Maple Pumpkin Pecan Muffins

I made these this morning and they were quite yummy. They're a bit healthier than a lot of pumpkin muffins too!:) I didn't have any cardamom and I forgot to put the allspice in (opps!) but I'm sure those would make a delightful addition. :)

Maple Pumkin Pecan Muffins

For the muffins:
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons cold milled flax
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 - 15 ounce can pumpkin puree
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the streusel:
2/3 cup pecans
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup cold butter, cut in cubes
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat two 12-cup muffin pans with nonstick cooking spray or fill with muffin liners.

Put the nuts for the crumb topping recipe into the work bowl of a food processor and pulse to roughly chop. Add remaining crumb topping ingredients and pulse until mixture is crumb-like. Remove crumb topping and set aside in a small bowl.

In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Add the pumpkin puree, oil, vanilla, brown sugar, and maple syrup. Mix well. In another medium sized bowl, combine the flour, flax, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt. Stir well to combine.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Pour in the pumpkin mixture and stir with a wooden spoon to combine until just moistened. Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups, using a little less than 1/4 cup of batter per muffin. Top each muffin with a heaping tablespoon of the streusel mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes in pan before removing. They taste delicious served warm. Cool any extras on a wire rack until room temperature. Then, store in a ziplock bag or a container with lid.

Makes 2 dozen muffins.