Crumble Topping |

I was going to make banana bread.

Or, banana muffins.

Or, mini banana loaves.

Something so jam-packed with bananas that all your taste buds would scream in excitement. Well, at the very least, the taste buds of my coworkers. You see, I’ve been getting a ton of ~~demands~~ requests for banana bread, which is actually totally fine with me, because I love the stuff. And, by love, I mean I would live in a house made of banana bread and eat a slice, or seven, with each meal. That’s not even a joke either. I’m one hundred percent serious. Oh, and don’t worry, there’s a spare room waiting for you in my banana house. You’re welcome.

I had one little problem though: no bananas. So, I went to the market, walked right by the stand with bunches of perfectly ripe bananas, and placed two pints of raspberries in my cart.

Wait, what? Yeah, you read that right.

I left the market without a single banana.

Go figure.

I’m not even that huge a fan of raspberries either. We have a rather neutral relationship with each other. Translation: I avoid them for the most part and they avoid me. It really works for us. And, yet, out of the nowhere I felt the need to put them into muffins.Why? Who knows. Who. Even. Knows.

It could be because I’m really into muffins right now. Like, really, really really into them. I want one with every cup of coffee I drink. And, we all know how much coffee I consume. To clarify though, I restrain myself to only eating one a day. To further clarify, the muffins I’ve been eating are blueberry muffins made with Greek yogurt and honey. Yes, they are from Starbucks. And, no, I’m not getting compensated to promote them.

But, I made raspberry muffins.

Not banana.

Not blueberry.

Raspberry.

I can’t even with myself.

I’m all about a bigger muffin too. Why?

‘cause they’re heartier.

‘cause I can pack more raspberries in them.

‘cause I can top them with more streusel. MORE STREUSEL. Oh so sugary and crumbly streusel. If I get to live in a banana bread house, then I want to vacation in a streusel house. Am I right?

So, Jumbo Raspberry Streusel Muffins. That means a large and in charge moist and fluffy muffin packed with raspberry flavor and topped with a sweet streusel crumble.

Umm, yes please.

Take my advice, the next time you want banana or blueberry muffins, buy raspberries.

Let it happen.

Just let it happen.

Raspberry Streusel Muffins
Yields: 6 jumbo muffins

Ingredients:
Streusel Topping
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Raspberry Muffins
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
1 1/8 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cool slightly
2 cups fresh raspberries*

Directions:
Streusel Topping
In a small bowl whisk together sugars, cinnamon, and melted butter. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the flour. The streusel topping will be very thick, like a paste, and crumbly. Set aside.

Raspberry Muffins
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a jumbo muffin pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
In a large bowl whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon until combined. Set aside.
In a medium-sized bowl combine egg, egg yolk, sugars, vanilla, and Greek yogurt. Add the butter, whisking until just incorporated. Fold wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just mixed, the batter will be very thick and lumpy. Using a spatula, very gently, to avoid leakage of color, fold in the raspberries–don’t worry if some of the raspberries leak or break apart, it’ll still taste good!
Divide batter evenly between the 6 cupcake liners, filling each to the very top. Sprinkle tops with streusel crumble. Bake muffins at 425 degrees for 5 minutes. Keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 25 more minutes or until tops are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If the streusel topping looks like it’s browning too quickly, loosely cover the pan with foil. Allow muffins to cool slightly before digging in.

Notes:
*I’ve made this recipe twice now and the second time, I sprinkled my raspberries with 1/2 tablespoon of sugar before mixing them into the batter. There was more leakage of color, but I liked the added touch of sweetness it added to the muffin.

I’m maybe, just a little bit, pumpkin obsessed.

A pumpkin freak, as my brother calls it.

I like, no, it’s more along the lines of love with my whole heart, pumpkiny things. I’m that girl that walks into the store during fall, sees all the pumpkin flavored things, and then has to restrain herself from buying every single delicious pumpkin thing in sight. It’s hard. Really hard. Do you know what I mean?

If all these pumpkin flavored things didn’t taste so good, then I wouldn’t eat them. Or, want to buy them. Or, hoard them in my cupboard for a later date. See, it’s really out of my control at this point.

Pumpkin Spice Lattes. I could drink one everyday of the year if Starbucks would let me.

Pumpkin Ice Cream. Have you tried the Trader Joe’s version? It’s magical. And addicting.

Pumpkin Pie. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Am I right?

So, really, the world made me a pumpkin freak. And, you know what, I happily accept that. Want to join me in my pumpkin madness? If you do, you can have a slice (or, two if you’re really nice) of this Pumpkin Crisp.

This Pumpkin Crisp is for all the pumpkin freaks out there. The pumpkin filling itself is very creamy and not too sweet, which allows that warm spicy flavor of the pumpkin to really shine. The crumble topping is made with pumpkin spice flavored granola as well as regular oats giving this crisp the perfect amount of crunch. I served the crisp cold with homemade whipped cream and a little bit of cinnamon…it was devoured pretty quickly. You could also try it with vanilla ice cream. I’m sure that would be pretty darn delicious too.

Pumpkin Crisp
Yields: 9 large servings

Ingredients:
Pumpkin Filling
3 eggs
1 (29 oz.) can pumpkin puree
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup (6 oz.) evaporated milk
* If you like a sweeter pumpkin flavor you can add another ½ cup of sugar.

Crumble Topping
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup brown sugar
1/8 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup old fashioned oats
¼ cup pumpkin spice granola (I used the Trader Joe’s brand and picked out the raisins)
6 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:
Pumpkin Filling
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8×8-inch square pan.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until well combined.
Whisk in the pumpkin puree, until blended.
In a smaller bowl, combine sugar and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk into the wet ingredients, until mixture is smooth.
Gradually pour in the evaporated milk. Stir until combined.
Pour filling into the greased pan and set aside while you make the crumble topping.

Crumble Topping
In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, oats, and pumpkin spice granola.
Pour melted butter over mixture and stir until moistened and well combined.
Sprinkle the doughy mixture evenly over the pumpkin pie filling—I wanted a little extra crunch, so I sprinkled a little bit more pumpkin spice granola on top of the crumble making sure to cover any spots where the pumpkin filling was visible.
Bake for 45 minutes or until center is set and topping is golden brown.
Let crisp cool completely. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (this makes it easier to cut square servings).
I suggest serving with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Raspberry Streusel Muffins Yields: 6 jumbo muffins

Pumpkin Crisp Yields: 9 large servings

Raspberry Streusel Muffins
Yields: 6 jumbo muffins

Pumpkin Crisp
Yields: 9 large servings