my second butternut squash alternative....

Spiced Butternut Squash Quinoa Muffins

I always love when I am searching for something new to make and I have all the ingredients in my cabinet! Makes life so much easier! These muffins are tasty little guys. I just handed one off to the kiddos so we'll wait and get the verdict from them (hopefully by the end of the post).

Muffins
 1 ¼ c whole wheat flour(I used AP)
¾ c brown sugar, packed
½ t ground cinnamon
½ t ground nutmeg
1 t baking powder
½ t salt
¾ c cooked quinoa
2 eggs
1C of roasted butternut squash soup (if you don't have the soup just used canned puree or cook and puree a cups worth of squash)
4 T butter, melted
½ c milk
2 t vanilla extract

Almond Streusel
1/3 c chopped or slivered almonds
1/4 c sugar
2 T whole wheat flour
1/4 t ground cinnamon
1/4 t ground nutmeg
2 T butter, melted

Preheat 425
Streusel is easy peasy... just combine all the ingredients until it is crumbly and set aside.
In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, and stir until well combined.  In a larger bowl, beat together the butternut squash puree, eggs, vanilla, melted butter and milk until smooth.  Gradually add the flour mixture to the squash mixture in three batches, stirring until smooth between batches.  Finally, fold in the cooked quinoa until completely combined.
Scoop batter into a muffin tin that’s either been greased or lined with paper muffin liners. I used paper liners  but they stuck really bad so I would just grease your muffin tins for easier removal.  Top each muffin with a small amount of streusel then bake for 30 minutes, until the streusel is golden and the center of the muffin is no longer moist when tested with a toothpick.  Remove from heat and allow to cool completely  before removing from the pan.

Kids verdict on the muffins: TWO THUMBS UP! (these will be great for their lunches or snacks at school!)

Happy Baking Folks!

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