Tikka Masala is easily one of the most delicious and creamy curries you can try. I love it so much I set out to make my own bulk chicken tikka masala recipe years ago, and it has consistently been a hit. Since we have switched over to a predominately plant-based diet in our home, I have created a vegan version, subbing in my favorite crunchy roasted vegetables: cauliflower and potatoes. I also include chickpeas to make the dish a complete and hearty meal with plenty of protein. Best of all, this meal takes a fraction of the time to prepare because it only uses vegetables that quickly roast in the oven. It is easily made vegan because we do not need a yogurt marinade to tenderize meat! I use the same spices and flavor profile on the cauliflower and potatoes as they roast, as well as in the sauce. The aromatic, lemony, fresh curry made of tomatoes and onions scented with a range of fresh and potent spices like coriander, paprika, cumin, garlic and turmeric blankets the crispy cauliflower and potatoes that beg to be soaked up with some bread or rice. This cauliflower and potato tikka masala promises to be one of the most flavorful and delicious recipes you can make!

Ingredients

This recipe is made so quickly because you start with roasting the cauliflower and potatoes. Simply wash, cut, and sprinkle on all the spices. They turn golden crispy delicious within 20 minutes. It’s so hard to resist not to just eat it all straight off the roasting pan. I recommend using a cast iron pan, if you have one, to get nicely crisp results. It’s also important not to overlap the cauliflower and potato pieces so they don’t steam cook and get too soft. I leave the roasting of the vegetables until just before serving, while the sauce can be prepared earlier in the day or even in advance and stored. The dish is garnished with freshly chopped cilantro leaves and squeezed lemon juice.

The spices used in tikka masala can range from each recipe. I use what I find to be the most flavorful and provide that depth of citrus and tangy spice. Almost always, I omit cayenne pepper mostly because it makes it too spicy for my kids, but the great thing about this recipe is that you can add whatever spices you like! Here are the basics I use for bright and aromatic tikka masala sauce: coriander seed, cumin seed, and paprika. Toasting the spices in a dry pan for 1-2 minutes really brings out the nutty fragrance of the cumin and citrus notes of the coriander. I use fresh garlic, ginger, and turmeric root, keeping this dish as fresh and flavorful as possible.

I then add in fresh garlic cloves, turmeric root, and ginger root because the flavors are a lot more potent. I love using these in most dishes because they have so many great health benefits!

The tomatoes used in this sauce can either be fresh tomatoes diced then blended, or a jar of crushed tomatoes. I prefer blending the ginger and turmeric root so that they become super fine and have no noticeable chunks. The entire sauce gets pureed with an immersion blender before adding the chickpeas and vegetables, so it’s important to use a deeper pot.

Because this sauce is so tasty to use with many recipes and stores well, I like to double or triple it and then save it, before adding in the chickpeas, lemon, or cilantro. It can then be pulled out and used on a variety of dishes such as roasted vegetables, fish, or simply a stew of chickpeas or other beans.

Serve along with

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The Instant Pot has won the hearts of so many cooks acoss America. It truly is an amazing pot. I am proud to say that over 10 years ago, before the Instant Pot was famous and popular, I was already an avid user! I worked long hours in the Harrisburg Public Schools and would come home too tired to think of dinner, but this pot made everything a dream. Easy, fast, healthy, and incredibly tasty meals have converted hundreds of my friends and family to IP users! Seriously!

There are endless possibilities to cook with the Instant pot. Some of my go-to recipes include my fasulya with stew beef, Fava Bean Stew (ful mudammas), or my stuffed grape leaves (coming to the blog this week!). The Instant Pot is life changing because your meat will never be more tender or flavorful in such an amount of time anywhere else, and because you can prepare foods like cooked beans or fresh home-made yogurt from scratch using clean non-processed methods. Check out this article to see why this pot is a must-have in your kitchen.

Now is your chance to get one. Maybe it will be your first, or maybe you use it so often you could use another, like me!

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These pumpkin spice muffins are just the fix you are searching for when the cozy season beckons. Sweet and creamy pumpkin puree that I make from scratch marries the warm, aromatic spices that scent the air with fall deliciousness. The cake of this muffin is perfectly moist and big on flavor. Topped with toasted pumpkin seeds or my creamy brown butter maple frosting, these will be a treat for all to indulge.

My secret to a rich, deep, pumpkin flavor is actually… butternut squash!  Butternut squash is otherwise known as butternut pumpkin in some countries- so I’m not really deviating from pumpkin muffins. The typical round orange sugar pumpkin that is so prevalent in the United States is great for adding moisture to many baked goods, but really, over the years I have found an inconsistent flavor that yearns for more sweetness and creamy texture. So, using all natural and clean ingredients to amplify the flavor, I roast some butternut squash, along with a pie pumpkin. I use 1 part pumpkin and 1 part butternut squash and the texture and flavor is PERFECTION. The butternut squash is sweet, creamy, and has some underlying butterscotch notes which complement the lacking flavor and watery texture of pumpkin. When whipped together with sugar, eggs, and oil… the squashes provide the perfect base for these muffins.

