Toasted Pecan Muffins

I kinda love muffins. I mean, clearly I like most baked goods, but muffins are kind of special. They’re cake, but they’re also ok for breakfast because society has deemed them so.

These muffins are easy to make, and are the very definition of dessert for breakfast. Which I think is awesome.

They’re kind of like little pecan pies but not nearly as rich, and with the muffin-y goodness of, well, a muffin.

Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

2 ½ cups coarsely chopped pecans, separated
1 ½ c flour
1 ½ t baking soda
¼ t salt
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
¾ cup butter, softened to room temperature
½ cup milk
2 t vanilla

Directions

Line a muffin tin with cupcake/muffin liners – 18 in total and set aside.

If you haven’t already, chop up your pecans until you have 2 ½ cups of chopped pecans and spread them on a baking sheet. Bake them at 350 for about 10 minutes or until they get a little darker and you can smell the pecan goodness (honestly, your kitchen will smell amazing – that’s why I love toasting pecans).

Take the pecans out of the oven and set the tray aside while you start mixing the other ingredients.

In a medium bowl add your first three ingredients – flour, baking soda and salt and whisk together until well combined. Set aside.

In a large bowl add the brown sugar, eggs, butter, milk and vanilla and mix until well combined, maybe 5 minutes. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ones and mix again until just combined. Then, get 1 ½ cups of your chopped pecans and gently stir those in until they’re evenly distributed.

Get your prepared muffin tin and fill the cups evenly – note that you’ll probably fill each cup about ¾ full.

Take your remaining cup of chopped pecans and sprinkle them evenly over the tops of your muffins.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the centers are solid and no longer jiggle.

Take the tin out of the oven and let the muffins rest in the tin for about 5 minutes, then remove them and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.