Category Archives: muffins

Cranberry Pear Muffins

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Hearty yet tender, these flavorful muffins are bursting with fresh cranberries, pears, and oatmeal. They get a zing of flavor from orange zest, and are topped with crunchy cinnamon streusel. I gilded the lily and drizzled a little orange glaze over the top. It makes them so pretty!

To be honest with you, I didn’t really expect to like these. In fact, I was kind of counting on that. (Stupid diet.) I’ve never been very fond of pears, and was worried that the cranberries would be too tart. Nope. Sweet, slightly tangy, and delightful. Nom nom.

What a sweet little breakfast these would be for Thanksgiving or Christmas morning.

The recipe makes 18 muffins. If you have extras, wrap them well and freeze them.

Cranberry Pear Muffins
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Makes 18
Ingredients
  • STREUSEL TOPPING:
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup chopped nuts (I used toasted pecans)
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • MUFFINS:
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup chopped fresh cranberries (more if desired)
  • 1 cup chopped pears, peeled and cored (1 large pear)
  • zest of 1 large orange
  • ½ cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • ⅓ cup oil (l use peanut or canola)
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ICING (optional):
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • orange juice, cranberry juice, or water to thin to desired consistency
  • 1 teaspoon meringue powder if desired for firmer icing
Instructions
  1. STREUSEL: Combine all dry ingredients for streusel topping. Stir in melted butter and set aside.
  2. MUFFINS: Heat oven to 375 F. Put 18 paper liners in muffin pans.
  3. In small bowl, combine buttermilk and oats. Stir well and set mixture aside to soften while you chop the cranberries and pears and prepare the batter..
  4. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk or sift.
  5. Add chopped cranberries, chopped pears, and orange zest. Toss with a large spoon.
  6. In a small bowl, combine milk, egg, oil, and vanilla. Beat well and combine with the buttermilk/oat mixture.
  7. Make a well in the dry ingredient and fruit mixture. Pour liquids in all at once. Fold gently, being careful not to over mix. If you see a few wisps of flour, that's just fine.
  8. Divide evenly between prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle with streusel topping.
  9. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of a muffin. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then remove muffins to cool completely.
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STREUSEL: Stir together all the dry streusel ingredients well, then stir in melted butter. Set aside.

MUFFINS: Add chopped cranberries to dry ingredients

. . . and chopped pears.

. . . and orange zest. Toss well.

Beat together milk, egg, oil, and vanilla. Stir in softened oat/buttermilk mixture.

Make a well in dry ingredients. Add liquids all at once. Fold in gently just until mostly combined.

Don’t over stir! Wisps of flour here and there are just fine.

Divide batter between 18 muffin cups and top with streusel. Bake!

Drizzle with icing if desired

Heading into the holiday season is always a thrill for me. Obsessive baking isn’t just acceptable, it’s practically mandatory.

Sweet!

Lorinda

Blueberry Rhubarb Muffins

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These scrumptious blueberry rhubarb muffins were served to my friend and me at a charming bed and breakfast recently, and I begged for the recipe—only to find out that the batter was made using a boxed mix. How easy is that? (For the record, I have nothing whatsoever against boxed mixes; I usually just like the challenge of creating my own recipes.)

Our hostess added a few more blueberries, a little chopped rhubarb, and a simple crunchy topping, and I assure you we gobbled those muffins up with enthusiasm.

Vicki Broeckel is the heart and soul behind The Parsonage, a lovely old home surrounded by an oasis of trees in the middle of the rolling hills of the Washington Palouse.

The Parsonage, seen from the Highway.

When you make a reservation at The Parsonage, you get the house to yourself. The whole house. (And it’s big!) Vicki lives down the road, but comes in each morning with a huge hamper of food to make a hearty breakfast for her guests. She is a fabulous artist (some of her paintings adorn the walls of The Parsonage) and her creativity also extends to the colorful food she serves

All big blue eyes and energy, Vicki seems to magically produce a meal in seconds, then whisks the dishes into the dishwasher, chats for a moment, and disappears. We coaxed her to stay and visit as long as possible, because she’s so much fun.

