Pumpkin maple muffins

An almost-guilt-free fall treat

'Tis the season for pumpkin, so I went in search of a healthy-ish take on one of my favorite fall things: pumpkin muffins. These came out looking more like nuggets than perfectly-formed muffins, but that could be because I was out of eggs and had to make do with what I had on hand. The original recipe from Cookie + Kate calls for eggs, but do what you like and use what you've got. My recipe tweaks are below.

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PUMPKIN MAPLE MUFFINS

WHAT YOU'LL NEED
1/3 cup vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
1/2 cup good maple syrup or honey
2 eggs or 1/2 cup milk (I used vanilla almond)
1 cup pumpkin purée
1/4 cup milk (if skipping the eggs, add 3/4 cup milk total)
1 tsp baking soda
1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves or allspice
1 and 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup oats
chocolate chips and/or walnuts, to taste

WHAT YOU'LL DO
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease muffin pan.

2. In a large bowl, whisk oil and maple syrup or honey until smooth. Whisk in eggs or 1/2 cup milk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin purée and 1/4 cup milk, followed by baking soda, vanilla, and spices.

3. Fold in flour and oats until just combined. Add any mix-ins. 

4. Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops of muffins with a few oats and a dash of cinnamon. Bake 23 to 26 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow muffins to cool in pan, then move to a cooling rack.

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I love that these muffins aren't super sweet, and you can add mix-ins to taste. After some experimenting, it's chocolate chips for the win!