I love that kind of simplicity in the morning), but they're also an immediate crowd pleaser. My family raved that they're as good as (or better than) our favorite Christmas morning muffins. In my house, that's saying a lot.

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PECAN PIE MUFFINS

WHAT YOU'LL NEED: 
1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla

WHAT YOU'LL DO: 
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour the cups of a muffin pan (I got nine muffins out of this recipe). 

2. In a bowl, combine brown sugar, chopped pecans, flour, and baking powder. *Note: The original recipe says to firmly pack the brown sugar, but I just measured 1 cup without firmly packing. The muffins were plenty sweet anyway! 

3. Whisk eggs until foamy. Stir together eggs, melted butter, and vanilla. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined.

4. Pour into prepared muffin tins, filling the cups about 2/3 full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. When done, use a knife to loosen the muffins from the pan if necessary, then move to a rack to cool.

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Did I mention that these muffins are perfectly named? They really do taste like pecan pie. While the original recipe says they're best right out of the oven (and they are great that way) I liked them even more after they sat a while. Speaking from experience, you'll be skeptical at first; the brown sugar gives the cooled muffins a rather hard, rock-candy crust. You'll think "Oh my God! These are going to break everyone's teeth!" But inside, the muffins are still soft and wonderfully nutty. Next time, I'm making a double batch.