Surprise Muffins are my youngest son’s favorite breakfast treat!!! These melt-in-your-mouth muffins disappear in our house and I guarantee they’ll disappear in your house too. The combination of sweet, melty chocolate and spicy pumpkin is simply divine.

Freshly-made Surprise Muffins are cause for great rejoicing with my two boys. The littlest guy races right to the muffin box and picks one out. Then he sits down in front of the fire and pulls the wrapper off the muffin. He still wears footy pajamas and he still has a special blue blankie. I just melt as I watch him snuggle up by the fire and enjoy his special treat.

What makes them a surprise, you ask? I’m not sure. My son named them and it stuck. I can only guess that these muffins are his idea of the prefect surprise:-)

Tip: Quite often, I substitute whole wheat flour for the white flour. The muffins are still delicious, but much denser than their white flour cousins;-)

1 2/3 cup all purpose white flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1/2 cup softened butter

1 cup chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin or fill the cups with muffin liners. Muffin liners work really well with this recipe.

Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs and vanilla into the mixture. Add the pumpkin puree and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to wet ingredients. Mix with a spoon just until the batter comes together. Carefully mix in the chocolate chips. Do not overmix! (Sprinkle a little sugar over the tops of the muffins for extra deliciousness.)

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Watch them carefully! You want to whip them out the second a toothpick comes out clean. If baked too long, they lose that amazing moist and soft interior. Here is a Surprise Muffin right out of the oven. YUM

Recipe Source: melskitchencafe.com