Pumpkin Muffins

It’s finally pumpkin season! Celebrate with a cup of hot cider and our pumpkin muffin recipe.

From cozy drinks to sweet treats, we’re celebrating with all sorts of seasonal pumpkin recipes over here. If you couldn’t resist reaching for a can of pumpkin puree at the store (‘tis the season!), our pumpkin muffin recipe is the perfect reason to get your oven preheating.

Pumpkin Muffin Ingredients

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• Vegetable oil: Using oil in a muffin recipe keeps the crumb moist, fluffy and tender for longer. Oil is better than melted butter in muffins because it makes for a less greasy treat. Vegetable oil has a neutral, mild flavor that won’t compete with this pumpkin muffin’s key flavors of fall.
• Canned pumpkin: You can definitely use a homemade pumpkin puree for this recipe, but we recommend cooking with canned pumpkin for more consistent results. Try out one of the best canned pumpkin brands our Test Kitchen recommends.
• Cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg: These warming spices make your pumpkin muffin recipe feel especially autumnal. You can also include other fall spices to customize these to your liking.
• Raisins and walnuts: These mix-ins are completely optional, but they add a great texture and flavor. You can swap in other mix-ins like dried cranberries, dried cherries, pecans or chocolate chips.

Directions

Step 1: Mix the wet ingredients

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Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, eggs, pumpkin and water.

Editor’s Tip: Use room-temperature eggs (instead of fresh-from-the-fridge eggs) so the ingredients will mix evenly. This will give the baked muffins more volume. Just make sure you follow safety best practices when baking with room-temperature eggs.

Step 2: Combine the dry ingredients

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt in a separate bowl.

Step 3: Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture

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Pour the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture. Whisk everything together, being careful to not overmix. Once everything just comes together, fold in the raisins and walnuts until they’re dotted evenly throughout the batter.
Editor’s Tip: For the fluffiest muffins possible, be sure not to overmix the batter. Overmixing develops the gluten, which can lead to tough and dense muffins. Instead, mix the dry and wet ingredients together until just combined.

Step 4: Scoop the batter into prepared muffin tins

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Grease muffin tins, or line them with cupcake liners. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling each tin about 3/4 full.
Editor’s Tip: We like to use a cookie scoop for this step to evenly disperse the batter among the muffin cups. This ensures consistent baking time and a uniform look.

Step 5: Bake the muffins

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Bake the muffins for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean. Test a few of the muffins in the middle of the muffin tin since they take a bit longer to bake through than the outer ones.

Recipe Variations

• Streusel topping: A thick, sugary streusel topping (also called a “crumb topping“) amps up the flavor of any muffin. Make the topping (but don’t bake it just yet!) before mixing up the batter. After scooping the batter into the muffin tins, top the muffins with the unbaked streusel, and bake everything according to this recipe’s instructions.
• Cinnamon glaze: A little drizzle of glaze is a showstopper on these muffins. Make it especially autumnal by adding a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to our confectioners’ sugar glaze.
• Chocolate chips: You can easily turn these muffins into pumpkin-chocolate chip muffins by swapping out the raisins and walnuts for chocolate chips.
• Different spices: Bump up the autumnal warmth in these muffins, and add additional spices like ginger, allspice or homemade pumpkin pie spice to the batter.
• Additional mix-ins: If raisins aren’t your thing, go for dried cherries or cranberries instead. Also, in place of walnuts, you can’t go wrong with pecans.

How to Store Pumpkin Muffins

Before storing, let the pumpkin muffins cool completely. Line an airtight container with a few paper towels. Place the muffins on top of the paper towels, then place a few more sheets on top of the muffins. The paper towels will absorb excess oil from the muffins while they are stored. Fit the lid on the container, and store at room temperature for up to four days.

How to Freeze Pumpkin Muffins

To freeze pumpkin muffins, let them cool completely. Add them to a freezer-safe resealable bag, and freeze them for up to three months. To rewarm the muffins, either let them come to room temperature or gently heat them in the microwave.

Pumpkin Muffins Recipe Tips

How many cups are in a can of pumpkin puree?

A can of pumpkin puree is usually 15 ounces, or a little less than 2 cups. More specifically, it is about 2-1/2 tablespoons shy of 2 cups. Thankfully, this pumpkin muffin recipe only requires 1-1/2 cups of pumpkin puree, which means you’ll have a little leftover to make a spiced pumpkin warm-up.

What else can you make with pumpkin puree?

Pumpkin puree can be used to make so many different pumpkin recipes. Try our creamy pumpkin tortellini, pumpkin pie latte or dark chocolate pumpkin truffles.