Sometimes I joke that I’m not even going to think about having kids (or even a pet) until I can manage to get myself out the door in the morning, in one piece. Even though my only real responsibilities before 9am are to get from bed to shower to bus to work (and sometimes stopping in my kitchen to clumsily make a cup of instant coffee to drink while I’m drying my hair) I often manage to lose my keys, misplace my transit card or conveniently forget my gym bag.

Usually, I manage to squeeze breakfast in too, it being my favorite meal, but lately, my routine has extended to waking up a little earlier so that I can write and check email (and drink my coffee with dry hair) before heading to work. You’d think that while I’m writing about food, I’d want to concurrently be eating food, but usually that is not the case.

I have, however, discovered that the one thing I can manage to make time for in the morning is a muffin. I had been buying the 100-calorie Vita-Muffins but when I had a free Saturday afternoon and all of the ingredients in my pantry to make the base recipe for New York Times Whole-Wheat Muffins, it seemed silly to schedule a special trip to the store.

Whole Wheat Muffins with Pecans and Golden Raisins

1/2 cup melted unsalted butter, more for greasing tins

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, preferably pastry flour

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup mashed pumpkin

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup buttermilk.

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup golden raisins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease two 6-cup muffin tins or fill with liners. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the melted butter, banana, egg and buttermilk. Fold wet mixture into dry mixture and stir until just combined.

2. Fill muffin tins or liners; bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until muffins are puffed and turning golden brown on top. Serve warm if possible.

Yield: 12 muffins.