Dirty Chai Pumpkin Muffins

Adapted from Parade and Sanura Weathers

Sanura Weathers is the author of a healthy food blog at MyLifeRunsOnFood.com.

Inspired by the flavors of warm spiced tea and bitter coffee you find in a “dirty chai” drink, this is a muffin to nibble on while sipping your tea from a Thermos as kids trick and treat in the neighborhood. As an added treat, the muffins are sweetly topped with a generous drizzle of bittersweet chocolate ganache. Here’s a warning: Be careful of kids performing magic tricks, causing these muffins to disappear into the ghostly night!

Active time: 15 min
Total time: 1 hr
Serves 10-12

Ingredients

For the muffins:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup chopped pecans (or your favorite nut), plus more for garnish
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds, optional
• 1 Tbsp flax seeds, optional
• 1/3 cup olive or coconut oil
• 1 cup coconut sugar, or 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup buttermilk, well shaken
• 2 Tbsp instant coffee*
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

*Note: If sharing with kids, use decaffeinated instant coffee.

For the ganache:

• 1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 cup organic heavy cream, plus more as needed
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• Pinch sea salt

Method

For the muffins:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease individual tins in a 12-tin muffin pan.
2. Whisk flours, baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt, almonds and optional seeds in a large bowl. Form the dry ingredients into a well, to expose the bottom of the bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, sugar, pumpkin puree, buttermilk, instant coffee, eggs, and vanilla.
4. Mix in the liquid into the dry ingredients. Mix until just thoroughly incorporated. Don’t overmix.
5. Spoon batter into each individual muffin tin until two-thirds full. Top with remaining nuts.
6. Bake until a wooden pick comes out clean, or for about 20 minutes. Cool slightly on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from the tins on the rack.
7. Drizzle chocolate ganache over the muffins when they’re completely cool. Enjoy.

For the ganache:

1. After the muffins cool: Fill a medium saucepan a third full of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Place a heat-proof bowl over the pot, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the boiling water.
2. Place chocolate in the bowl, and whisk until almost smooth. Whisk in the cream. Add a little more cream until the chocolate is thin enough to drizzle over the muffins. Mix in the second teaspoon of vanilla and a pinch of sea salt.
3. Drizzle the chocolate ganache over the muffins and enjoy.