And that food!

Her blueberry rhubarb muffins are in the background of this photo. Oh, so good. She told me how she made them, but I didn’t get exact measurements, so my recipe may be a little different, but it’s close to what we enjoyed at that kitchen table.


Easy Blueberry Rhubarb Muffins
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Makes approximately 15 muffins. Brown sugar in the topping gives the muffins a darker, more rustic look. Half brown sugar, half white gives them a lighter appearance. Your choice!
Ingredients
  • TOPPING:
  • ¼ cup melted butter
  • ½ cup brown sugar (or ¼ brown sugar, ¼ white for a lighter look)
  • ½ cup quick oats
  • ⅓ cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • MUFFINS:
  • 1 box Krusteaz Wild Blueberry Muffin Mix
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup oil (I used canola)
  • ⅔ cup milk (you can use water if you wish)
  • ¼ cup blueberries or huckleberries (in addition to the canned berries in mix)
  • ¼ cup fresh rhubarb, diced - more to taste
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 400 F. Add paper liners to muffin pans. Because of the extra berries and rhubarb, this recipe will make about 15 muffins.
  2. TOPPING: Melt butter. Stir in sugar, oats, flour, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
  3. MUFFINS: In a medium bowl, combine the package of dry mix, eggs, oil, and milk. Stir just until combined.
  4. Open and drain the can of wild blueberries. Add, along with fresh berries and diced rhubarb. Fold in gently.
  5. Fill liners about ⅔ full. Cover batter in each cavity generously with topping and bake approximately 20 minutes.
  6. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then move muffins to cooling rack. Serve slightly warm.
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I lived in Seattle for fifty years, so I’m a little bit “local loyal” when it comes to ingredients. I don’t get paid to promote products . . . I just trust Darigold and Krusteaz. I used local eggs, huckleberries from our nearby mountains, and fresh rhubarb from The Parsonage. Good ingredients make a difference!

Hint: Don’t be stingy with that topping. Cover the batter with a liberal hand. On this batch I used half brown sugar and half white for a lighter color.

I thought I didn’t like rhubarb, but I was wrong. I only added a little to these muffins, but I think they’d be better with twice as much. The tart/sweet combination is delightful, and now I regret having destroyed our rhubarb plant. Thank goodness for farmers markets!

If you have a chance to visit southeastern Washington, I hope you’ll spend a night or two at The Parsonage. Here I am, fixated on the food, when there are so many other wonderful things to see and do. Visit the Pataha Flour Mill for dinner (donation only), a journey to see the Palouse Falls, or spend a quiet afternoon of bird watching on the front porch swing (I got photos of two owls). All are sure to bring you joy.

Lorinda

Apple Pumpkin Muffins

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The spicy fragrance of fall will fill your kitchen as these Apple Pumpkin Muffins bake. Tender apples and a crunchy streusel top spicy, fluffy pumpkin muffins – perfect for a holiday breakfast.

I know I may have been a little . . . well . . . opinionated in the past when I said that muffins should be sort of rustic and not too sweet. I also may have stated that if you want soft and sweet you should eat a cupcake. Ahem. I’m making an exception for these luscious muffins.

I used cake flour and buttermilk to make these babies melt in your mouth. More dessert-like than a regular muffin, though they’re still (and I should know) wonderful for breakfast. Personally, I’d be happy to switch out my slice of pumpkin pie for one of these muffins on Thanksgiving; the pumpkin pie spice in the batter takes them over the top.

