Home > Health & Nutrition

Emma Coburn’s pumpkin spice muffins hit the spot

Be like Emma: eat one (or several) of these as fuel for your afternoon run

Photo by: Kevin Morris

American track superstar and Olympian Emma Coburn, author of the cookbook The Runner’s Kitchen, says that she savours these muffins in winter when pumpkin spice vibes are at their peak: “I often eat these as a snack before my afternoon run–they give me good fuel, but are easy on my stomach.”

These muffins are a staple in our household–simple and quick to make, they’re also really adaptable. If you’re looking to cut sugar, using applesauce as a substitute has worked great for me, and I’ll often add a handful of nuts and grated carrot or zucchini. The recipe also works perfectly as a loaf–the aroma of it baking will have you adding it to your weekly rotation before you’ve even tasted the first bite.

Emma Coburn
Photo: Kevin Morris

Emma Coburn’s pumpkin spice muffins

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground nutmeg

2 tsp ground ginger

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup sour cream

1 15 oz (425 g) can pumpkin

pumpkin muffins slashio-photography
Photo: Unsplash/slashiophotography

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salad, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, oil, sour cream and pumpkin. Stir until well combined. Slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, and stir until just combined.

Evenly distribute the batter amount in the 12 muffin cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in a muffin comes out clean.

Emma’s tip: use a spring-action ice cream scoop for an easy, tidy way to fill muffin cups.

Check out the latest buyer's guide:

The best trainers in Canada under $150

We curated the best performance trainers under $150 to meet your 2024 running goals, while staying on budget