The best muffins

This recipe is a good one.  Smells great, tastes great.  Cinnamon is a great thing.

Cinnamon Apple Muffins
Recipe adapted from Relish

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 apple- shredded/ grated
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup craisins
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut (optional)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 whole eggs

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line 12-cup muffin tin with papers.  Dry mix flours, sugar, b soda, cinnamon, salt in one bowl, set aside.  In a large bowl, grate apple and carrots, add coconut, oil, craisins, milk, vanilla, and eggs and mix to combine.  Add dry to wet and mix just til combined.  Pour into muffin cups and bake for about 20 minutes, til just cooked through.  

Bout time fo some muffins

If my mom doesn't stop asking me for banana muffins I'm going to scream...

Banana Muffins with Walnuts and Golden Raisins

Ingredients:  

• 1 C Whole Wheat Flour
• 1/2 C AP Flour
• 1/2 C Spelt Flour
• 1 Tsp B Soda
• 1 Tsp B Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Cinnamon
• 4 Bananas- old and brown (mashed)
• 1/4 C Oil
• 1/2 C Low-Fat Buttermilk
• 1/4 C Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2 Tbsp Molasses
• 1 C Golden Raisins
• 1 C Chopped Walnuts

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and paper a 12-cup muffin tin.  In a large bowl mash the bananas and add oil, buttermilk, sugar, eggs, and molasses and mix.  In a separate small bowl mix flours, b soda, b powder, salt, and cinnamon.  Add dry to wet and mix just until they are combined.  Add the nuts and raisins and mix a few more times.  Pour into muffin tins and bake for about 18 minutes.  Take them out when they bounce back to the touch.  

Cornbread muffins

Saw this recipe online and thought I'd give it a try.  It was great as a muffin rather than a quick bread, toasted with some Bon Maman raspberry jam.

Banana Walnut Honey Corn Muffins with Walnuts
Recipe adapted from Sarah's Cucina Bella


Ingredients:

• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 overripe banana, mashed
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup low-fat buttermilk milk
• 2 tablespoons canola oil or melted butter
• 1 can of corn
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Method:

Preheat oven to 400, paper a 12-cup muffin tin.  Mix cornmeal, flours, b powder, and salt in small bowl, set aside.  In larger bowl mash the banana and add honey, eggs, milk, and oil and mix til combined.  Add to flour mixture and mix just til dry is incorporated.  Add corn and nuts and mix a few more times, don't over-mix batter or you will deflate it.  Pop in the oven for 15 minutes and then add time in 3 minute increments until the center is set.

Mini banana muffins are better when rolled in cinnamon sugar

I made these banana muffins yesterday and they turned out good, but a little white looking as my mother pointed out.  They were definitely cooked through, but hadn't gotten any color on top.  This was partly my fault for not adding any whole wheat flour to the recipe, a lot of times that's how I hearty-up an anemic looking muffin.  If you use only white flour a muffin turns out more like a cupcake and loses it's breakfast appeal.

Banana Oatmeal Cinnamon Mini-Muffins with Golden Raisins
Recipe adapted from Rasa Malaysia

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 mashed overripe banana
• 1/2 cup raisins

• cinnamon sugar for dusting 

Method:

Preheat your oven to 400 and spray two mini-muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray.  In a small bowl add oats to milk and let soak while preparing batter.  Mix flour, b powder, b soda, and salt in a small bowl, set aside.  In another bowl mash the bananas and add b sugar, egg, and oil.  Add milk and oat mixture to bananas.  Now pour the wet into the dry and fold to combine, add raisins and fold a couple of more times.  Don't over-mix at this point.  Divvy the batter into the muffin cups and bake for 12 minutes.  Test the center of the muffin, it should bounce back when you poke it, better a little under than over-done.  Pull the muffins out of the oven and while still warm throw them into a bowl of cinnamon sugar.  Completely coat the muffins and then let them cool on a wire rack.  Enjoy!!

Mostly apple muffins

This batter turned out to be 75% apples and 25% actual batter..... oh well the muffins turned out delish anyway.

