Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins

I'm sorry for being MIA over here. School got the best of me last week, but I am ready to tackle whatever it throws at me next! So long as I can do it while shoving muffins (and let's be real, spoonfuls of peanut butter) down my throat.

I kid you not, I think I am addicted to peanut butter. I eat it on any and everything. Kid.You.Not. It's kind of scary. I really need an intervention. BUT I CAN'T STOP. And I won't. So there. I even have a board entirely dedicated to peanut butter on my Pinterest. Not sorry.

I have had my eye on these Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins for quite some time, but for some reason have never made them. I don't know what's wrong with me. I think it's just that anytime I buy jars of peanut butter, I devour them in approximately 12 hours and never have enough leftover for baking. Luckily, that all changed when I saw that my family had two jars of peanut butter in our pantry - one for baking, and one for reserves. It was perfect.

I made a batch of these for my best friend, Nick, and my sister, Kelley. While I did give these away, you better believe I snagged a couple for my self (oops). All I can say is that you CANNOT beat the peanut butter chocolate combo. You just can't. If you can't tell from this, this, this, this, this, this, OR this, I will forever be loyal to PB & chocolate (hehe).

These are a perfect breakfast treat AND they double as a fabulous dessert. Or snack. Basically what I'm saying is that you can eat these whenever you want and your taste buds will sing songs of joy. That's a verified fact. So go ahead and enjoy!

Brown Sugar Bliss.

Choosy bakers choose Jif.

Yes. Just yes.

Gettin' all melty up in here.

Melted butter + peanut butter...I'm diving in this bowl.

Here comes the chocolate.

Sprinkle 'em with sugar. Every good muffin comes with a coating of sugar. It's a law.

Oven-worthy.

Hello, lover.

Devour.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins
Recipe from Annie's Eats (originally adapted from Baking Bites)

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 6 tbsp. butter, melted and cooled
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (I used Jif Creamy)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips
• coarse sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, peanut butter, eggs and milk until smooth. Add in the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Divide batter evenly between prepared muffin tins, filling each to the top. Sprinkle each muffin with coarse sugar, if preferred.
5. Bake muffins for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

I linked up this post at: Inside BruCrew Life, Zent Mrs. & The Mr., Hungry Little Girl, Back for Seconds, Semi Homemade Mom, Buns In My Oven, Mandatory Mooch, Sassy Little Lady

Three Ingredient Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins

Y'all...this is revolutionary. I'm telling you.

THREE Ingredient Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins.

Three ingredients. Total.

Three ingredients that lead to heaven in your mouth. Fally heaven at that (yes, I made up that word).

The pumpkin craze. I already mentioned it's taken me by storm (Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C). It's taken the world by storm for that matter. And ya know what, I dig it. I absolutely dig it.

These muffins are delectable. And they probably take less time to make than it takes to type the word delectable.

They are light and airy, with a perfect pumpkin taste that is complemented by a slight crunch from the white chocolate chips. They are gooey and melt in your mouth. They are easy to make and they are divine.

I am almost positive you'll have everything you need to make these right in your pantry: yellow cake mix, a can of pumpkin, and some white chocolate chips. You could even sub in some different chips, perhaps milk chocolate or butterscotch??! Just a thought.

The possibilities are endless (I'm thinking a cream cheese frosting may fun!), but I urge you to take part in this pumpkin revolution...like now.

Three Ingredient Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins

Recipe modified from Sweet Verbena

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree
• 1/2 a bag of white chocolate chips (measurements are clearly not exact!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tray with liners (you'll need 20-24 depending on how full you like them).
2. In a bowl, blend the yellow cake mix and pumpkin puree until combined. (No oil/eggs needed! Yummy & healthy!)
3. Stir in white chocolate chips until incorporated.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes.

My Pumpkin Bucket List

Where have I been? Ugh. Real life has officially taken over and let's just say that real life often makes it IMPOSSIBLE to do the things you want to do, like bake and blog. And for that, I am sorry.

First and foremost, while at school, I don't have a kitchen at my disposal - sigh. This makes it extremely difficult to bake (duh) which means I am a sad, sad undergrad (like my poem?). Also, school requires a lot of work. Who knew? And all this work is making it very hard to attend to my blogging duties.

With fall rapidly approaching (tomorrow!!) and  in an effort to return to my Tar Heel Taste Bud friends, I have been hounding Pinterest for recipes for fall! I am a pumpkin lover so I compiled a few recipes here that I am DYING to make!!!!!

Here's my Pumpkin Bucket List for this fall (in no particular order)...

1. Pumpkin Cinnamon Streusel Muffins from Two Peas and Their Pod

Not only are these muffins topped with cinnamon streusel, but they have a cinnamon sugar filling. Basically I need to eat these every morning this fall.

2. 4 Ingredient Homemade Pumpkin Frozen Yogurt from The Naptime Chef

Chilly weather does not mean you can't eat a frozen treat. This homemade pumpkin frozen yogurt is easy to make and a fun (and relatively healthy?) alternative to typical pumpkin treats!

