Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins — The Graduation-Week Bake

I graduate Friday May twenty-fourth at four in the afternoon at the Broken Arrow High football field. The class of 2019. Mama and Cody and Aunt Tammy and Mr. Briggs and Linda and Mrs. Tilford are all coming. Mrs. Henderson is at her son’s. Mrs. Rivera will be there in her capacity as the home-ec teacher.

The recipe Saturday was oatmeal pumpkin chocolate chip muffins for the graduation-week breakfasts — the kind of grab-and-go bake that fills the freezer for the week. Pumpkin puree, oats, flour, brown sugar, eggs, oil, cinnamon, ginger, chocolate chips. Twenty-four muffins from a single batch.

The math: a can of pumpkin $1.99, oats $0.50, chocolate chips $1.49, flour, sugar, eggs, oil, spices. Total: about $4.40 for twenty-four muffins.

I am graduating in five days. The college orientation at the University of Tulsa is June seventeenth. The household is going to be different in a different way starting in three months.

The recipe is below. The trick is the freeze-then-thaw technique — freeze cooled muffins, microwave thirty seconds in the morning.

Oatmeal To Go Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 22 minutes | Total Time: 32 minutes | Servings: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat & prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray generously with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until evenly combined.
3. Mix wet ingredients. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, eggs, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.
4. Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined — do not overmix. A few streaks of flour are fine; they’ll bake out.
5. Fold in chocolate chips. Reserve a small handful of chocolate chips, then fold the rest into the batter. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Scatter the reserved chips over the tops.
6. Bake. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. The tops should be set and lightly golden at the edges.
7. Cool. Let muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 210 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 31g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 155mg