Apple Cinnamon Almond Muffins
Recipe adapted from Culinary Chat

Ingredients:

• 1 cup white flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbls cinnamon
• 1/2 cup canola oil or butter (your preference)
• 2 eggs or 4 egg yolks
• 2/3 cup milk or soymilk
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 4 small gala apples- cored and cubed
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup raw almonds for tops

Method:

Preheat oven to 430.  Paper a 12-cup muffin tin.  Chop up your apples and set aside.  In a small bowl mix flours, b powder, salt, cinnamon, set aside.  In a larger bowl mix sugar, eggs, oil, eggs, milk, extract, and raisins.  Add the dry to the wet and mix, then add the apples and mix.  Pour into muffin cups and drop a few almonds on top of each muffin.  Bake for 10 mins then lower temp to 400 and turn the tray in the oven, bake for another 10-12 mins.  Take out the muffins when they bounce back and are crusty on top.  They may remain moist because of the fruit.  

Kabocha squash recipes

The other day I went to a farm to buy squash and they ended up giving me a bunch of free squash because they were getting a little old and soft.  So I took them home and cut off the soft spots and baked them all.  Now I have a ton of cooked kabocha squash and not enough time to eat it.  (Who am I kidding I could eat that stuff day and night).  Anyway I saved this pumpkin muffin recipe so I decided to sub the kabocha squash for pumpkin to use some of this stuff up.

Kabocha Squash Spice Muffins
Adapted from Dainty Chef

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 large eggs or 8 egg yolks
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 cups mashed kabocha squash
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• splash of milk or soymilk 
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup nuts of your choosing or pumpkin seeds

Method:

Preheat oven to 430.  Line 12-cup muffin tin with papers.  In small bowl mix flours, spices, salt, b soda, and b powder, set aside.  In larger bowl mix eggs, sugar, squash, oil, molasses, nuts and raisins.  Add the dry into the wet and combine without over-mixing.  At this point if your mixture is a little dry add the splash of milk, leave it out if the batter is wet enough.  Portion evenly into muffin tins and pop in the oven for 10 minutes.  When the timer goes off lower the temp to 400 and rotate the muffin tin.  Bake for another 10 minutes or until the muffins bounce back to the touch.  Take them out still a little underdone, they will continue to bake in the pan.  Pop them out when they are completely cooled.

Apple cinnamon muffins

Saturday morning and the guys are here refinishing the floors.  To combat the smell of polyurethane I decided to bake some cinnamon muffins.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins with Oats and Almonds
Recipe adapted from My Recession Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 cups ap flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 cup soy milk 
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 3 apples worth of peeled and cored apple chunks
• 1 cup rolled oats
• almonds for topping

Method: 

Preheat oven to 430.  Paper a 12-cup muffin tin.  Mix flours, cinnamon, b soda, b powder, salt in one bowl.  Mix sugar, milk, apple sauce, oil, vinegar, vanilla, and molasses in another bowl.  Mix dry into wet and then mix in oats and apple chunks.  Divide into muffin tins and top with 3 almonds each and sprinkle of cinnamon.  Put into oven and turn temp down to 400.  Bake for about 25 mins.  

Baking with pumpkin!!

Yet another way to tell that it's fall, canned pumpkin is aplenty.  I saved this recipe a week ago and was very glad that I did.

Pumpkin Cornbread Muffin with Craisins and Walnuts
Recipe adapted from Aida's Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1 cup craisins
• 1 cup crushed walnuts

Method:

Preheat oven to 430.  Mix flour, b powder, salt, cinnamon, and cornmeal in a small bowl.  In a larger bowl mix sugar, eggs, pumpkin, canola, and molasses.  Pour dry into wet and mix til almost combined.  Add craisins and walnuts and mix completely.  Divide into about 8 muffin cups and put in oven.  Turn oven down to 400 and bake for about 20 minutes.  Muffins are done when they are firm to the touch.

Illustration credit:  www.123rf.com

Muffins baked with no power!!

