Halloween-- Pumpkin Chocolate Treats

Are you ready for the sugar-rush that will come upon us on Friday? My little clan includes: a witch, twins posing as each other, and a little boy who turned into a venus flytrap.
I've never noticed that sugar had an effect on my children, although some of my friends might disagree. I prefer to stay delusional on Halloween night and let them have some fun.

I moved from France to California with my family when I was ten. It was the week before Halloween. Although I did not speak English yet, I quickly learned how to say: "trick or treat". I remember that night vividly in all its magic. People made their own costumes back then--no, it wasn't that long ago. The neighbors all knew each other and welcomed you with candies and smiles.

This year, we're getting together with some friends for a casual dinner and the usual Halloween festivities. I hope your Halloween is merry and magical.



For this recipe, I was inspired by the Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bars I saw on Eggs on Sunday. I decided to make them with olive oil instead of butter. I know it sounds strange, but olive oil is wonderful at mimicking the richness of butter while blending into your baked-goods. I also altered the recipe to make it gluten-free. Instead of making them into bars, I decided to pour the cake batter into individual cups to make it easier for the kids at my son's Halloween party.

Pumpkin Chocolate Treats (makes 12) These treats are more like a cake than a muffin. They are incredibly moist and delicious. 1/2 cup olive oil 3/4 cup brown sugar 1 egg 1 tsp GF vanilla extract 3/4 cup pumpkin puree 1/2 cup brown rice flour 1/4 cup tapioca starch 1/4 cup sorghum flour 1/4 tsp xantham gum 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp ground ginger 1/4 tsp ground allspice 1/4 cup GF chocolate chips Orange decorative sugar (optional/I use an all natural product) Preheat oven 375F Prepare muffin pan, and paper liners. Mix all the dry ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, in a bowl. Place the olive oil and sugar in a mixer and combine until smooth and fluffy (3 minutes). Add egg and vanilla to sugar mixture and mix some more. Add Pumpkin puree and stir until evenly distributed. Little by little add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until batter is well comined. Add chocolate chips. Distribute the batter evenly into the muffin cups. Sprinkle a little bit of the orange sugar on top of each muffin and bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the center of muffin. Let cool.

And because it's Halloween tomorrow, here are some more treats...

GF Cranberry Pistachio Mexican Wedding Cookies
Cardamom Dark Chocolate Cookies