Friday, November 20, 2009

Oh, Do You Know The Muffin Man?

I grew butternut squash in this year's garden. I only got one plant (old seeds) which only produced three squash. We used the first to make a squash soup. Yum, that was good. I used the second to make Pumpkin Ginger Nut Muffins. Boy were these tasty. Someone had given us a small package of candied ginger, which I had never used before. It's good stuff, and good in this recipe.

Pumpkin Ginger Nut Muffins.

I roasted the squash by cutting it in half lengthwise and putting it cut-side down in a 180ºC/350ºF oven until soft and done. I scooped the flesh out of the cooled halves and mashed it with a potato masher. Then I proceeded as follows:

In a medium-sized bowl, sift together:
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
In another bowl, mix:
  • 1 1/4 cups roasted pumpkin or butternut squash purée
  • 1/3 cup melted butter
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground allspice
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
Add this to the dry ingredients to combine but don't over-mix it. Fold in:
  • 1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans, chopped
  • 2 tblsp chopped candided ginger
Spoon the mixture into a buttered muffin tin and bake in a preheated 180ºC/350ºF oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Test with a toothpick or wooden skewer. Cool muffins before turning them out.

I should mention that the amounts for the spices are about half the original recipe; I don't like the spices to overwhelm the taste of the pumpkin. But if you like more, you can increase them to up to double the amounts shown here.

8 comments:

  1. I thought these were the best muffins ever. The candied ginger in them was great, and was better than, say, raisins would have been.

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  2. Hey Walt,

    That's just PERFECT timing!! How did you know! I added a lot of spice to mine... the typical American "pumpkin pie spice" and then some extra cinnamon and nutmeg... I actually wanted to enhance the taste with the spices and wanted the spices to take the forefront... hehehe!
    So.. I will go and buy some pecans and ginger candy... and try out your recipe tonight...

    I'm glad that Ken mentioned they were delicious.. How do you guys keep so fit and trim with all of your fine cooking??! i.e. What's your secret?!
    Have a great weekend.. Leese

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  3. Wow, they look delicious.
    I am becoming a fan of muffins and recently made raspberry and banana muffins for our charity cake stall at work.
    If I can find a pumpkin in the shops I'll give your recipe a try.

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  4. What a great idea--very seasonal too. Do you happen to have a recipe for fouaces--the ones that are served with rillettes? I'm searching all over for them and since there are so many kinds, its hard to pick out the one I want. Namely, the fouaces/fouées served in troglodyte restaurants in la Touraine or l'Anjou.

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  5. Looks/sounds delicious!

    I'm like you; I don't like the spices to overwhelm the taste of the pumpkin. People often overdo it with cinnamon and nutmeg.

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  6. in our house, we use the expression

    "Would you be a muffin and ( do some task)?"

    ReplyDelete

Tell me what you think!