Homemade on the Heights: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

I truly think Boston College’s campus was made for fall. Don’t get me wrong—I love it when the temperature is high enough that students lay on the Quad, or when the first snow of the year makes Gasson look like a carefully iced gingerbread house. But, when I experienced my first Boston fall two years ago, everything in my life clicked into place. 

As I hopped off the Newton bus and felt my boots crunch into the leaves, I felt like I had reached my truest form. I traversed Linden Lane, trying to figure out what exactly made autumn at BC feel so special. Maybe the gothic architecture paired perfectly with the warm-toned leaves, or maybe I was just subconsciously happier because the lack of AC in my dorm stopped irritating me as temperatures dropped. But, once you roam campus in a chunky sweater, baggy jeans, and a leather jacket while listening to “Cinnamon Girl” by Lana del Rey or any song off Red (Taylor’s Version), you realize why people always rave about fall in New England.

This year, I’m excited to fall in love with fall all over again. When reflecting on my first BC fall experience, I’m reminded of the breakfast I got every morning of freshman year: a pumpkin spice latte from Legal Grounds and a cinnamon muffin from the pastry case in Stuart Dining Hall. Now that I’m living off campus and have free rein over my kitchen, I decided to bake up something that reminded me of this nostalgic breakfast. This pumpkin chocolate chip muffin recipe is the perfect way to celebrate the start of the fall season. 

(Photo Courtesy of Erin Flaherty)

(Photo Courtesy of Erin Flaherty)

(Photo Courtesy of Erin Flaherty)

DISH: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

YIELD: 24 large muffins or 72 mini muffins 

INGREDIENTS:

• Four eggs 
• 2 cups sugar 
• One can pumpkin puree
• 1–½ cups canola oil 
• 3 cups all-purpose flour 
• 2 teaspoons baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• 3 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice 
• ½ cup brown sugar 
• 2 cups chocolate chips   

INSTRUCTIONS:  

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. Place muffin liners in your muffin tin. 
3. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, white sugar, pumpkin, and oil together until smooth. 
4. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice. 
5. Little by little, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until fully combined. 
6. Add the chocolate chips to the mixture.
7. Fill each muffin tin three-fourths of the way with batter. 
8. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and the remaining pumpkin pie spice. 
9. Pour about half a tablespoon worth of the brown sugar mixture on top of the batter for each muffin.
10. If you’re making standard-sized muffins, bake for 15 to 17 minutes. If you’re making mini muffins, bake for 11 to 13 minutes. You can check if the muffins are done by sticking a toothpick in the center of one—if the toothpick comes out clean, you’re all set.
11. Allow the muffins to cool before serving.