Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins with Toasted Almonds Recipe

Name: Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins with Toasted Almonds
Prep time: 2017-10-23T00:00:00+00:00
Total time: 2017-10-23T00:00:00+00:00
Yield: Approximately 20 small muffins
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour; 1 tsp baking soda; 1 tsp baking powder; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 tbsp ground cinnamon; 1 tsp ground ginger; 1 tsp freshly ground nutmeg; 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin; 1/4 cup molasses; 2 tbsp agave nectar or honey; 2 eggs; 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce; 1/3 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt; 1 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Sep 28, 2011 by Dara 37 Comments

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Fall is diligently trying to make its arrival. The leaves are barely starting to turn, yellow and red splotches amongst acres of green. However, fall’s arrival is being slowed by our unseasonably warm weather. Perhaps Mother Nature is making up for Utah’s unusually cold and rainy June by warming us with temperatures in the mid to high 80s. That’s all well and good if you are not a lover of fall, do not dream of pulling on comfortable jeans and sitting down to a lunch of chicken corn chowder or baked pasta shells, or yearn to pull out cans of pumpkin and get down to some serious baking. So, I officially put myself into a stage of denial. On went the oven and in went the pumpkin as I planned for an afternoon break of hot Earl Grey tea and healthy, whole wheat muffins – sitting outside at my favorite table and looking at this view.

As I mentioned in my last post, I am working on being more mindful of the things I put in my mouth. That includes gargantuan muffins. I really wanted a snack that was full of whole grains, low on saturated and sugar and would keep me satisfied until dinnertime. Using our regular whole wheat muffin recipe, I increased the amount of plain Greek yogurt and unsweetened applesauce for moistness, replaced the sugar with agave nectar (you can use honey, too), increased the amount of spices for a pop of flavor and decreased the size of the muffins for a lower calorie snack (105 calories per muffin – okay, give me two). Toasted slivered almonds were thrown in for a little crunch and nuttiness.

These muffins freeze well when stored in a freezer safe container or resealable bag. When you’re ready to eat one, just pull it out of the freezer and let it sit on the counter to defrost or pop it into the microwave on a low setting.

Bring on fall!

The recipe:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.

In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, molasses, agave nectar (or honey), eggs, applesauce, and yogurt.

Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture. Mix until just combined. To avoid tough muffins, do not over mix. Add toasted almonds, and stir to combine.

Spray two muffin tins (about 20 muffin cups) with nonstick cooking spray. Fill each cups with 1/4 cup of the muffin batter. Of course, you can use muffin liners like the ones in these pictures. Though, truth be told, I had issues with the muffins sticking to these liners. Darn it!

Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in the tin on a rack for about 10 minutes. Remove the muffins from the tin and let the muffins cool on the rack.

Other pumpkin recipes:
Cookin’ Canuck’s Savory Pumpkin & Sage Gougères
Family Fresh Cooking’s Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed French Toast
Two Peas and Their Pod’s Pumpkin Granola
Eats Well with Others’ Pumpkin Ravioli with Sage & Toasted Hazelnuts