Sweets for the Sweet

Phew! First blog post is done and dusted! And though so many things change when we grow up, one thing remains - Mum and Dad are still your biggest fans! Love you both xx

So this one is strictly between us Mum and Dad!  Also, for those who wonder what to do with all that pumpkin puree you've got? - make a vow to use it up by Thanksgiving + try baked pumpkin muffins! We whipped up a batch (me and the girls) over the weekend and took them with us on a picnic before local leaf hunting. They were a huge hit and the recipe works just as well for a pumpkin bread tea loaf. Your neighbors will be knocking on your door lured there by your home (and entire neighborhood!) smelling delicious. The muffins come out comforting and scrumptiously sweet, light and fluffy, and feeling calorifically good - there's no butter or oil in this recipe, go on and gorge yourself. They're wonderful next day too - perfect for school lunch boxes. The recipe is inspired by River Cottage. 

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Pumpkin Walnut Muffins with Prune Plums and Raisins
- makes 12 large muffins and 24 minis or 1  large loaf -

- recipe -

200g raw cane sugar
2 tsp of coconut palm sugar (for a touch of caramel flavor)
4 large eggs, separated
200g pumpkin puree (or finely grated raw pumpkin)
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
100g raisins (or dried tart cherries)
100g almond meal
200g all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp of baking soda mixed with 1 tsp vinegar
1/2 cup walnuts (crushed)Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cm cube of fresh grated ginger
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (optional)
Freshly grated nutmeg
10-12 pitted fresh prune plums diced into small squares (save 1/3 of these and mix with 1-2 Tbsp of sugar for topping the muffins)

- process -

Heat the oven to 350F/180C (or whatever is the best setting for your oven)

Line a 3x4 large muffin tin with baking cups (there will be enough leftover batter for a batch of mini muffins too, good idea to prepare a tin now). Use an electric mixer to beat the sugar and egg yolks for a few minutes, until pale and creamy. Lightly stir in the pumpkin, lemon zest and juice, raisins, walnuts, almond meal and ginger. Stir in prunes, saving 1/3 of them for topping the muffins at the end. Drown baking soda in vinegar on a serving spoon and add the resulting fizzy bubbles to the batter. Combine and sift all the dry ingredients - flour, salt and spices, then fold them in. Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Loosen the mixture with a few tablespoonfuls of egg white, then very gently fold in the rest (use wooden spoon to make life easier).

Spoon out the batter into the prepared muffin tins 2/3 of the way (I like using ice cream scoop here). Top these beauties with the remaining plums and bake for about 30-40 min (for larger tin) or 20-30 min (for the minis) or until a skewer comes out clean.

Enjoy them warm with a bit of butter or cold with a cup of tea or coffee.

notes

• I used tinned pumpkin puree here for speed and convenience. However, if you have a homemade batch it will work just as well
• coconut palm sugar can be replaced with honey
• if you have raw pumpkin, zucchini, carrots or beetroot to use up - these (finely grated) will work beautifully in place of pumpkin puree