We had quite a bit of rain today didn't we?  And the power went out just as I was finishing baking my muffins, thankfully the oven wasn't effected by the storm and I could feel that the muffins were done without my oven light.

Apple Molasses Bran Muffins
Recipe adapted from Circle-B-Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 3/4 cup OJ
• 1/4 cup dark molasses

• 1 cup all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1 cup bran 
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/2 cup raisins
• 4 apples, diced (Granny Smith or other baking apple) 
• 1 cup chopped almonds

Method:

Preheat your oven to 450 and paper a 12- cup muffin tin.  Mix all wet ingredients and set aside.  Mix all dry ingredients and set aside.  Mix the dry into the wet and when almost combined add the raisins, apples, and almonds.  Mix until combined, divide into muffin cups and place in the 450 degree oven.  Turn the oven down to 400 and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until muffins are set in the center.  

I made up this recipe (sort of)

For Bruce and Molly:  these are healthy so you don't have to feel bad about loving them.

Blueberry Orange Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup or more OJ
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 mashed bananas
• zest of one orange

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup ap flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt

• 1 pint blueberries

Method:

Preheat oven to 430.  Paper a 12-cup muffin tin.  Mix all wet ingredients in one bowl, all dry in another.  Pour dry into wet and mix, then mix in blueberries.  Divide batter into muffin tray and bake at 430 for 7 minutes, then reduce temp to 400 and bake another 12 minutes until muffins are cooked through.  

Lots of fruit lying around...

Strawberries, a couple of aging peaches, and half of an apple that no one ate...  I haven't made muffins for a while.  So I looked up a strawberry muffin recipe and then basically didn't follow it.


Strawberry Muffins
Recipe adapted from Sprinkle Charms

Ingredients:

• 1/2  cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup or more soymilk

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup ap flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. salt

• 1 pint chopped strawberries
• 2 mashed peaches
• 1/2 apple (chopped)

Method:

Wash and cut all of your fruit into one bowl, set aside.  Preheat oven to 430 and paper a 12 cup muffin tin.  Combine all wet ingredients in a bowl, mix, set aside.  Combine all dry ingredients in a separate bowl, mix, and add to the wet ingredients.  Mix until almost combined, add fruit and then mix just until combined.  Divide into prepared muffin pan and bake on 430 for 7 minutes.  Lower temp to 400 and bake for another 13 or so minutes, until muffins bounce back to the touch.  

What to do with aging peaches?

Muffins.  A beautiful golden bran muffin with fresh peaches.  I stopped at the farm stand on my way home the other day and got some really nice local fruit.  I thought the richness of the molasses in Maida Heatter's bran muffin recipe would go nicely with the sweetness of a fresh peach.

I cut back on the sugar in this batch and threw in a splash of OJ because the batter was a bit thicker than I wanted.  I also used egg yolks instead of whole eggs.  I cut my peaches into good-sized wedges and then stuck them in the muffins after I poured the batter into the pan.  I wanted them to be on top of the muffins so you could see the fruit poking out the top.

Bran Muffins with Peaches
Adapted from Maida Heatter

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dark or light molasses or honey
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1 1/2 cups bran cereal (do not use flakes, Maida recommends Kellogg's All-Bran)
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup unsifted whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unsifted all purpose white flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 peaches- cut into wedges

Method:

If your oven can not fit both muffin tins side by side on the middle rack, adjust the 2 racks to divide the oven into 3rds.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Butter 18 2 3/4 inch muffin forms. Note: Buttering the tins will create a very nice crust for the muffins, if using paper cups the crust may be diminished but the muffins will keep longer.  Melt butter over low heat. In a large mixing bowl combine the melted butter, sugar and molasses or honey and stir to mix.  In a separate bowl beat the eggs and milk to mix.  Slowly add the egg mixture to the butter mixture stirring with a wire whisk to blend. Mix in the bran and raisins and let stand for a few minutes. Or cover and refrigerate overnight.  Sift together flours, salt, and baking soda and add to bran mixture. Stir quickly with rubber spatula just enough to moisten dry ingredients.  With a large spoon, fill prepared cups with batter about 2/3rds full.  Stick 3 peach wedges in each muffin.  Bake for 6 minutes on 425 and then lower the temp to 400 for another 10 or so minutes.  Check the center of the muffins carefully by poking with your finger, they may still be a little wet because of the peach juice but the cake should not be raw.  So take a close look around the fruit.  Hopefully your muffin tops will be golden brown and gorgeous.  

