{gluten free} pumpkin muffins with maple cream cheese frosting - make this now.

My great friend, The Sharynator {as in - a fun combo of her name and The Terminator? Get it? Yep. I am a great friend.} bought me a can of pumpkin a few weeks ago, after we had just heard about the great pumpkin shortage of 2010 and started to kind of PANIC and FREAK THE FRACK OUT because we noticed our local grocer was not stocking the pumpkin like they used to but then she spotted it on the shelves of another market. {Food Ciiiiiiii-Tay! - if you've ever shopped there, you know what I mean. I LOVE shopping there. Especially FRIDAYS!} and picked us each up a big ol' can. {oh holy run on sentence} And I have been staring at it ever since, because my trusty pumpkin bread recipe just isn't going to work this year {since we've been gluten-free since January} and I hate to waste time making things that are going to end up tasting like sadness. BUT I have tried to start to give myself credit for finally getting a handle on what gf flours work for what and so I decided {after a successful foray into making pancakes with what I had on hand vs an actual recipe}to try to modify my bread recipe into gf muffins. They turned out SO DELICIOUS I am going to share them with you:

Ingredients needed to make 24 regular sized muffins + 24 mini muffins:

{Halve the recipe to make about 18 regular sized muffins}

• 1 c unsalted butter {2 sticks}, softened
• 1/2 c brown sugar, packed
• 1 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tsp gf vanilla extract
• 2 c canned pumpkin
• 1 1/2  c gluntinous rice flour {widely available at asian or int'l supermarkets for VERY inexpensive- I can get it in AZ for about 99 cents a pound}
• 1 c sorghum flour
• 1 c tapioca starch
• 1/2 c almond flour
• 2 tsp guar gum
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 cup buttermilk {you can substitute powdered buttermilk + water}

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line your muffin tins with paper liners OR grease and flour the cavities. In a large bowl, combine your dry ingredients: the flours, guar gum, soda, powder and spices. In a stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugars and honey until well combined, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg. Add vanilla and pumpkin and beat until well mixed. Add the buttermilk and flour, alternating between the two, until everything is mixed together. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

To make the delicious frosting, whip together 1/2 c softened butter, 1 block softened cream cheese, 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 tsp maple flavoring and 2 tbsp half and half. {start by adding 1 tbsp and add 1 tsp at a time until you reach your desired frosting consistency. Add more half and half as needed} Frost your muffins once they are completely cooled. ENJOY!

Gluten free baking does not need to be scary :)