Grow Your Own Magazine

Today I used some of my pumpkin to make a Pumpkin and Chocolate Muffin recipe.


This is the ingredient list...

Makes 18 Muffins

8oZ Pumpkin flesh
12oZ Self-Raising Flour
50Z Caster Sugar
2 Eggs Beaten
6FloZ milk
2oZ unsalted Butter
2 Mars Bars ....( I used 1 and a half)
Chocolate Chips.. optional (yes i used them)

However they have not really risen, and are a bit dense now, they taste sweet enough though.

I've been poking around on the internet for inspiration, and it appears
other muffin recipies use baking powder as well.

(p.s i'm quite new to baking, so be gentle with me)

What do other grapes think might help make them a bit more fluffy..?

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I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

Hello Seasprout, sorry your muffins weren't just as light as you wanted. I'm no expert baker but can I ask if you sieved the flour. Sieving certainly makes things much lighter. Also, as you say some baking powder would help them to rise. I'm sure another Grape will be along with their muffin recipe. Hope they work out good.

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From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

Hello Alice, yes sieving was done a plenty.

I'm poking around on a food site at the mo, it appears mixing the mixture well is a bad thing. Lumpy is good apparently.

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I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

I bake loads, have done since I was 10 (25 years ago!) and I really struggle with muffins.. I think mixing might be my problem too, I can't bear to leave it 'half mixed'!! If you suss it out Seasprout, give us a clue!

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Sarah

“Tell me one last thing,” said Harry. “Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head?”
“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”

Yes, it's the mixing, I think, you have to just barely have it all mixed together, goes against the grain, I know. And I think those huge shop ones don't help, home-made ones don't rise to that size without a huge helping of baking powder!
Sue

I agree with Sue - don't over-mix, and it's okay if you've still got little bits of unmixed flour showing in the batter. Did you mash the pumpkin before mixing, and add it with the other wet ingredients?

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Dwell simply ~ love richly

Hi guys, yes the pumpkin was microwaved, mushed, allowed to cool and mushed a bit more.

Other half quite likes them now, he says the best bits are the chocolate chips.

So might make chocolate chip fairy's instead and sod the pumpkin.

__________________
I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

Hi seasprout,
Just noticed that the only raising agent in the mix is in the s-r flour - other muffin recipes I've got have baking powder and bicarb of soda in them too, you could try using either 1/2tsp of bicarb with your s-r flour, or plain flour + 1tsp baking powder + 1/2tsp bicarb. The bicarb starts working immediately when you put liquid with it so mix quickly and lightly, and put into a hot oven straight away.

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Dwell simply ~ love richly

Hello Birdie Wife, thank you for your advice. I will have another go this weekend, minus the Pumpkin I think.

I have also printed off a recipe from Nigella for Chocolate Chip Muffins.

It was funny, it wanted to print 3 sheets however the recipe and method took up half the first sheet so I assume her breasts where about to be printed on sheets 2 and 3. I cancelled the printing after the first sheet to save paper.

__________________
I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

Watch all the guys searching frantically for Nigella's choc chip muffin recipe....

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Hazel
www.hazelandjanesallotment.blogspot.com
update Sun 30/11/2008......Indoor Allotmenteering too!.....

Tee Hee..

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I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/

I was immediately drawn to this thread, on account of a Muffin being marginally more than 'thick as two short planks'.....
Piggy's actually quite good at Blueberry Muffins, perhaps it's worth asking him if his recipe has extra raising agents in? However, Pumpkin is way more dense than a couple of handfuls of Blueberries.... My money is on Auntie Flummery....
I try not to make gorgeous stuff, on account of the fact that we'd only eat it and one of these days we're bound to go 'POP'!, but I really loved the sound of those Muffins..... and will certainly be trying them.
Calling Auntie Flummy!!

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With Love,
Wellie

Give it some....

http://hollycottagegarden.blogspot.com
BLOG UPDATED Sunday 2nd November at 19.30hrs

Wellie me dear, thanks for your confidence!

The nearest recipe I use to pumpkin and choc chip is the following for banana and choc chip - I reckon density of ingredients would be about the same (and it does include extra raising agent). It makes a dozen.

10 oz SR flour (275g)
1 teaspoon bicarb
3 oz granulated sugar (75g)
3 ripe bananas, mashed (This is where you stick yer 8 oz pumpkin in!)
1 medium egg
2 fl oz milk (50 ml)
3 oz choc chips (75g)
3 fl oz corn oil (75ml)

Heat oven to 190/375/gas 5

Sift flour, bicarb and add sugar. Make a well in the cente and add bananas (pumpkin), milk, oil and choc chips. Mix for about 20 seconds - the batter WILL BE LUMPY! Spoon into the cups and bake for about 20 mins till well risen.

My recipe says 'serve warm and freshly made' - no problem there then!

It strikes me that you needed extra raising agent and your oven might not have been hot enough. I recently followed a recipe from the paper which said - a little to my surprise I admit - to bake at 150 degrees. I think it should have been 180 or 190. The result was delicious but sad and dense. I think it was a transcription error. The moral is, never believe all you read in the papers!

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Earth laughs in flowers. Ralph Waldo Emerson

www.vegheaven.blogspot.com

Updated November 30th - Mr Stinky's Excellent Adventure (and a Christmas Cake)

Reports this week suggested that breast milk can add approx 6-7 IQ points to newborn babies. Maybe it'll help your muffins to be less dense too?

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A simple dude trying to grow veg.

http://haywayne.blogspot.com/ - Updated 30th November

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/p/dev036pr___.png

Thankyou Flummery, will add that to my list of 'things to do' this weekend.

And HeyWayne, i'm not going there.!

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I wish i could make a yo-yo work.
http://www.guerrillagardening.org/