If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, you can substitute the following: 1 1/4  teaspoon cinnamon, 3/4 teaspoon powdered ginger, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon allspice, 1/4 teaspoon powdered cloves

Apple Pumpkin Muffins
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Makes 12 muffins using tall tulip-style paper liners. If you use regular liners the recipe will make approximately 18.
Ingredients
  • STREUSEL:
  • ⅓ cup white sugar
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ¾ cup cake flour
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 6 tablespoons melted butter
  • MUFFINS:
  • 2 cups cake flour
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 eggs
  • ⅔ cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup solid pack pumpkin
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 6 tablespoons melted butter
  • 1 cup chopped apple (about 1 medium) tossed in 2 tablespoons flour
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 F. Place 12 tall tulip style paper liners in muffin tin.
  2. In a small bowl, combine all of the streusel ingredients, breaking large lumps apart with a fork. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice until thoroughly combined.
  4. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, pumpkin, and vanilla.
  5. Add egg mixture and melted butter to the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined.
  6. Divide mixture evenly between the 12 paper liners – approximately ⅓ cup in each.
  7. Divide chopped apples between each muffin, without pressing into the batter.
  8. Divide streusel between each muffin.
  9. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of a muffin.
  10. Cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then remove the muffins from the pan and cool completely.
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This recipe was made using tall tulip-style paper liners. If you plan on using regular muffin liners, the recipe will make approximately 18 smaller muffins and will bake for about 22 minutes.

I neglected to take in-process photos of the streusel, but I know you don’t need to see a picture. Just stir it together!  I did remember to grab my camera for the muffins though.

Whisk together the dry ingredients

Whisk together liquids.

Add egg mixture and melted butter to dry ingredients

Stir just until combined.

Divide batter between 12 tall tulip-style paper liners (or 18 regular)

Divide chopped apples between muffins and cover with streusel.

Allow muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the pan before removing and cooling on rack.

I’m down to my last can of pumpkin, so I think it’s safe to say that we’re through with pumpkin everything for the year.

Happy Holidays,

Lorinda

Wake Up and Get Moving Muffins

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Very strong coffee, bran cereal, molasses, raisins (figs or dates are good too), apple and wheat flour are baked into these tender muffins. They will really wake you up and get you moving. You see where I’m going here, right? All puns and infantile jokes aside, these are really tasty muffins and better for you than a regular berry muffin with a mountain of streusel on top.

This recipe makes 24 muffins. You could cut it in half, but why would you? Wrap and freeze them for a quick on-the-go meal.

Wake Up and Get Moving Muffins
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Makes 2 dozen muffins (a few less if you use tall tulip liners). Wrap individually and freeze for a quick breakfast.
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup very strong hot coffee (I bring ½ cup freshly ground coffee and 1¼ cups water to a boil, let it simmer for a few minutes, and then put it through a fine strainer.)
  • ½ cup coconut oil (or butter, if you prefer)
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • ¼ cup molasses
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups All-Bran original cereal
  • 1½ cups all purpose white flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon dark unsweetened cocoa (Optional. Mostly for color.)
  • 1 cup raisins (or chopped dates or figs)
  • 1 medium apple, grated (leave the skin on, but stop grating before you get to the core!)
  • butter and sparkling sugar if desired to add to the tops of warm muffins
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 400 F.
  2. Prepare muffin pans by lining them with paper liners.
  3. Stir coconut oil (or butter, chunked into small pieces) into hot coffee until melted.
  4. Stir in buttermilk and molasses.
  5. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until completely combined.
  6. Add bran cereal and let it soak while you prepare the dry ingredients.
  7. In a large bowl, combine white flour, wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa. Add raisins (or chopped dates or figs) and grated apple, and toss to coat.
  8. Pour liquid ingredients into bowl and fold or stir gently just until it is mostly incorporated. A few wisps of flour showing is fine. Do NOT overbeat.
  9. Spoon into prepared muffin liners, almost to the top. If you are using tall tulip-type liners, fill a little higher than the level of the pan.
  10. Bake standard size for approximately 16-18 minutes, or tall size for approximately 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center of a muffin.
  11. Move the pan of muffins onto a cooling rack and, if desired, brush with soft butter and sprinkle with sparkling sugar or cinnamon sugar. Then remove from pan and set muffins on a rack to cool completely.
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Ingredients. (The cocoa is mostly for color, so it’s optional.)

Make very strong coffee. I boil freshly ground beans and water, then put it through a fine sieve.

Combine all the liquids, add cereal, and let it soak for a few minutes.