3.Pumpkin Pull-Apart Monkey Bread with Maple Glaze from Lauren's Latest

In my humble opinion, you can't go wrong with Monkey Bread. It's a well-known fact, people. But add pumpkin puree AND a maple glaze - DONE. Give me.

4. Pumpkin Cornbread from Two Peas and Their Pod on Tasty Kitchen

I love cornbread (nom) and I feel like it is the perfect addition to every warm, hearty meal. I am dying to try this PUMPKIN cornbread with my favorite fall meals (i.e. Chili while watching NFL) and/or smothered in honey.

5. Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Vanilla Sheet Cake from Picky Palate

Ever since this recipe popped up on my Pinterest page, I knew I needed to try it. First of all, I love cake mix recipes because they are super easy and always yield surprisingly wonderful results. Second, I love cinnamon rolls, so I know I won't be able to resist cinnamon rolls with pumpkin in sheet cake form. Count me in.

6. Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

This is a bold statement but I may love white chocolate more than milk or dark. Eek - I said it! There is just something about it that I can't get enough of. I blame it on the fact the fact that I am not a die-hard chocolate fan; I'm definitely a vanilla girl. These muffins look so moist and delicious and I know that the white chocolate will perfectly complement the pumpkin flavor. Definitely looking forward to testing these out!

7. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie from How Sweet Eats

Oh my. I must admit I hate pumpkin pie, but I love cookies and I love pie crust. Combine the two and I'll be in heaven. I cannot wait to enjoy a pumpkin chocolate cookie, surrounded by pie crust, and topped with vanilla ice cream. Yes.

8. Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes from Cookie and Kate

Um, yes. As I mentioned this summer, I love pancakes. LOVE. I want these pumpkin pancakes right now, preferably covered in butter and maple syrup. Waking up to whole wheat pumpkin pancakes this fall sounds pretty darn good to me.

9. Ooey Gooey Caramel Pumpkin Blondies from Two Peas and Their Pod on Tasty Kitchen

It wouldn't be right if I made this bucket list and didn't include a recipe with caramel. Caramel is a fall staple, trust me. I am a bar/blondie dessert fan all the way. I am dying to make these blondies, but may switch the chocolate chips for butterscotch chips - yum!

10. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies with a Maple Cream Cheese Glaze from Sweet Treats & More

Pumpkin cheese makes an annual appearance at my house every Thanksgiving and my family cannot get enough of it. I love that this recipe is a simplified spin on one of my all-time favorite desserts. I'm positive that the addition of the maple cream cheese glaze will only add more excitement for my taste buds. Yumz.

For more pumpkin recipes, check out Two Peas and Their Pod's 50 Pumpkin Recipes for Fall and visit my Pumpkin Pinterest Board for additional inspiration!

Banana Crumb Muffins

Do you know the muffin man? The muffin man? The muffin man. Yes...I know the muffin man. Who lives on Drury Lane? Well, she's married to the muffin man! (Never gets old.)

I have been repeating these lines from the award-winning motion picture, Shrek, for days much to my family's dismay, but these muffins just make me so happy.

I secretly love when bananas are too ripe to be eaten "normally." In a family that hates waste, overripe bananas usually mean some delicious banana concoction will be whipped up. At my house, we are always ready for banana chocolate chip bread, but this weekend I decided that we (I) wanted muffins.

These have the perfect banana flavor, and the crumb topping absolutely makes them. I couldn't wait to pull them out of the oven. When baked, they smell exactly like an Auntie Anne's cinnamon sugar pretzel and by that I mean they smell like heaven. And of course, they taste just as good as they smell. The crumble topping adds a bit of texture to the soft muffins. I am drooling thinking about them and while I will not explicitly say how many of these muffins I have consumed in the past 24 hours (I have to maintain some shred of dignity!), let's just say I am definitely adding them to my list of favorite banana treats. They are great when served warm, with a touch of butter. Nom away, my friends.

Banana Crumb Muffins
Recipe from Pip and Ebby

     Muffin:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 large ripened bananas, mashed
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup butter, melted

     Crumb Topping:

• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions (see pictures below)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with muffin papers, or you can grease the muffin cups and forgo the papers. I prefer to use muffin papers, though, because I think it keeps the muffins more fresh.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the flour for the muffins, the baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a separate medium bowl, combine the mashed bananas, sugar, egg, and (1/3 cup) melted butter.
4. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture until just moistened. 
5. Spoon the batter into prepared muffin cups.
6. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, (4 tablespoons) flour, and ground cinnamon for the crumb topping. Cut in the 2 tablespoons of melted butter until the mixture is moist.
7. Sprinkle topping over the muffin batter inside prepared muffin cups.
8. Bake in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Flour Mixture

Banana Mixture                                     

Banana and Flour

Crumb Topping. Yum!

Ready for the oven!