Muffin Thursday: peach muffs

Fresh Jersey peaches plus oats and brown sugar.  But not a whole lot of brown sugar.  Which makes this muffin not so bad for you.  Portable breakfast.  Like oatmeal you can hold in your hand.  I actually threw these together the other night after dinner while my friend's birthday cake was in the oven.  My peaches were about a day away from being too ripe so I recycled them into a muffin.

Peach Oat Muffins
Adapted from Alida's Kitchen

Ingredients:
(dry)

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup rolled oats

(wet)

• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 peaches cut up and mashed

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray (or line with paper liners).  In a medium bowl, combine all dry ingredients.  In a large bowl, combine all wet ingredients.  Fold wet into dry. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Bran muffins on the weekend

How does a Maida Heatter bran muffin with fresh Jersey blueberries sound?  I went to Long Beach Island this past week with my friend Maya and her family.  We had a great time even though there was no sun for my whole visit!!  My friends Phil and Alisha went out fishing one night and cought bluefish that we cooked for dinner.  That was definitely the highlight of the vacation.  Fresh bluefish with garlic roasted in the oven.  On the way home I stopped at a farm stand on 206 that had the best watermelon I've had all year.  I also got tomatoes, peaches, green beans, and blueberries.  The first pint of blueberries got eaten pretty much right away, but the second one I reserved for baking.  And that's how this muffin came about...

Maida Heatter's Bran Muffins with Blueberries
Adapted from Maida Heatter via Star Chefs

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dark or light molasses or honey

• 2 eggs (large grade)
• 1 cup low-fat buttermilk

• 1 1/2 cups bran cereal (do not use flakes, Maida recommends Kellogg's All-Bran)
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup pumpkin seeds

• 1/2 cup unsifted whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unsifted all purpose white flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Method:

If your oven can not fit both muffin tins side by side on the middle rack, adjust the 2 racks to divide the oven into 3rds.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Butter 18 2 3/4 inch muffin forms. Note: Buttering the tins will create a very nice crust for the muffins, if using paper cups the crust may be diminished but the muffins will keep longer.
Melt butter over low heat. In a large mixing bowl combine the melted butter, sugar and molasses or honey and stir to mix.
In a separate bowl beat the eggs and milk to mix.
Slowly add the egg mixture to the butter mixture stirring with a wire whisk to blend. Mix in the bran and raisins and let stand for a few minutes. Or cover and refrigerate overnight. Stir in pupmkin seeds and blueberries.
Sift together flours, salt, and baking soda and add to bran mixture. Stir quickly with rubber spatula just enough to moisten dry ingredients.
With a large spoon, fill prepared cups with batter about 2/3rds full.
Bake for 15 minutes rotating muffin pans once to insure even cooking. Muffins will be done when they spring back from touch. Note: If muffin mixture has been refrigerated, cooking time will be 4 minutes longer. Take muffins from oven and remove from baking tins immediately and cool on rack.

**Notes:

So in addition to the blueberries I added pumpkin seeds (because I had some in the fridge to use up) instead of walnuts.  I also used bran flakes even though she prefers to use actual bran cereal.  I opted for the molasses rather than the honey- I really like that dark richness from the molasses.  Lastly, I used buttermilk as my milk.  

Mini- muffin madness

Let the mini-muffin baking begin!! My mom's school is having a breakfast tomorrow and I am in charge of baking the muffins. Four kinds in two hours, the only thing that held me up was that I only have two mini-muffin pans and I was making the batter way faster than I could bake and cool the previous batch. So I got a little backed up, but they came out great! I also ran out of muffin papers so I had to start spraying the pans with Pam and you know how that goes when blueberries are involved.