Grate the apple, skin and all. (No core or seeds, of course.)

Toss raisins and apples in the dry ingredients

Stir gently until there are just a few wisps of flour in batter

Fill ’em up!

Brush with butter and sprinkle with sugar if desired. (You can see that I skipped the cocoa in this batch.)

Seriously, how can you resist this??

Love you, but gotta go now. Next up: green stuff for St. Paddy’s Day.

Lorinda

 

Sour Cream Apple Muffins

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Sour Cream Apple Muffins - The Rowdy BakerI baked a Sour Cream Apple Pie for dessert last week and it reminded me of a muffin my son and I created a long, long time ago. Of course, that recipe has long since disappeared, but I think I’ve managed to come close to our original concept.

There were some changes made to my basic muffin recipe, since I wanted them to be rich (butter instead of oil), yet light and fluffy (cake flour instead of all-purpose). I also used tulip muffin liners because it gives you more room to PILE ON the streusel topping.

Pile on the streusel!

Pile on the streusel!

There is cinnamon in the streusel, and a little in the muffins, but the important flavor – the flavor that makes these taste just like my favorite pie – is nutmeg. I was pretty generous with it, so if you’re not as fond of nutmeg as I, you may want to cut the amount in half.

The fragrance is out of this world, and they’re good either hot out of the oven or room temperature.Sour Cream Apple Muffins from The Rowdy Baker

You’ll get 12 tall muffins from this recipe if you use tulip liners. If you want to use regular muffin liners, fill them 2/3 full and then add streusel to the top. You should get approximately 16-18 muffins that way. There will also be some muffin-top action happening, so grease the top of the pan lightly so the streusel won’t stick.

Sour Cream Apple Muffins
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Makes 12 muffins (using tulip muffin liners) or 16-18 muffins using regular liners.
Ingredients
  • STREUSEL TOPPING:
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 cup flour (all-purpose is best, but cake flour works too.)
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 7 tablespoons melted butter (1 stick, minus one tablespoon)
  • MUFFINS:
  • 2 cups cake flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg (more or less to taste)
  • 1 tart apple, peeled, cored, and chopped into small pieces (I use Granny Smith)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 6 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 F. Place 12 paper tulip-shaped liners in muffin pans. (If you are using regular liners, you will need two pans, as there will be 15-18 muffins.)
  2. In a small bowl, combine all of the streusel ingredients. Stir with a fork until combined, and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, sift together twice: flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, soda, salt, and nutmeg.
  4. In a small bowl, toss the chopped apple with 1 cinnamon and 1 tablespoon sugar. Add to dry ingredients, folding in carefully. Don't put that bowl in the sink...use for the next step!
  5. Whisk together melted butter, eggs, sour cream, milk, and vanilla. Fold gently into the dry ingredients, being very careful not to stir, just until most of the flour is incorporated - you should be able to see a few wisps of flour.
  6. Divide between 12 tulip liners. (If you are using regular liners, fill approximately ⅔ full.)
  7. Break the streusel up with a fork and sprinkle over muffin batter. Use it up! Trust me - there's no such thing as too much streusel!
  8. Bake for approximately 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of one of the muffins comes out clean.
  9. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan to cool completely.
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Here's what you'll need.

Here’s what you’ll need.

Sift together the dry ingredients...twice!

Sift together the dry ingredients…twice!

Coat the chopped apples in cinnamon sugar

Coat the chopped apples in cinnamon sugar.

Gently toss apples in flour mixture.

Gently toss apples in flour mixture.

Add the liquids, and very gently fold in. A few wisps of flour showing is just fine!

Add the liquids, and very gently fold in. A few wisps of flour showing is just fine!

Spoon batter into liners and cover with streusel.

Spoon batter into liners and cover with streusel. More streusel than this!!!

Smother the muffin batter with streusel!

Smother the muffin batter with streusel!

Sour Cream Apple Muffins - From The Rowdy Baker

  • A soft, light texture
  • Al dente, tangy apple chunks
  • Crisp, sweet, crumbly topping

Breakfast just doesn’t get any better than this!