Pumpkin and butternut squash are highly nutritious. They are both high in antioxidants vitamins E and C, and as indicated by their deep orange hues, they are highest in beta-carotene (vitamin A). These vitamins are essential for healthy skin and nails, improved eye sight, preventing diseases, and even prevents aging of your skin.  Even more important to me and my little ones at home, pumpkins and butternut squash are high in fiber, which is excellent for improving digestive health such as preventing constipation and reducing the risk for digestive cancers or diabetes.

Hey, I am not claiming these muffins will save your life :), but these are no ordinary muffin. These muffins are also easily adaptable as a healthy breakfast muffin for your family. Simply cut the sugar down a bit, and mix in some flaxseeds, oats, hemp seeds, nuts, cranberries, dark chocolate chunks, or raisins to the recipe (see recipe notes below). You can truly make these how you like! I LOVE pumpkin and chocolate.

For that warm sultry spice combination, I mix a generous amount of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. The ginger and cloves give a very nice balance to the sweetness of the cinnamon and squash. Using high quality and the correct type of ingredients is important for great flavor and results. I use Vietnamese cinnamon with 4.5% oil because it has a stronger flavor excellent for baking, which you can both smell and taste as you bite into the muffin. This is the best cinnamon to use in baking. It is both sweet and spicy and adds such warmth and depth, to the flavors of this pumpkin muffin. For the sugar, definitely use dark brown sugar. It has deeper notes of maple syrup goodness. Dark brown sugar also holds more moisture and is more acidic which means it will react with the baking soda to make a nice fluffy muffin. 

These muffins can also be made into an ultra decadent treat. I recently made these muffins, frosted with brown butter icing for my daughter’s birthday treat in class and it was a big hit! 

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

5 from 2 votes

Here is a quick and easy recipe for a delicious pumpkin muffin from scratch. A moist pumpkin muffin full of flavor and warm fall spices, this treat can easily be adapted from a sweet cupcake treat with a maple brown butter icing option into a healthier breakfast muffin full of oats and other toppings.

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Servings: 18 cupcakes

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 1/2 c flour cake flour HIGHLY recommended
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 tsp cinnamon
• 1.5 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp all spice
• 2 c mashed pumpkin (baked then scooped out)
• 1 c mashed butternut squash (baked then scooped out)
• 1 c brown sugar
• 1/2 c white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 c olive oil or vegetable oil
• 1 c dark chocolate chips or cranberries or nuts OPTIONAL

For the icing

• 8 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 c dark brown sugar
• 2-3 c powdered sugar
• 6 tbsp softened butter or creamcheese
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup

Method

 

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees (F). Slice open the pumpkin and butternut squash, remove seeds, and place facedown on a pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 20-30 minutes until you can easily pierce the skin with a fork. Remove and allow to cool or store in the refrigerator until ready to bake (up to 3 days). Reduce temperature to 350 F.
2. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and all the spices.
3. In the bowl of a standing mixer add the mashed pumpkin and squash and sugars. Mix until smooth and creamy (about 3 minutes).
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla powder. Mix well (about 1 minute).
5. Add the oil and mix until smooth (about 1 minute)
6. Slowly fold in the flour mixture, careful not over mix.
7. Add in any optional mix-ins you choose such as nuts, chocolate, oats, at this step.
8. With a scoop, fill the cavities of a cupcake pan or muffin pan.
9. Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. The tops should puff up and be firm in the center.

For the icing

1. Melt 1 stick of butter in a small pot over medium heat. Move the butter around until it begins to brown and smell toasty.
2. Stir in the brown sugar. Simmer for about 3 minutes on low-medium heat, without scorching. Set aside and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
3. In a standing mixer, sift together 2 cups of powdered sugar with the whisk attachment. On medium speed, slowly add in the 6 tbsp pf soft butter or cream cheese and maple syrup.
4. Slowly pour in the butter and brown sugar mixture. Slowly add in some of the last cup of powdered until you have achieved the thickness of icing desired. Keep in mind, the frosting/icing will further harden once the melted butter cools to room temperature.

Notes

Using King Arthur cake flour makes these into an ultra fluffy and moist cake with a fine crumb! I find this ingredient makes  quite a difference in results. 

Adapt these muffins into a healthy breakfast muffin by cutting down the white sugar or eliminating. You may even cut out the brown sugar and use equal amounts of honey or maple syrup instead, and add in chunks of dates.

Replace 1/4 of the flour with a mixture of rolled oats and ground flaxseed.

Mix in cranberries, chopped dates, nuts, hemp seeds, or raisins for more flavor combinations.