Fall Goodness-Spiced Pear Muffins

Fall is in the air!  Cool crisp mornings, sunny afternoons and pleasant evenings to watch the sun go down.

Fall is one of my favorite times to get in the kitchen and bake up some fall goodness. 

Since we are moving around like drifters, gypsies, vagabonds, wanderers or like I said yesterday, a family just trying to go with the flow, baking sometimes is a little hard.

BUT I LOVE to bake.  It soothes me to get in the kitchen and bake. I NEED to bake! So last night at my parents' home I did just that.

We had some pears that were perfect for this recipe.  They were just starting to get soft and juicy. These are the perfect pears for this recipe! Oh I wish you could have been here to smell the house while they were baking.  Fall goodness wafting through the air. And cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.  Within ten minutes of baking everyone was longing for a muffin!!!  And everyone was a taste tester.  And everyone loved the muffins. 

Brant had one thing to say.  He said, "You should have made more."

Spiced Pear MuffinsMakes 12 muffins

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cup  all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
2 to 2 1/2 cups pears, unpeeled and diced small (2 medium-sized pears)
**Cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling on top**

Things I might change next time:
-a tad more sugar
-1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup all-purpose flour

Now let's get on to the recipe..............................


Heat your oven to 425°F. Spray the top of your muffin tin with non-stick coating and place muffin cups in all the wells.
In a mixer on high speed, cream together the sugars and the softened butter until they resemble fluffy frosting, about 1 minute. Mix in the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated, about 1 minute each. Mix in the vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, mix 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture followed by 1/3 of the milk. Continue alternating between the flour and the milk, mixing just until the flour is incorporated. It's ok if there is still some flour on the sides of the bowl. Do not over-mix.
Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula and stir gently to incorporate the last of the flour. Add the diced pears all at once and fold them into the batter.
Divide the batter between the muffin cups. The batter will fill the cups and mound slightly on top. Sprinkle the tops with cinnamon and sugar.
Place the muffin tin in the oven and immediately turn down the heat to 400°F. Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pan once in the middle of baking. The muffins are done with the tops looked cracked and toasted, and when a toothpick inserted in the middle of one of the muffins comes out clean.
Let the muffins cool enough to handle, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling and enjoy what you just made!!!!!  Enjoy with a cup of coffee or tea.......YUM!!!!

What are baking in the kitchen these days?  Happy Fall!!!!