And believe it or not, even though there are quite a few ingredients, I can have these ready for the oven in 20 minutes; you can too!

Lorinda

Gluten-Free Berry Pecan Muffins

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GF muffins watermarkedShamed Challenged by my daughter to try a gluten-free muffin, my wheels started turning. I can’t say I was excited by the idea (my idea of a breakfast pastry includes butter, white flour, and sugar) but decided to give it a try…and was surprised and pleased by the results.

I used buttermilk and honey, so this isn’t vegan, but it is a lot healthier than my usual creations, and unexpectedly light and fluffy!

Use whatever fruit you like. I put chopped strawberries and blueberries in mine, but will also be trying these with raspberries and chopped banana in the near future. If you toast your pecans before adding them, it will boost the flavor factor immensely.

I also have a thing about toppings on muffins – more is better! For the sake of keeping these reasonably healthy, I toned that down a bit and just put a tiny amount on each muffin before baking. You can simply sprinkle them with finely chopped nuts and cinnamon if you prefer, or leave them plain. (Here I go…can’t help myself: a drizzle of simple powdered sugar icing would be lovely too!)

Gluten Free Berry Pecan Muffins
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Makes 12
Ingredients
  • 2 cups almond flour
  • 2 tablespoons coconut flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ⅔ cup berries (if using strawberries, chop them coarsely)
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
  • ⅓ cup chopped pecans
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ¼ cup melted coconut oil
  • STREUSEL TOPPING (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon melted coconut oil
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • pinch salt
  • 1 teaspoon coconut flour
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped pecans
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 F.
  2. Place foil or paper liners in 12-cavity muffin pan
  3. In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
  4. Add berries, orange zest, and chopped nuts. Stir to combine.
  5. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, honey, and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
  6. Add melted coconut oil, whisking briskly, and immediately pour it into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir just until combined.
  7. Divide between 12 liners. They will be generously filled.
  8. Combine all of the ingredients for streusel, if you are using it. Press gently onto each muffin.
  9. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of a muffin.
  10. Move pan to a cooling rack and let them cool a bit before eating.
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Add fruit and nuts to dry ingredients

Add fruit and nuts to dry ingredients

add liquids to dry ingredients

Add liquids to dry ingredients

Add a little topping if desired, and bake.

Add a little topping if desired, and bake.

 



Vertical watermark3No, I haven’t exactly turned over a new leaf, but I have to admit I’m a little more open to the whole gluten-free idea after this success. For now, though, I have this idea. This truly decadent idea that is screaming to be made into reality, and will be posted soon. One step forward, two steps back I guess!

Lorinda

 

 

Wild Mountain Huckleberry Muffins

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I’ve posted two blogs recently with NO RECIPES, and feel like I need to get something mouthwatering and indulgent on the site quickly.

But I have a slight problem.

Right now my butt is planted firmly on the couch with my left foot propped up on 3 pillows,  because in my feverish quest for the elusive mountain huckleberry I managed to sprain my ankle. It would make a better story to say I sprained it when running from a bear, but I’m afraid I just wasn’t watching my step. Any bears in the vicinity, however, learned a few new words.

So, in honor of my adventure I’m stealing a recipe from an old column I wrote and giving it to you with the only photo I have. These luscious muffins are simple to make; I’m sure you don’t need photos of me stirring the batter.  Once I’m up and running again I’ll make it up to you, I promise.

Huckleberries inspire me. They’re plump and juicy, and absolutely full of flavor. I add them to my angel food cakes, sprinkle them on pancake batter, toss them in banana breads, and even use them to make a mean margarita. You may, of course, substitute blueberries if you don’t have access to beautiful purple huckleberries, but once you’ve had a mountain huckleberry, blueberries will pale in comparison.

My granddaughter Sophie helped pick berries.

My granddaughter Sophie helped pick berries.

