A Happy Accident With Mini-Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients purchased & ready to bake!

Not all success is intentional. I mean, it's not like we ever set out to fail... but if we are WILLING to fail at some things, we end up succeeding at others... sometimes accidentally!

This is what happened as I set out on a quest to make pumpkin biscotti the other day. Inspired by fall (and my sister bragging about the awesome batch she had made, yet conveniently run out of right before my last visit), I was hankering for some pumpkin goodness!!

But I've also been hankering to eat a little more cleanly.  To cleanse my body after a week at the client site I now affectionately refer to as "Candyland."  So, maybe biscotti & all the sugar contained within wasn't such a grand idea after all.

Enter Greatist.com & their fantabulous blog post about 83 healthy recipe substitutions. YES!  This is just what I needed!  Inspiration to make biscotti...only HEALTHY!

So off I ran to the store to buy canned beans (to use in place of white/bleached all purpose flour), unsweetened apple sauce (to use in place of white sugar), & flax meal...just 'cause I saw it in the baking aisle and thought it would add a little somethin'-somethin'. Back to the Batcave! Once there the whipping, mixing, chopping, counting, & SUBSTITUTING began!

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Could this really be a failure score.

It was awesome...until I realize that substituting 2 wet ingredients for 2 dry ones would NOT yield a dough suitable for biscotti making. 

BUT...all was not lost.  For some bizarre reason I'd been drawn to 2 things that weren't on my shopping list...dark chocolate chips & a mini-muffin tin.  So... I figured since I'd purchased them, I might as well put them to good use. 

I poured the batter-like substance into the pan, sprinkled in a few chocolate chips, & 31-minutes later (I had to keep checking every 3 minutes because CLEARLY following recipes is not my strong suit, so I was in uncharted territory here), I had 24 of the most AMAZING and HEALTHY mini-muffins EVER (46 calories each--2g fat, 7g carb, 2 g protein & only 3g sugar!!)!  Bite sized snacks that are good for you AND outrageously delicious!  

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I ended up getting more requests to share this recipe than any other I've 






ever posted...and it was all because I'd failed!

LESSON: 
Failure isn't always failure.  It may be a raging success in disguise.  If you are willing to fail, you try new things because you KNOW something great could come of it.  And if not, well...at least you've got a good story to tell at your next cocktail party!

Please look below for full recipe.  Make it as is or use it for inspiration to create your own raging success!  But come back & share it...we wanna hear what you make!

RECIPE INGREDIENTS

• 1 can of Bush’s Cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained/rinsed & patted dry
  
  
• ¼ cup Flax Meal (or your choice of flour...but this one’s lean & has great health bennefits!)
  
  
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  
  
• ¼ cup of pumpkin purée
  
  
• 2 egg whites (or 3 tbsp of egg whites from a carton)
  
  
• ½ teaspoon teaspoon of baking powder
  
  
• ½ teaspoon of cinnamon
  
  
• ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
  
  
• Pinch of ginger
  
  
• Pinch of cloves
  
  
• Pinch of salt
  
  
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
  
  
• 8 tbsp dark chocolate chips (or cacao nibs)
  
  
• No-stick cooking spray
  
  

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  
  
• Mix beans, applesauce, pumpkin puree, egg whites, & vanilla in a food processor (or mash up the beans really well first in a bowl & then add in the other wet ingredients).
  
  
• Put flax meal, baking powder & spices in a small bowl & mix well.  Dump them into the wet ingredients once both are well mixed.  Blend thoroughly.
  
  
• Use mini-muffin papers or non-stick cooking spray to coat your mini-muffin pan.  Drop about 1 tablespoon of batter into each cup.  Add & stir in 1 teaspoon of chocolate chips to each muffin.  (that’s 11 chips if you wanna count ‘em out to ensure consistency like I freakishly did! Haha!!).
  
  
• Bake for 30-35 minutes (depending on if you want them a little doughy in the center!!).
  
  
• Makes 24 muffins. Nutrition info: 46 calories per muffin--2g fat, 7g carbs, 3g sugar, 2g protein.
  

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this post or think this nummy recipe might help a friend in need of a serving of sweet happiness please share. This post brought to you by Leslie Stein & the number 10. Because YOU...are...a...10!!!