Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Hands down, this is probably one of the easiest recipes that I make. Most of my cooking and baking is completely from scratch, but this is one instance where I'll definitely make an exception. These muffins are DELICIOUS, and not only that, they're not all that bad for you. Well, at least as far as baked goods go. They're made with pumpkin, which means they're full of fiber. They have no oil, so they're low fat. They're not super sweet, but just sweet enough with the addition of the chocolate chips. I think on Weight Watchers these are only two points each.

The ingredients: a box of spice cake mix, a can of pumpkin (NOT the pie mix, you want 100% pure pumpkin), a half cup water, and a cup of chocolate chips. I used Ghirardelli 60% cacao chips, so since they're dark chocolate I'm going to add "good for your heart or something like that" to my list of great things about these muffins. Also on the list? Only four ingredients. Kick butt.

Dump all of the ingredients into a bowl.

This is a dough whisk. I'm not big on the unitaskers in my kitchen, but I sure do love this thing. It makes mixing stiff doughs - even bread dough! - by hand a breeze. I got mine on Amazon, but King Arthur Flour sells them too. Be sure to get the 14" one if you get one.

Have your adorable helper mix everything together. Go back with a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides and make sure he got everything. (Tip: he didn't!)

Have your ridiculously cute, albeit pantsless, helper place paper liners in a muffin tin. Sure, you could grease and flour them, but this is SO much easier. Besides, I had these cute Halloween papers I wanted to use!

Fill your liners 1/2 to 3/4 full. I use a disher for this. Again, simplification is key! Bake for 15 - 20 minutes at 350 degrees, until a skewer inserted in one comes out clean. I like to use bamboo skewers instead of toothpicks to test baked goods because they're longer and I feel like I'm less likely to get burned that way.

They'll pretty much come out looking how they did when they went into the oven, which is another reason I like to use the disher. It leaves the tops smoother. You can also substitute chocolate cake mix for the spice cake mix. It's amazing and honestly, no one can ever taste the pumpkin in that version. You could also leave out the water and use a smaller disher to scoop the batter directly onto sheets of parchment paper for the most delicious, soft cookies ever.