Pumpkin Mini-Muffins

The basic recipe for these can be found here.  After making them once, I made some adaptations.  Below is my version of the recipe.  You can also make them as full sized muffins, but for some reason, I adore little bite-sized mini-muffins.  The raisins are also entirely optional.  Personally, I love the combination of pumpkin and raisins–it reminds of the pumpkin bread Grandma would always have waiting when we arrived at her house for Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Mini-Muffins

• 1-1/2 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 heaping teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• dash of cinnamon (maybe around 1/4 t, sorry, I don’t always measure)
• dash of nutmeg
• 1/2 cup heaping brown sugar
• 1/2 cup heaping white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar (topping)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (topping)
• Raisins

Preheat oven to 350.  Whisk together flour and baking powder in small bowl.  Add raisins to flour mixture (coating the raisins with flour keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins).  In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, spices, sugar, baking soda, vanilla, and salt until smooth (don’t overmix!).  Fold in flour mixture (once again, don’t overmix–it will dry out your muffins).  In another bowl, combine sugar & cinnamon for topping.  Pour batter into mini muffin pans (it will make about 30 mini-muffins, or around 12 full size).  Sprinkle topping on the muffins and bake for 20-30 minutes (around 20 for minis and 30 for full size).