Honey Orange Corn Muffin with Raspberry Jam
Adapted from Eat Good For Life

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• Zest 1 orange
• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• raspberry jam

Method:

Preheat oven to 450 and paper 2 mini-muffin tins.
Mix all wet ingredients in one bowl and all dry in another.
Pour dry into wet and combine, don't over-mix.
Fill 32 of the muffin cups half way full with batter, then spoon a dollop (about 1/2 tsp) of jam on top of the batter and then spoon more batter on top of the jam.
Don't use too much jam or it will just spill out all over the pan and burn.
Bake at 450 for 3 minutes, then turn down to 400 and bake another 6 minutes or so, until they bounce bak to the touch.

Chocolate Chip Muffins
Adapted from Crumbs and Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups ap flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

• 2 egg yolks
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup oil
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 450 and paper mini muffin tins.
Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl and all wet in another, then pour dry into wet and stir until just combined.
Stir in chocolate chips.
Fill as many cups as you can to the top, or a little over.
Put them in the oven at 450 for 3 mins, then turn down the oven to 400 and bake for another 6 mins or so.

Carrot Cinnamon Muffins
Adapted from My Fudo

Ingredients:

• 2 cups ap flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 2 1/2 cups grated carrots (one bag of baby carrots buzzed up in cuisinart)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:

Preheat oven to 450 and paper mini muffin pan.
Buzz up the carrots in your cuisinart or grate them, one bag of baby carrots yields about 2 1/2 cups.
Mix the carrots with the rest of the wet ingredients and set aside.
Mix all dry ingredients and add to wet, stir to combine.
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake on 450 for 3 mins.
Turn down oven to 400 and bake for another 6 mins or so.

Blueberry Lemon Muffins
Adapted from Kitchen Lane

Ingredients:

• 2 cups ap flour
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• zest of one lemon

• 2 cups blueberries

Method:

Preheat oven to 450 and paper your mini-muffin pans.
Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl and all wet in another, add dry to wet and combine.
Mix in blueberries, don't over-mix batter.
Pour into prepared pan and bake at 450 for 3 mins.
Turn oven down to 400 and bake another 7 mins or so, until muffins bounce back to the touch.

Notes:

*Some of the batters came out a little bit wetter or dryer than I like, if it was too wet I added a little bit of ap flour, and if too dry I added a little extra milk.

**I have been baking my muffins starting out really hot for a few mins and then turning them down to finish because it makes them get big and crusty on top and nice and high.

Whole Wheat Orange Olive Oil Rosemary Muffins

From a random fruity cake recipe- that looked delicious- I was inspired to make this muffin. I was just going to bake the cake in muffin tins, with peaches or something, but muffins with fruit in them don't hold up more than a couple of days in the fridge. They start to get soft and mushy from the water in the fruit.

The inspiration came from The Eccentric Cook's apricot breakfast cake. Interestingly enough, I just read an article in Lucky Peach Magazine about how terrible the commercially grown apricots that are available to us taste compared to the ones they have in Europe and Asia. Ours look really pretty but are completely tasteless. So I got rid of the fruit all together, backed off on the sugar, used half whole wheat flour, olive oil instead of butter, OJ and milk instead of just milk, and threw in some rosemary from my garden to compliment the orange. Also, I have perfected the baking temp to get the ultimate crusty muffin.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup OJ
1/2 cup milk
zest from 2 oranges
zest and juice from 1 lemon
big handful of brown sugar
5 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla

2 cups ap flour
1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
4 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt

big handful of fresh rosemary, chopped

Method:

Preheat oven to 450, grease 12 cup muffin pan.
Mix all wet ingredients in one bowl and all dry in another bowl.
Add dry to wet and stir til almost combined.
Add rosemary and mix the rest of the way.
Pour batter into muffin pan and bake on 450 for 7 minutes.
Turn oven down to 375 and bake about 8 more minutes, until muffins are done in the middle- check with a knife.

