Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins Recipe | Mel’s Kitchen Cafe

These pumpkin applesauce muffins are the fluffiest, most delicious pumpkin muffins ever – oh my goodness, I love them so much! Plus, the optional, but delicious, maple cream glaze is so tasty drizzled on top!

Can your heart possibly hold enough love for one more pumpkin muffin right now?

I surely hope so. If not, try just for me, because these pumpkin applesauce muffins are extraordinary.

I made them dozens of times last fall (including for a huge work event for Brian), and they quickly became one of my favorite fall, pumpkin muffins.

I’m sorry I haven’t shared them sooner! Maybe it’s because I’ve been obsessing over these other pumpkin muffin favorites:

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Pumpkin Apple Spice Muffins

Whole Grain Pumpkin Blueberry Muffins

I swear, there just isn’t enough time to make all the pumpkin muffin variations I want to.

I have a problem, I know. I get it. And I embrace it.

I debated about posting the recipe way back in February.

But in the end, I felt a little insecure about posting a warm, spiced, pumpkin muffin during a time when the internet was exploding with sugar cookies, red velvet, and sprinkles.

I apologize. I really do.

Because, I’d take one of these creamy glazed pumpkin applesauce muffins any day over most sprinkle-laden treats.

These pumpkin muffins are incredible!

Even though I have a lot of favorite pumpkin muffins (see the list at the top of the post for a starting point), I think these are the fluffiest of the bunch.

They are tender and moist.

And they are hearty and healthy enough for breakfast, especially if you dig deep and make even healthier choices like leaving off the glaze or replacing some of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat (still delicious, promise).

Speaking of leaving off the glaze, while the maple cream glaze is intensely delicious and pairs perfectly with the spiced pumpkin flavor, we enjoy these muffins unadorned and simple as can be, too.

For breakfast, for snack, for an after dinner treat.

They are a great all-purpose pumpkin muffin for whatever add-in you choose to throw in there.

Ahem, chocolate chips.

I really do think that in addition to being a partial oil substitute, the applesauce gives a light fluffiness to the texture that can’t be beat.

And since Brian works for an applesauce company (GoGo Squeez), I’m always throwing applesauce in everything.

Smoothies, cakes, cookies, spaghetti sauce.

I’ll admit, a few “experiments” haven’t turned out so well (as in, some of my kids may never want to eat spaghetti again thanks to some questionable texture issues).

But applesauce definitely works well in these pumpkin applesauce muffins.

So easy and so tasty, you definitely need to add these to your pumpkin muffin lineup!

P.S. Wow, did you guys ever come out in full force with all your awesome opinions in Monday’s post or what?? I have LOVED reading every single comment. You awesome readers keep me laughing, keep me on track, keep me motivated, and keep me happy. Thank you!

One Year Ago: Harvest Pasta Sauce {Trader Joe’s Copycat}
Two Years Ago: Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake with Chocolate Cookie Crust
Three Years Ago: Easy Homemade Egg Noodles {Step-by-Step Pictures Include Food Processor Method or By Hand}
Four Years Ago: Black Bean and Butternut Enchilada Skillet
Five Years Ago: Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Cookies

Yield: 24 muffins

Pumpkin Applesauce Muffins with Maple Cream Glaze

Prep Time:20 mins

Cook Time:15-17 mins

Ingredients:

Muffins:

• 3 large eggs
• 15-ounce can pumpkin puree/canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup neutral flavored oil (like canola, vegetable, avocado)
• 1/2 cup no-sugar added applesauce
• 1 cup (7.5 ounces) granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 cups (12.5 ounces) all-purpose flour (see note)
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (see note)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Glaze:

• 1 cup (4 ounces) powdered sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon maple extract (see note)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two standard muffin tins with paper liners and set aside (24 muffins total).
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, oil, applesauce and sugar.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined (don’t overmix or the muffins may be dense and kind of heavy).
5. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin tins, filling the cups about 2/3 of the way full (or slightly more than that). I use my #20 cookie scoop to portion the batter into the muffin tin.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the top of the muffins spring back to the touch and/or a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached.
7. Remove from the muffin tin to a cooling rack to cool completely.
8. For the glaze, whisk together the glaze ingredients, starting with the lesser amount of cream and adding more as needed to make a pourable, but still thick, glaze.
9. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled muffins with a spoon or fork and serve.

Notes:

This recipe works really well with whole wheat flour (preferably the white wheat variety as it is less heavy and dense than red whole wheat); I often sub in at least half whole wheat flour. Don’t overmeasure the flour, especially the whole wheat flour, or the muffins might be dry and dense. 

For a homemade pumpkin pie spice, use the following (for the 2 teaspoons needed in this recipe): 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ginger and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/4 teaspoon cloves.

If you don’t have maple extract (I use this maple extract from King Arthur Flour when possible, but Mapleine, commonly found in grocery stores will work, too), try thinning the powdered sugar with half cream/half pure maple syrup. 

The maple glaze is optional but delicious, however, the muffins themselves might be the tastiest, lightest, fluffiest pumpkin muffin I’ve ever had. So yummy!

All images and text ©Mel’s Kitchen Cafe.

Recipe Source: adapted a little from A Bountiful Kitchen