Gingerbread Muffins with Oatmeal Cookie Streusel and Chocolate Chips

Do you ever second guess yourself?  I do it all the time.  This weekend I went Christmas shopping, and after every purchase, I debated if I made the right choice.  

It doesn't matter if the decision is insignificant.  Deciding what type of hair gel or what to order at a restaurant is a tough decision for me.  

If it is a important decision, I'm even more indecisive.  I am thinking about moving to another apartment, and I can't even decide on an area.  Should I move to Virginia or stay in DC?  I weight the pros and cons of each choice, and I'm never closer to a decision.

It is amazing I ever decided what to study in school.  It took me a long time to chose my major as an undergraduate school.  I changed my mind several times.  I took a few years break in between getting my bachelors degree and masters because I had no idea what to study or even if I wanted to go to more school.

My indecision has nothing to do with these muffins, which were lovely.  The recipe game from food.com.  

I added chocolate chips and a oatmeal cookie crumble.  The oatmeal cookie crumble was a last minute decision.  A coworker brought around 70 oatmeal cookies to work the day I made these muffins.  I only made a third of the batter.  The original recipe makes 36 muffins.

The ingredients are 1 egg, 1/3 cup molasses, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1 1/4 cups flour, 1/2 tablespoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon ginger, 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon, 1/2 cup butter, 1/3 cup hot water, 1 cup chocolate chips, and 6 crispy oatmeal cookies.

I added the flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon into a bowl. 

I mixed the dry ingredients together.

In another bowl, I added melted butter, brown sugar, water, and egg.

I poured the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisked them together.

I added the chocolate chips and stirred again.

I scooped the batter into a lined muffin pan.  I was a little too enthusiastic with the amount of batter I used in each liner.  I like a hearty muffin but not an overflowing muffin.

I crumbled up the oatmeal cookies with my bare hands because I'm exceptionally strong.

I added the oatmeal cookie crumbs on top of the muffin batter.

I baked the muffins for 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

As you can see from this photo, I added a little too much batter into each liner.  

I really enjoy the flavors and spices of gingerbread.  The sweetness of the molasses is less intense then white sugar and more flavorful.

The dark chocolate chips were smooth and mellowed out the strong gingerbread flavors.  The crumble topping was crisp and had a hearty texture from the oatmeal.

The muffin was soft and airy.  I would make these muffins for the smell alone, much better than any scented candle.  Delicious!