It's a doughnut; no, it's a muffin: It's a Pumpkin Doughnut Muffin!

“So what’s doughnut-y about them?” my husband asked as I stirred together the ingredients for Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins (click for the recipe), a recipe in the November 2010 issue of Everyday Food.
   It was a good question.
   After the muffins completely cooled, we gave them a try, and found out what exactly earned them the name “doughnut muffins”: They had a soft, cakey texture nearly exactly like doughnuts, and the generous coating of cinnamon, clinging to the muffins thanks to a coating of butter, added to the effect.
   These muffins are delicious and family-friendly.
   However, they are best on the day they are made. The doughnut-y texture and taste start to fade quickly.
   To combat this, Everyday Food says the muffins can be frozen up to three months after baking and cooling, the first major step of the recipe. After reheating the frozen muffins in a 350 F oven, they will be ready for the second major step: The butter and sugar coating.
   I found I needed a little more butter for the coating than the recipe called for – about two more tablespoons.
   Be sure to use pure pumpkin pureé in this recipe, not pumpkin pie filling.
   Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins are easy to make.
   Flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and allspice are whisked together in one bowl, buttermilk and pure pumpkin pureé are mixed together in a second bowl, and butter and brown sugar beaten together in a third.
   The flour mixture is beaten into the butter and brown sugar in three additions, alternating with the pumpkin mixture in two additions.
   After baking in a standard 12-cup muffin tin, the muffins cool for 10 minutes, and are then brushed with melted butter and tossed in a mixture of ground cinnamon and sugar.
   The muffins are left to cool completely.
   Serve and watch your family enjoy this doughnut-in-a-muffin!

More great cool-weather desserts

Join Recipes That Worked on Facebook