Every Fall I make something pumpkin. I am not a crazy - pumpkin-in-everything kind of person, but I do like it. Originally, I wanted to make pumpkin chocolate chip muffins but I was out of chocolate chips so I went with the one thing I rarely neglect to restock - nutella. I decided to make mini pumpkin bundt cakes (a muffin tin is fine too) swirled with nutella. They were perfect - I want to swirl nutella into all my baked goods :).
mini pumpkin nutella swirl cakes (makes 12 mini bundt cakes or 12 muffins)
-2 cups all purpose flour
-3 teaspoons baking powder
-1 teaspoon salt
-3/4 cup white sugar
-one can of pumpkin puree
-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
-1 large egg
-1/2 cup of nutella
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer, mix together the pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg until well combined. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Heat the nutella in the microwave for about 20 second (you don't want it to be hot, just slightly pourable) and stir into the batter. Don't stir until it is completely mixed in. Just do a few turns of the spoon so that it is swirled into the pumpkin batter.
5. Spray a muffin pan or mini bunt pan (I got one at Target and love it) with non-stick spray and fill with the batter.
6. Cook for about 25 minutes. Allow the cakes to cool in the pan for about ten minutes before removing. Store in an air tight container for up to three days.
Confession - I made these little cupcakes on Friday but was still consuming them on Sunday....so it counts as my Sunday dessert.
I am actually a little surprised these lasted until Sunday. They are mini - so you know how it goes with any mini dessert, you think you can eat ten in one sitting. Or is that just me? Mini candy bars are my kryptonite.
I found out Friday morning {via instagram} that it was national doughnut day and immediately had a doughnut craving. As I drove around, running my usual Friday errands, I was hoping to see a doughnut shop....but I never saw one. A drive thru Tim Horton's or Dunkin' Donuts would have been ideal but this isn't the Midwest. Damn you healthy Southern California!
I went home with an unsatisfied sweet tooth craving and decided to make my healthy-ish chocolate cake recipe into mini cupcakes and fill them with this homemade jam. The homemade jam filling was a last minute decision and I am so glad I did it.
Filling a cupcake or muffin with something sweet makes it instantly more amazing than its unfilled friends. SO good! Try them, they aren't too unhealthy and it will be a great way to use up those four pounds of strawberries Trader Joe's tricked you into buying.
jam filled mini chocolate cupcakes
-1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
-2/3 cups sugar
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-2 tablespoons canola oil
-1 cup warm water
-homemade {or stor bought} jam - about a cup of it
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a mini muffin {or regular size muffin pan} with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients {cocoa powder, flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder}. Add the oil and water to the mixing bowl and stir all together. I like to a use a wooden spoon for this.
3. Fill each muffin cup a little less than half way. Next, put about 1/2 teaspoon of jam on each muffin, then fill the rest of the cup with more batter.
4. Bake these cupcakes for about 15 to 20 minutes. Let them cool for a few minutes in the pan and carefully remove them and set on a plate.
5. Dust with a little powdered sugar and eat! These are best consumed within a few days.
If you use regular a regular size muffin pan, this recipe will make about 12 large cupcakes. Since these cupcakes have a low fat content, I find that paper liners stick too much. Instead, I opt for nonstick spray.
