Mini Pumpkin Muffins

Where's the pumpkin?! There is no pumpkin stuff in these muffins! And they don't exactly look very much like a traditional muffin, but they sure are tasty!

These muffins actually contain butternut squash as the main ingredient. I had never done anything with a butternut squash before, and was pleasantly surprised by (1) how much it smelled like cantaloupe, (2) how much it tasted like cantaloupe, and (3) how hard it was. The "meat" of the squash was a beautiful vibrant orange color.

It was quite the challenge to peel one of these things. I tried peeling it with a potato peeler but quickly resorted to a paring knife. Below is a photo of the squash and all of the untensils I used to prepare it before I could run it through the juicer. I had to scoop out all the seeds, much like a cantaloupe!



I wish I would have taken a photo of the "muffins" before I dehydrated them, because they looked much more impressive beforehand.


I also made a Sweet Cashew Cream to top the "muffins" - and I use that term very loosely. I won't post what I call them in the privacy of my home.

These are some pretty darn good raw muffins!

Mini Pumpkin Muffins

I use little candy papers that look like mini pleated cup cake papers.

1 Butternut Squash, peeled
1 ½ cups Raw Walnuts
About 1/3 cup Raw Pecans
3-4 dates, pitted
3 tsp. Pumpkin Spice (or 3 tsp. Allspice and ½ tsp. Ginger)
1 cup Cranberries, chopped

Cut squash into quarters, Peel skin with paring knife, Run through juicer with blank plate on. (For a smallish squash should have about 3-1/2 cups.)

Put all ingredients into food processor with the s blade and blend until smooth. While the blender is on and mixing, add about 1/8 c water. More if needed to make it smooth.

When finished, scrape all ingredients into a bowl, add 1 cup of chopped cranberries and mix in.
Drop mixture by teaspoon to fill the little cups.

Dehydrate for 10-15 hours @ 110 degrees.

Sweet Cashew Cream

2 big handfuls of Cashews, soaked in water for about 1hr.
Juice from ½ Lemon
2-3 TBSP. Agave Nectar
Pure Water

Drain and put nuts in blender with lemon juice and agave.
Add just enough water to get the mixture moving.
*Only add water as needed.

Blend till completely smooth, keeping consistency thick like whip cream. Store in fridge.

Top Pumpkin muffins with cream when they are ready.