OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS WITH CHOCOLATE STREUSEL
Submitted by: JunieBug's Kuntry Kitchen

Streusel:

1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted

Muffins:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup Quaker oats (quick or old-fashioned, uncooked)
1/2 cup regular or mini semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg, lightly beaten

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 medium muffins cups with paper baking cups.

For streusel, combine all ingredients in medium bowl; mix well. Set aside.

For muffins, combine flour, oats, chocolate chips, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl; mix well. In medium bowl, combine buttermilk, honey, oil and egg; blend well. Add to dry ingredients all at once; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. (Do not over-mix.)

Fill muffin cups nearly full. Sprinkle with reserved streusel, patting gently. Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool muffins in pan on wire rack 5 minutes; remove from pan. Serve warm. Store cooled muffins tightly wrapped at room temperature. Makes 1 dozen.

PUMPKIN BREAD THE HARD WAY
submitted by: Barb

I love to make my pumpkin bread out of the Halloween pumpkins. I often get the jack-o-lanterns from friends, neighbor, and school and then make pies or bread out of them. Recycle Queen, you say? You Bet!

Cut pumpkins into easy to handle chunks and put meat down in broiler pan or other large shallow pan with about 1/2" of water. Stick in the oven at 350 degrees until the peel pressed stays indented. Take out and cool til you can peel them (not burn hands in process). I peel and mash them up or put them through the processor (I have put them through the ricer to keep the strings out, but not all the time (some of us like the strings).

3 c sugar
1 c oil
4 eggs
2 c pumpkin
2/3 c water
2 tsp soda
1/2 t salt
2 1/2 t pumpkin pie spice
3 1/2 c flour
1 c chopped nuts

Cream sugar, oil and eggs at low speed; add pumpkin and water to working mixer (or mix thoroughly before next addition). Add the flour, soda, and salt, mix some more, then add spices and nuts as desired. Place in buttered, floured bread pans (recipe says 1 pound coffee cans). Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. (I sometimes have to do it for an hour--tops split and the opening is obviously not doughy).

This is the one treat my daughter wants every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas. One year I processed 80 pumpkins (Thank God, for my dad's help) and made bread and pies for most of the world as I knew it!!!!