Here’s my recipe for Wild Mountain Huckleberry Muffins. They won a blue ribbon at our county fair, so I’m especially fond of them. Disclaimer: I don’t believe in sweet muffins (except for the topping, of course.) If I did, I would call them “cupcakes“! If you’re addicted to Costco-type muffins, you might want to try a different recipe, or add more sugar.

Wild Mountain Huckleberry Muffins
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Makes 12 scrumptious muffins!
Ingredients
  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 2½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
  • ¾ cup small mountain huckleberries, fresh or frozen, divided. (Do not thaw frozen berries)
  • 1 well-beaten egg
  • ¾ cup milk
  • ⅓ cup oil (I use peanut oil)
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 tablespoons flour (if using frozen berries)
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 F.
  2. Mix together all ingredients for streusel topping (see below) and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Sift twice.
  4. Add lemon and ½ cup berries, and toss. If you are using frozen berries, toss them with 2 tablespoons of flour in a small bowl and then add to the dry ingredients. Make a well.
  5. In a medium bowl, combine the egg, milk, oil, and vanilla and mix well. Add all at once to the dry ingredients, folding gently just until the dry ingredients are moistened.
  6. Divide between 12 lined muffin cups. Press remaining berries gently onto tops of muffins and cover with streusel mixture.
  7. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on a rack.
  8. When cool, drizzle with icing (see below) if desired.
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 Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

ICING:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Water if needed to thin.

Mix together well.

Be assured that even though I can’t be up and baking right now, my mind isn’t idle. I’m coming up with some great huckleberry recipes to share over the next few weeks.
Happy huckleberry dreams!

 

Banana Split Muffins

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banana split muffinsI’m a huge fan of muffins, especially when they’re packed with fruit and topped with a crunchy streusel. I will happily forfeit the streusel for these sweethearts, since they’re drizzled with a rich chocolate sauce! For breakfast or dessert – bring them on!

The batter is flavored with vanilla and banana, with bits of fresh pineapple and strawberry folded in. The chocolate sauce is lightly flavored with cherry. Add a sprinkling of chopped nuts and there’s a party in your mouth!

Banana Split Muffin

Banana Split Muffin

Banana Split Muffins
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Makes a dozen muffins. I think the cake flour gives them a lighter texture, but if you don't have cake flour, just use regular.
Ingredients
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 2½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup chopped fresh strawberries
  • ½ cup chopped fresh pineapple (or use canned tidbits, drained)
  • ¾ cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • ⅓ cup oil (I used peanut oil)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 large very ripe banana, mashed
  • 1 square (1 ounce) unsweetened chocolate
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 3 tablespoons milk or half & half
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon cherry flavoring (optional)
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • Nuts, sprinkles, maraschino cherries...whatever you want to top the muffins with!
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  2. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.
  3. In a large bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the chopped strawberries and pineapple and toss lightly to coat the fruit.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the milk and egg, and beat thoroughly. Add the oil, vanilla, and mashed banana and mix well.
  5. Pour the liquids into the flour all at once, and stir just until it is combined. Don't over mix - it's okay to see little streaks of flour in the batter.
  6. Divide the batter between 12 muffin liners and bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool on a rack.
  7. To make icing: in a small pan on low heat, melt the chocolate, butter, and milk, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add the vanilla and cherry flavoring. Add the powdered sugar and mix well. If it is too thick, add a little more milk. Drizzle over cooled muffins (or dip the tops of the muffins in the chocolate mixture) and add toppings of your choice.
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Tossing the chopped fruit in the flour mixture.

Tossing the chopped fruit in the flour mixture.

Add the liquids all at once.

Add the liquids all at once.

Don't stir too much! It's okay to have little pockets of flour like this.

Don’t stir too much! It’s okay to have little pockets of flour like this. Ready to fill the liners and bake!

 

Making the chocolate topping.

Making the chocolate topping.

Dip (or drizzle, if you prefer) and top with nuts, sprinkles, a cherry, or all three!

Dip (or drizzle, if you prefer) and top with nuts, sprinkles, a cherry, or all three!

