.................. Cooking with Barry & Meta: Pumpkin Spice Donut Mini Muffins/Cakes

Wendy Moulton made these delicious muffins for the last Ladies Literary League meeting at the Abilene Public Library. I took just one but soon returned for more. These sweet and spicy muffins are simply irresistible; they can also double as little dessert cakes.

The recipe came from A Step in the Journey blog. The blogger says it makes 40 mini muffins but my yield was less but then I used a 2 tablespoon capacity silicon muffin pan. I also needed about 1 tablespoon more melted butter for dipping the muffins/cakes. Both adjustments are included in the recipe that follows.

Pumpkin Spice Donut Muffins/Cakes Yields 28 mini muffins (made with a 2 tablespoon capacity scoop)

Donut Holes Batter:

1¾ cups of all-purpose flour

I recommend a fill and push adjustable
measuring cup for solids such as pumpkin.

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ teaspoon of pumpkin spice (to make your own, see the instructions that follow)

6 oz. (equivalent to ¾ cup) of pumpkin puree (plain without added spices & sugar) or pumpkin puree

½ cup vegetable (canola) oil

½ cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

½ teaspoon vanilla

½ cup milk

Donut Coating:

½ cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

About 5 tablespoons of butter

Preheat the oven at 350°. Thoroughly grease mini muffin tins.

For the Batter:

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin spice.
In a separate bowl mix the pumpkin, vegetable oil, brown sugar, egg, milk, and vanilla.
Combine all ingredients and mix together to create donut hole batter.
Spoon or scoop the batter evenly into prepared muffin tins/pans. I used a 2 tablespoon capacity spoon.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a donut hole comes out clean.
Allow muffins to cool for about 2 minutes.

The silicon mini muffin pan allows for easy release of each and every muffin.

For the Coating:

In one bowl melt the butter. In a separate bowl mix the cinnamon and sugar.
Dip the donut hole muffins in the butter and then roll around each entire muffin in cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Although they'd be yummy for breakfast, I served them as a dessert offering, stacked on a pedestal plate with a candle in the center.

Light the candle for a birthday celebration . . . Happy Birthday Mary!

To make a heaping 1 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice: combine a scant ½ tsp. ground cinnamon with ¼ tsp. ground ginger + scant ¼ tsp. ground allspice + ⅛ tsp. ground nutmeg

For more homemade mixes go to the Mixes tab on this blog.

Recipe without photos . . .