Pumpkin Chip Muffins

There are a myriad of things I love about fall. From the smell of burning firewood to the sound of leaves crunching beneath my feet--it's all good for the soul kind of stuff that fall brings each year. But, my favorite thing of all the wonders of fall...pumpkin. Yep, just one look at that big orange gourd and I go weak in the knees. I love pumpkin. Pumpkin anything and everything. So, when I found this recipe that combines the awesomeness of chocolate, breakfast, and pumpkin, I just couldn't resist! And I promise you won't be able to either. Now, I must preface this recipe post by saying that this isn't one of my most healthy recipes. I did cut some of the calories out by using light butter instead of shortening (gasp!), but there are still enough chocolate chips and sugar in here to keep you bouncing off the walls for hours to come. Let's face it, there are just some things in life that need to remain rich and decadent. We were good all summer, right ladies? Right. 

Pumpkin Chip Muffins
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ingredients:

1 stick of salted light butter, softened (if you use unsalted butter, just add 1/4-1/2 tsp. of salt to the recipe)

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 Tbs. ground flaxseed (please omit this if you are pregnant or breastfeeding!)

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I'm pretty sure I used half a bag, who really needs to measure chocolate chips?)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, use a mixer to cream together the butter and the sugar. Add eggs in one at a time and mix well. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, flaxseed, and spices. Use a whisk to make sure all ingredients are well blended. Add the dry ingredients to the butter, sugar, and egg mixture and mix well with either a hand mixer or wooden spoon (I used the hand mixer). Add in the pumpkin and mix with a wooden spoon. Pour in the chocolate chips and incorporate them into the batter. Spray a muffin tin or line one with paper liners and fill each cup about 2/3 full. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into each muffin comes out clean. Makes roughly 14-16 muffins (if you fill the muffin tin cups as full as I did!). 

Extra tip: If you don't eat them piping hot straight from the oven you're crazy, I suggest splitting a few open and popping them in the microwave for 25 seconds. It gets the chocolate all warm and melty and overall enhances your muffin eating experience. Enjoy with a warm cup of cider or everyone's favorite, the pumpkin spiced latte, and you're golden! Take my word for it. :)

Now, I'm off to eat muffins. Tschüss!

{That basically means "toodles!" in German. Pronouned like "choo-se! "Use it in a sentence today, friends.}