Bourbon Maple Pecan Muffins

I often talk about inspiration in the kitchen. When I have no ideas of what to cook or bake I'll think about a childhood memory, an experience I had, or just take a walk around the shuk or supermarket to get inspiration for what to make. 

This week's #muffinmonday is also my brother's birthday so my brother is my inspiration for this week's muffin! To come up with the flavor I thought about what my brother loves to eat. I did not think a steak muffin would go over so well so I turned to his favorite dessert, pecan pie! I thought about what makes pecan pie so good and took the flavors from the traditional autumn dessert and translated them into muffin form. 

The buttery pecans pair really well with the flavors of strong bourbon and the sweet notes of maple syrup so why not enhance the pecan flavor by adding a little bit of both. 

My one issue with pecan pie is that it is a bit too sweet for me so for these muffins I scaled back on the sweetness, but the flavor of the muffin will remind you of a slice of pecan pie. If you would like to make the muffins a bit sweeter top each muffin with a little sprinkling of sugar before baking.

Happy Birthday Bro! 

Bourbon Maple Pecan Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour 

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda 

3/4 tsp salt

tiny pinch of cinnamon 

1/3 cup oil

1/3 cup milk, of your choice

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla 

2 tsp bourbon

2 Tbs real maple syrup

1/2 cup brown sugar 

1 cup chopped pecans + 1/4 cup for topping the muffins

Preheat your oven to 375°F/190°C 

Generously coat a standard-size muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray or line with paper liners. 

In a large bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

In a liquid measuring cup mix together the oil, milk, eggs, vanilla, bourbon, and maple syrup. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with the brown sugar. Mix until just combined. Make sure not to overmix your batter or else your muffins will be dense and chewy. Fold in 1 cup of chopped pecans.

Fill the prepared muffin tin with the batter and then top each muffin with a few chopped pecans. 

Bake for 15-18 minutes.

Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the muffin tin before popping out and cooling on a rack. 

Yield: 12 standard-size muffins