Okay…so you may have noticed there were no photos showing the filled muffin tin or freshly baked muffins. That’s because I didn’t have matching cupcake liners – and that is NOT photographically acceptable. I had to use a few of these, the last of those, and a couple of Christmas liners.

Guess it’s time to stop baking and go shopping!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Streusel Muffins

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Blog3 041The magic combination of chocolate and peanut butter vies with maple for the number one spot in my affections. If I buy a candy bar it’s going to be a Reese’s or Butterfinger; you just can’t beat that sweet and salty blend.

I’ll have to admit that these muffins require a lot of bowls and utensils, so I must really think they’re worth the trouble, because anyone who knows me or reads my blogs can tell you that dishes are the bane of my existence. Cleaning up my messes is a miserable chore that curbs my baking enthusiasm a bit…probably a good thing!

There really is no way around the multitude of bowls you’ll need. Muffin batter doesn’t like to be over-stirred, so it isn’t a good idea to make the batter, split it up and add chocolate to one bowl and peanut butter to the other; it would take too much stirring and you’d end up with very heavy muffins. I don’t like overly sweet, light muffins (if I want cupcakes I’ll make cupcakes) but I do like to have them rise prettily.

So you have to split the dry ingredients between two bowls, mix the wet ingredients in two bowls (I use big glass measuring cups) and combine the streusel in a small bowl. Yep – 5 bowls! Have I lost you yet? Hey…if I can do it, you can do it!

I made jumbo muffins – the recipe makes six. But you can make 12-14 regular size muffins if you prefer. If you really want to take them over the top you could put a peanut butter cup in the bottom of each liner before adding the batter. Just remember that you’re displacing some of the batter, so you’ll probably have a couple extra muffins. A drizzle of chocolate over the streusel once the muffins have cooled would be lovely too.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Streusel Muffins

Chocolate Peanut Butter Streusel Muffins

Without further ado…here’s the recipe:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Streusel Muffins
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Makes 6 jumbo muffins or 12-14 regular muffins.
Ingredients
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ½ cup peanut butter
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon milk or buttermilk
  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 2 tablespoons strong coffee
  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup chopped peanuts (I used unsalted dry roasted; salted peanuts are OK)
  • 5 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375 F
  2. In each of 2 medium bowls, sift together 1 cup flour, ¼ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt.
  3. In each of 2 small bowls, combine 1 egg, ½ cup buttermilk, ¼ cup vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla.
  4. In one of the small bowls, add the peanut butter, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar, 1 tablespoon milk or buttermilk. Mix well.
  5. In the other small bowl, add the cocoa and coffee. (Throw in a few chocolate chips if you desire.) Mix well.
  6. In a small bowl combine the ½ cup flour, ½ cup brown sugar, peanuts, and melted butter. Stir lightly with a fork to blend. (This is your streusel topping.)
  7. Gently stir the peanut butter mixture into the dry ingredients in one of the medium bowls. Stir the chocolate mixture into the dry ingredients in the other medium bowl.
  8. Either using a “separator” cut from card stock (or a paper plate) or a wide, flat spatula, put peanut butter batter on one side of a muffin liner and chocolate in the other, filling a little more than half full. (There will be just a little more peanut butter batter than chocolate) Remove the separator and repeat.
  9. Generously cover the top of each muffin with streusel.
  10. Bake for approximately 20 minutes for regular size muffins or 25 minutes for jumbo. Test with a toothpick, and cool on a rack.
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Get everything ready before you mix the wet nd dry ingredients!

Get everything ready before you mix the wet and dry ingredients!

Filling the muffins liners half & half.

Filling the muffins liners half & half.

Generously cover with streusel, and bake.

Generously cover with streusel, and bake.

These muffins are just begging for a cup of hot coffee. I can’t stand to hear a muffin cry, so I’ll oblige – and wash those pesky bowls in the morning!

The next blog you’ll see will probably be child-friendly, since I’m flying down to visit my grandbabies in a few days. Maybe I’ll even let one of them write the blog, too! Sounds like a great vacation for me – I’ll just sit back and be “The Relaxed Baker” for a while.