Muffin Thursday: Lemon Thyme Date Muffins

These are really excellent muffins. The recipe was for a loaf cake but I didn't feel like waiting that long for them to bake so I made muffins instead. Plus they're easier to share this way. :-)

This recipe comes from The Dinner Vine. I changed the whole eggs to yolks and the original recipe called for blackberries but I used dates instead.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
6 egg yolks
3 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp chopped, FRESH thyme
2 cups chopped dates
1/4 cup 2% milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup extra virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and prepare muffin pan with papers.
In small bowl, combine dry ingredients: flour, soda, salt, set aside.
In another bowl combine eggs, lemon zest, and sugar, beating well.
Add vanilla.
Beat in milk.
Add oil, gradually, mixing until incorporated.
Add dry ingredients, only stirring lightly.
Now gently stir in dates and thyme until combined.
Bake in muffin pan for about 20 min or until they bounce back to the touch.

Whole Wheat Pear Walnut Muffins with Poppy Seeds

8 am and I'm baking muffins. I really like my lazy mornings. I was supposed to garden today but it got cancelled so I have the whole day to bake and study. Baking takes priority obviously.

This recipe comes from Bon Appetite. It was originally a tea cake but I changed out the butter and subbed whole wheat flour for the almond meal.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup 2% buttermilk
1 1/2 cups
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons poppy seeds

1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
3/4 cup soy milk

1 ripe pear, cut into small cubes
1 cup chopped walnuts

Method:

Preheat oven to 450.
Mix first paragraph of dry ingredients, set aside.
Mix second paragraph of wet ingredients, set aside.
Add dry to wet and mix until almost combined.
Add pear and nuts and mix until just combined.
Divide batter into prepared muffin tin and bake at 450 for 5 mins.
Lower baking temp to 400 and bake for another 12 mins or until muffins bounce back to the touch.

Muffin Thursday: Sweet Potato Zucchini Muffins

This is a great recipe. I love a muffin with a lot of stuff in it. And anything that fills the house with cinnamon smell is a keeper.

The original recipe is from Bake-A-Holic. I made a few changes. I made it half whole wheat flour and half white, I quartered the sugar, subbed out some of the oil, and made the whole eggs into yolks because I eat the whites and save the yolks for baking.

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup ap flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup soy milk or regular milk or OJ- whatever your preference
3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 small zucchini- grated
1 small sweet potato- peeled and grated
1/2 cup nuts (I used pumpkin seeds)
1/2 cup raisins or craisins (I used some of both)

Method:

Preheat oven to 450.
Combine first paragraph of dry ingredients in a small bowl, set aside.
Combine 2nd paragraph of wet ingredients in another bowl, set aside.
Add dry to wet and combine, don't over-mix.
Add grated veggies, seeds, and dried fruit, mix until just combined.
Divide batter into prepared muffin tin and throw them in the oven for 5 minutes at 450. Then bring the temp down to 400 and bake for about 18 or so minutes more until they are mostly done in the middle.
The zucchini is so wet they might be a little under in the middle, it's ok, they'll set up as they cool.

Mocha Banana Muffins

This recipe comes from The Happy Housewife. My aunt Nan left some chocolate milk in the fridge so I needed a muffin that would go well with it. I didn't add any sugar to this muffin because I added the milk (Wawa brand), which has sugar in it. I beefed up on the bananas and put in some instant coffee to give it an extra mocha kick.

Ingredients:

2 eggs
3/4 cup chocolate milk
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup strong black coffee
2 mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tsp instant coffee (add to wet so it dissolves)

1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup coconut
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 425. Mash the bananas in a large bowl and then add all of the other wet ingredients plus the instant coffee. In a separate bowl mix all of the dry ingredients and then add them to the wet ingredients. Stir just til combined. Then add your chocolate and coconut, again, mix just until combined. Pour batter into muffin tins, sprinkle with a little coconut for fun, and bake for 3 minutes at 425. Then turn down the temp to 400 and bake for about 12 more minutes or until muffins bounce back to the touch and a knife comes out clean.