Gingerbread pear muffins

I generally do not use box mixes ever. It just seems wrong to me. I also wonder what is the fun of baking when you just pour the contents of a box out and add water. OK so there might be a bit more to the process than that but it is just not for me.

I do make exceptions every once and a while though. And I was reading in a magazine right before Thanksgiving about these Gingerbread pear muffins made from a box mix. For the life a me I cannot remember the magazine - Family Circle or Good Housekeeping - but I remember thinking that sounds SO GOOD! I immediately went out and got all of the ingredients. You would think being so excited about something I would have kept the recipe but no. And it really didn't matter since I have been so busy to make them till now.



Well, yesterday night I tired my own version based on the ingredients and measurements on the back of the box. Here it goes...

Gingerbread Pear Muffins

Ingredients:

1 box of gingerbread mix
1 canned pear with juice

1 egg

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove pears from can and chop into bite size pieces. Keep juice from pears in measuring cup.

2. Empty contents of gingerbread mix in medium mixing bowl. Add in one egg, and liquid from pears and additional water to meet the required liquid measurement. (I got almost one cup of liquid from pear juice, and add another 1/4 C of water)

3. Mix together with fork until well combined. Fold in pear pieces.

4. Put 1/4 C of mixture into each muffin tin.

Bake for 15-18 minutes. Check that tooth pick is clean to be sure cooked through.

They were pretty good in the end. I wish the pear taste had been a bit more strong. I did a quick chop and the pieces were a bit big. Next time no box mix!