The Real Scoop About Scoops

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Scoops are one of the handiest things in the kitchen. They save time, effort, and mess. I’ll give you the rundown on sizes and uses, and then show you how they can simplify making delicious Lemon Raspberry Streusel Muffins.

Here are the four scoops I own and use regularly. My completely unscientific testing leads me to believe they are (from small to large) sizes 60, 50, 30, and 10. As you can see, the smaller the scoop the bigger the number!

From left to right, my favorite uses are: meatballs (I like them small), cookies, muffins/cupcakes, and pancakes (my husband likes them big.) Here is a link to a size chart that might help you.
http://www.chefs-resources.com/Scoop-DisherSizes

Basically, when you find one that’s a size you don’t have, buy it! You know you will find some use for it.

A word of warning. Perhaps you are more coordinated than I, but I’ve learned to respect the scoop when I’m washing it. You know…you wash it, then you squeeze the handle so the little scooping bar will move the other direction so you can wash under it, then you let go of the handle while your finger is still in there, and it bites you. Okay – it bites me! Hopefully you will learn from my pain and be cautious

Though I’m pretty casual about the appearance of my baked goods (unless they’re being entered into a fair; then I’m very particular!) there is just something satisfying about a cooling rack of orderly little cookies that are all the same exact size and shape. Maybe that’s because I grew up on Oreos and Vanilla Wafers. I remember feeling sorry for the kids who had to bring homemade cookies in their lunch. Good grief. Anyhow, if you use a scoop and level it off on the side of the bowl between cookies, yours will be uniform too!

Have you ever tried to pour cupcake batter into the liners and had it drip all over the pan, where it baked to a miserable little crisp that you had to soak off? Me, too. Now I use my #30 scoop and then add a little more with a teaspoon. If I can get my hands on a #20, it will be one smooth step towards cupcake perfection!

Here’s that muffin recipe for you, with photos below.

LEMON RASPBERRY STREUSEL MUFFINS
makes 12

Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Muffins
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (plus 1 tablespoon) sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel (just the yellow, not the bitter white flesh underneath)
1 egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 pint of fresh raspberries, or a cup of frozen (don’t thaw.)

Icing:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 F
Put cupcake liners in cupcake pan.
Mix together all ingredients for streusel topping. Set aside.
Sift (twice!) the dry ingredients for muffins into a medium bowl. Add grated lemon peel and mix together.

In small bowl, beat egg well. Add buttermilk, salad oil, and vanilla, and mix well. Stir in the lemon juice.

Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquids. Fold gently, just until ingredients are moistened. Don’t over-stir. A little bit of flour showing is okay!

Using a #30 scoop (or two rounded tablespoons)  scoop batter into cupcake liners. The batter will be very light and airy, like chiffon. Be gentle! You should have a little batter left over. Set it aside for the moment.

Lightly press 3 raspberries into the center of each mound of batter. Divide the remaining batter between the muffins, putting a dollop on top of the raspberries. Don’t worry about smoothing the top or making it even. Top with whatever berries you have left. One is fine on each dollop. Two would be better!

Cover each muffin with streusel, using a spoon if you like. I’m kind of a hands-on person, so I just scoop it up with my fingers, sprinkle it generously over the top, and pat it very gently. It will probably get on the muffin pan. Don’t worry about it – it’s fine. If you’re one of THOSE people, you are welcome to take a pastry brush and clean it off before baking, but I sure wouldn’t.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes. They should be a nice golden brown. If in doubt, you can always insert a toothpick in the middle of one muffin and return the pan to the oven if the toothpick comes out gooey.

Place the pan on a cooling rack until they’re cool enough to handle, then take them from the pan and let the muffins continue to cool on the rack.

If you want icing on your muffins, just mix the ingredients together and drizzle. If it’s too thick, add a little water.

Nummers.

Scooping muffin batter with my good-old #30 scoop!

 

And…a dollop of batter on the berries.

 

Covered with streusel, decorated with a berry, ready to bake.

 

Behold – a sweet and tangy morsel of deliciousness!