The End Is Almost Here...

Autumn is right around the corner. Soon the leaves will change, pumpkins and dried corn stalks will adorn neighbor’s porches and the air will turn crisp. I can almost imagine the cool breeze coming through the window, quickening my step and making the house smell wonderful.

And oh… the tastes of Autumn! Stews and pies, apples and pumpkin! I can almost taste the spices of the season… cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger. I can smell the aroma of them drifting in the air…

Oh, wait. Maybe that’s just this pumpkin muffin I’m munching on.

There are times I need an “Autumn Fix” in the middle of miserable summer. The air is so thick you can cut it with a knife, the grass is dead and crunchy and the bugs are in full force. Ugh. It’s then I take myself on an imaginary journey into October. As these muffins bake, I’m suddenly on a hayride through cornfields or picking apples at the orchard.

Inevitably the timer goes off and I’m reminded that it was only a dream. Sure, I’m still in the throes of summer, but there is still hope. We are well past the halfway point to a more glorious season! To those of you longing for that crisp, clean air… take heart! Autumn is right around the corner!

Go now. Bake these. Enjoy the imaginary journey.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins

3 eggs

2 cups light brown sugar

½ cup unsweetened applesauce

1 15-oz can pure pumpkin

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups Pamela’s Baking Mix (or 2 cups GF all-purpose flour blend, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp cloves

¼ tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two muffin tins with non-stick spray (24 muffins).

Whisk eggs and brown sugar in a large bowl. Add applesauce, pumpkin and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Add Pamela’s (or GF all-purpose flour, baking soda and baking powder), cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. Stir to completely incorporate.

Pour batter into muffin cups, filling 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing muffins from the pan to finish cooling.

PS – for a little something more, add 1 cup mini chocolate chips as a last ingredient!