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pumpkin spice muffins
pumpkin spice muffins
Photo by Stefanie Trepper for Spoon University
Recipes

These Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Muffins Taste Like Fall

Spoon University Placeholder Avatar Stefanie Trepper

Tis’ the time of year for all things pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice soap, lattes, and yes, even dog treats align store shelves. Pumpkin spice, fall’s signature flavor, is certainly coveted, and with good reason — It’s delicious!  However, with the onslaught of pumpkin spice everything, the flavor blend can often get overwhelming and even downright tired by the end of autumn. To remedy this, consumers must discern where and when they choose to have pumpkin spice. Does this make them pumpkin spice…curious?  Regardless, this easy recipe is worth the indulgence of dipping in the pumpkin spice pool.

Pumpkin spice is typically an aromatic blend of warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, allspice, and ginger. It pairs perfectly with fall produce such as squashes, particularly pumpkin and acorn squash, whose savory flavor is enhanced by adding the aforementioned sweet flavors in savory dishes and vice versa. Pumpkin spice blends create a savory element in sweet dishes such as pancakes and quick breads. Therefore, adding ingredients like chocolate chips does not make recipes such as this one overly sweet. 

This pumpkin spice muffin recipe is a quick bread, which, by definition, is bread made with a chemical leavening agent such as baking powder or baking soda rather than a biological one such as yeast or a sourdough starter. Therefore, you do not have to let the dough rise; it can be baked immediately. Another advantage of making this recipe is that it easily converts to a muffin recipe by simply filling lined muffin tins instead of a bread pan.  This is a handy hack, depending on how many people you want to feed.  In addition, this recipe extends into the Thanksgiving holiday season because it’s quick and easy while being festive and delicious by embodying the fancied flavors of fall. So, embrace your pumpkin spice curiosity and enjoy as much or as little as your heart desires.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Bread
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Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Bread

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 10 minutesCook time: 55 minutesTotal time:1 hour 50 minutesServings:12 slices of bread or 16 muffins servings

Description

This is a quick and easy way to enjoy the pumpkin spice flavors of fall.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Using ½ stick of butter, prepare a 9x5x2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Next, add a layer of flour over the butter. Alternatively, you can coat the pan with a non-stick cooking spray. If making muffins, fill a muffin tin with muffin liners or spray or butter the muffin tin without the liners.
  2. Combine the flour, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. 
  3. Mix the 1 ½ sticks of the butter and sugar in a separate large bowl until they appear lighter in color. An electric mixer will make this step a lot easier. Add the eggs to the sugar mixture one at a time. Add the pumpkin and vanilla.
  4. Add the dry ingredients and the milk alternatingly. Mix until the ingredients are thoroughly combined, but do not overmix. Mix in the chocolate chips.
  5. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan or muffin tins. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean—approximately 55 minutes for a loaf and 18-20 minutes for muffins. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes, then turn out the loaf or muffins onto a rack and cool completely.

Notes

  • Store at room temperature, wrapped in plastic for up to three days.
  • Use a medium-sized ice cream scoop if making muffins to ensure your muffins are the same size.
Keywords:Baked, Baked Goods, Baking, Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Spice, Pumpkin Spice Snacks, Sweet, Tea Party
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Stefanie Trepper
Stefanie Trepper is a freelance contributor to Spoon University in New York City, where she is a recipe tester and developer.

As a culinary student, she focused on developing nutritious, budget-friendly, and adaptable recipes to accommodate various diets and food allergies. She is committed to sourcing healthy, local, and seasonal foods and is a contributor and volunteer at her local organic cooperative community garden. Stefanie studied in Provence, France, where she learned about sustainable farming and cooking practices. During her study in France, Stefanie developed relationships with local farmers and purveyors and utilized seasonal, locally sourced foods. Concurrently, she worked in a restaurant, which earned a green Michelin star for sustainability under a two Michelin-starred chef. Stefanie has previously worked as both an educator and an administrator and used food and cooking to bridge cultural connections. A graduate of Colby College, she is passionate about environmental studies and earned a B.A. in Art History. She also holds a Master's Degree from The Bank Street College of Education and an advanced leadership certificate from Harvard University.

In her free time, Stefanie enjoys traveling, learning the Italian language, entertaining friends for dinner dates, and spending time with her husband and two children. She also enjoys listening to her favorite true crime podcasts and playing with her two rescued cats. Stefanie is a horror movie buff and considers Halloween (1978) one of the best horror movies of all time. A lover of New York City, Stefanie loves exploring new neighborhoods, perusing ethnic markets, and finding new dishes and cuisines to replicate at home.