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ARMAND'S
HARPER VALLEY
FAMILY FARM
Pumpkin Raisin Muffins
Savvy
mothers sometimes soft-pedal the word "pumpkin." So call these
Halloween Muffins if you like, but whatever you call them, they are always a
huge success with the sandbox crowd as well as their parents. Serve them for
breakfast or tea, with apple butter or with sweet butter or cream cheese blended
with a little orange zest. This recipe makes 12 muffins.
Ingredients:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Three-fourths (firmly packed) light brown sugar
1 egg
Three-fourths pumpkin puree (see above)
One-third cup fresh orange juice
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice (see note)
Generous one-half cup golden raisins
One-half cup walnuts, preferably toasted (see Toasting Nuts below), coarsely
chopped
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter 12 muffin cups.
2.
Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar together in a large
mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Blend in the egg, pumpkin puree, and orange
juice. (The mixture will appear curdled, but it will pull together once the dry
ingredients are added.)
3. In another mixing bowl, stir together the flour,
salt, baking powder, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice. Toss in the raisins,
separating any clumps, along with the walnuts. Make a well in the center and add
the pumpkin mixture. Blend until all the dry ingredients are moistened.
4. Spoon
the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them three-quarters full, and
bake until nicely colored and risen (a toothpick inserted in the center should
come out clean), 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, and cool in the muffin
cups for 5 minutes. Then turn the muffins out onto a wire rack to cool for a few
minutes more before serving.
NOTE: The blend of aromatic spices referred to as
pumpkin pie spice traditionally is sold for pies with winter squash, pumpkin,
and sweet potatoes. Formulas vary, but you can make your own by combining equal
parts of ground nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice, and half as much ground
cloves.
TOASTING NUTS
Get in the habit of toasting all kinds of nuts; you'll be impressed with the way
their rich natural flavor is intensified. To toast, scatter the nuts in a single
layer on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven until lightly
colored, crisp, and fragrant - 5 to 7 minutes for pecans, pistachios, almonds,
and pine nuts, 10 minutes for walnuts. (Sesame seeds, which are oily and burn
quickly, should be toasted in a dry skillet; they'll take 3 minutes - stir
often). Toasting also helps in the process of removing the outer papery skins of
some nuts, like walnuts, which can leave behind an unpleasant tannic flavor.
Once the nuts are toasted, the skins rub off easily when the nuts are rolled
inside a clean kitchen towel.
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