There was a period of time where the only thing my son would eat for breakfast were cereal bars.

And I hated it.  I hated it because they were expensive.  I hated it because there was all kinds of packaging to dispose of.  I hated it because I wasn’t all that thrilled with the ingredient list.  He loved them because they were sweet, but I knew I had to get something in his body that kept him full until lunch time.

I persuaded him to eat homemade breakfast burritos (just eggs, bacon and cheese in a whole wheat tortilla) instead, but he still missed that little bit of sweetness in the morning, and he was not at all interested in eating fruit with his burrito.

So when I saw Erin Chase’s recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins in her fabulous cookbook, The $5 Dinner Mom Breakfast and Lunch Cookbook, I knew something like that would appeal to my son.  But I didn’t want to give my kids full-size muffins with their breakfast.  I wanted them to have just a little sweet treat before they headed out the door.

And so, this delicious mini pumpkin chocolate chip muffins recipe was born.

What I love about this recipe is that you can use fresh pumpkin when it’s in season, or you can just as easily use canned pumpkin.  The muffins also freeze well, so you can whip up a batch and then pull them out as needed. They are a delicious, simple-to-make treat for breakfast, snack, or any time!

And I have a confession to make: One time I forgot to put in the pumpkin.  They were slightly less nutritious, but just as tasty!

Delicious Mini Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins Recipe

Based on Erin Chase’s Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins recipe

Makes 48 mini muffins. Total time to make: About 25 minutes.

Ingredients

• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1.5 cups 100 percent pure pumpkin puree (or one 15-ounce can)
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Spray 48 wells of mini muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray (or use mini paper liners).

In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs, oil, applesauce, sugar, milk, and pumpkin.  Mix together with a hand mixer (or use your stand mixer) for a couple of minutes.

In a separate bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt.  Add these ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix for 2 to 3 minutes or until the batter is smooth.

Fold in the mini chocolate chips.

Use a spoon to fill each greased mini-muffin cup up to the top.

Bake the mini pumpkin chocolate chip muffins in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centers of the muffins comes out clean.  Let cool before serving.

Enjoy!

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