Pumpkin Pumpin' Through My Veins!

First, I wish I'd known about this:  VeganMoFo (Vegan Month of Food)!  I could have blogged.  About food!

Now I have to be satisfied to just... er, blog about food.  

I knew right here that I would not be disappointed.  I am disappointed
that my camera acted quite wonky this session though...

In any case, October is Vegetarian Awareness Month, which kicked off with World Vegetarian Day yesterday.    So, you know.  Be aware of Vegetarians.  Heck, become one.  I think you'll enjoy the health benefits... and you can win cash.  Or you can always do the Weight Watchers/Doctor Oz Transformation Nation.  I think you'll enjoy the health benefits... and you can win cash.

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I burned at least 2 Weight Watchers Points Plus Shaking
the muffin tin to get the muffins level.  What's this,
blaming the camera?

As of late I've seen a lot of pumpkin recipes; oatmeals, lattes, breakfast cereal concoctions of heaven, a breakfast sandwich I am dying to try... 

... and then all I want is a muffin.

I was looking for a cool desert to make for dinner with The FiL that I could also eat the next morning because it would be made of pumpkin and that's what I do these days.  However, try as I might, I could not find the recipe... the one fun vegan pumpkin muffin that spoke to me on all levels (taste, health... pumpkin).

So I decided I'd take what I liked from several recipes and then strike out on my own.  But would it work?

The Sesame-Spinach Salad with Mango was - hey, you can't
blame a camera for your bad photography skills!

The thing is, I had a fancy dinner with The FiL and The Husband all set and ready to go, except then we all went out shopping and did many things that made fancy dinner highly unlikely to have until next Thursday.  So I dipped into my new score of Quick-Fix Vegetarian for a quick-fix rescue!

The Sesame-Spinach Salad with Mango came together in a flash.  I think the tang of the tahini/tamari dressing was balanced nicely with the sweetness of the mango (thank goodness we got a good mango).  Also, there was spinach, so you know I was happy.

Baked Beans and Rice.  Added garnish of Cilantro.
Not an add for Cutco... but they are good knives.

Then, Baked Beans and Rice.  As simple as it sounds, but it came together lightning fast (the secret was veg in the form of salsa).  I liked it, though The Husband thought it was too salsa-y.  I think really though a few shakes of Liquid Smoke may be in order the next time around.

Though it was a fast (and rather tasty, thank you!) fix, it did take an hour to cook... but that was enough time for me to work with my muffins!  There were many things I wanted from this pumpkin treat:

1)  To be made of pumpkin.

2)  To be ... somewhat healthy (certainly veg and low-fat)

Dinner, with ease, served!

3)  To have dried cranberries and chia involved.

4) To be delicious.

5) To be made of pumpkin. 

(Yes, the pumpkin was an important point.)

After looking at a bazillion recipes on the interwebs and in my books, I took what bits I liked and constructed my very own pumpkin muffin recipe.  The FiL and The Husband gave it rave reviews!  The Husband made several Mmmmm comments as he enjoyed his with a cup of pumpkin coffee (I guess we're both obsessed with that squash as of late).  


I could even tell this was something special... sweet without being too sweet, moist, incredibly dreamy and pillow-y with bursts of dried cranberries... and, of course, full of pumpkin-y goodness.

They grew in the oven!

The only thing I'd do over likely is to swirl the chia seed onto the top.  I sprinkled it on, but some loose seeds fell off when removing them from the pan.  Not a lot though... and still wound up moist and tasty.  Please try if you can, I think you would not be disappointed!

So I present onto you A Brooklyn Heart's Pumpkin Cran-Chia Muffin Recipe... Influenced and inspired by several muffin recipes... I'm sure this exact recipe is floating out there somewhere...)

Pumpkin Cran-Chia Muffin

Serves 12

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour   

3/4 cup white all-purpose flour   

1 Tbsp baking powder   

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (I used Penzeys, but a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice would do in a pinch)

1/4 tsp kosher salt   

1/4 cup organic cane sugar

1 cup canned pumpkin   

1/2 cup plain unsweetened almond milk

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce   

2 Tbsp maple syrup   

2 ounces dried cranberries

1 Tbsp chia seed

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix dry ingredients: Flours, baking powder, salt, and spices.

Mix wet ingrdients: pumpkin, almond milk, apple sauce, maple syrup.

Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined. 

Fold in the cranberries, and pour evenly into a muffin tin sprayed with cooking spray. 

Sprinkle each muffin with 1/4 tsp of chia seed and let sit for a few minutes.

Bake for 15-20 minutes and or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Enjoy!

Okay, I can't make things look cool with a camera.
I wish you could smell and taste these though.