Inevitably, as the weather changes and the air cools, so do my cravings and my habits in the kitchen. Not only do I yearn for soups and stews, roasts and gravies; I also want to bake things! Now I’ve said this before, I am much better at cooking than I am at baking, primarily because I hate to measure. Baking is a science and if you don’t measure properly your muffins/pastries/cakes/cookies simply don’t turn out right! With cooking (you need to measure of course) I feel like there’s a little more wiggle room and the opportunity to go off script. Bottom line; not staying the course when baking can be disastrous if you’re not mindful to the changes/chances you’re taking!

I originally found this recipe for Pumpkin Maple Loaf in Cooking Light magazine and it intrigued me because the author found a way to take a classic fall favorite and lighten it up a bit! But by sheer stubbornness I needed to find a way to make it my own and go off script! First, I decided to make muffins with the batter versus a loaf. Second, I didn’t have access to dark maple syrup or dark brown sugar so I used grade A syrup as well as a brown sugar/stevia blend as substitutes. Lastly, the original recipe called for roasted pepitas to top the loaf; I know it defeats some of the purpose of “cooking light” but, I decided to mix in chopped pecans and white chocolate chips instead! Regardless, these somewhat lightened-up, twist on pumpkin loaf-style muffins are the bomb!! Enjoy:)

Ingredients: Makes 12 muffins

• cooking spray
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup real maple syrup
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup brown sugar/stevia blend
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup white chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with papers and lightly spray with cooking spray.
2. Combine buttermilk and oats, let sit 15 minutes.
3. Whisk together pumpkin, syrup, oil, sugar, extract and eggs and set aside.
4. In a separate bowl mix together flour, pumpkin spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
5. Add the oats and buttermilk to the pumpkin mixture and stir. Then add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and combine.
6. Gently fold the pecans and chips into the batter.
7. Divide batter among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 20 – 22 minutes.

*Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, Lighten Up Pumpkin Bread