½cupSilk Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milkor your favorite milk
⅓cuplight brown sugarpacked
¼cupmaple or pancake sryupI used sugar-free lite pancake syrup
¼cupcanola or vegetable oil
2teaspoonsvanilla extract
2teaspoonspumpkin pie spice
pinchsaltoptional and to taste
3cupsold-fashioned whole rolled oatsdo not use quick-cook or instant
2teaspoonsbaking powder
¾cupsemi-sweet mini chocolate chipsmini recommended, but regular-sized chips may be substituted
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a Non-Stick 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan with floured cooking spray or grease and flour the pan in 11 of the cavities (I don’t prefer the cosmetic look of paper liners and they may stick); set aside.
To a large bowl, add the first 9 ingredients (through optional salt), and whisk to combine.
Add the oats, baking powder, and stir to combine.
Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.
Using a large cookie scoop or 1/4-cup measure, evenly distribute the batter into 11 of the cavities (don’t use all 12, muffins will be too skimpy). Each cavity should be nearly full since muffins don’t rise much.
Bake for about 23 minutes, or until tops are set both visually and when touched lightly, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs dangling, but no batter (toothpick test is tricky because you’ll likely hit chocolate patches). Don’t overbake because muffins will be prone to drying out.
Allow muffins to cool in pan for about 20 minutes before removing and placing on a rack to cool completely. Don’t rush the cooling process and attempt to remove muffins from pan too soon because they’ll be prone to breaking. It’s much easier to remove them when cooled completely.
Notes
Muffins will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.