muffins

Lemon Cream Flax Muffins.

December 14, 2011 · 82 comments

Hey hey, check it out!

We’re making muffins today.

Specifically, muffins of the lemon variety.

I know what you’re thinking.

WHY lemon? WHY not chocolate chip or bursting blueberry or cinnamon struesel or more importantly, chocolate chip?

I too, was a lemon hater once, but it turns out that when it’s mixed with lots of sugar? I totally love it.

Who knew?

Lemon and I have got some sort of freaky thing going on at the moment. I’m all about it with that sugar because it just gets so sweet and… and… lemony. First it was cookies, but I’ve since left them in the dust. My reputation is probably not so hot at the moment.

These muffins are the perfect vehicle for transporting delicious holiday breakfasts into your belly. They are slightly sweet, super lemony, dense and fluffy – but still a bit chewy – and even have a twinge of nuttiness happening from the flaxseed. The glaze is so super creamy that is practically melts in your mouth, and I think you might be the most popular kid on the block if you make these for you holiday guests.

And… and as I’ve said before, they are definitely just cupcakes without the hat. For sure.

Many Christmas mornings my mom would make those orange rolls from the can with the glaze and stuff… you know? But I think these may even beat them out. I’ve decided that I’m going eat my weight in lemon cream muffins in two weeks, and if you’d like to join me, I suggest some cake batter cinnamon rolls, cookie dough cinnamon rolls, or cinnamon sugared bacon. That’s what the holidays are all about!

Lemon Cream Flax Muffins

makes 12 muffins

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/3 cup ground flaxseed

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract, emulsion or essential oil

6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

1 cup cream

1/4 cup milk

zest of 3 lemons

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with liners.

In a bowl, combine flour, salt, soda and flaxseed, then mix well to combine. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk sugar and egg until smooth. Add in lemon zest, vanilla and lemon extracts, whisking again until smooth. Add in cream, milk and melted butter, mixing until combined. Add dry ingredients to batter, mixing with a spoon until just combined – do not overmix. The batter will be thick and almost doughy (in the second picture). Using an ice cream scoop or about a 1/3 cup measuring cup, scoop batter into muffin liners.

Bake for 14-17 minutes, or until muffins are set and no longer jiggly in the middle. While muffins are baking, mix glaze, and as soon as they come out of the oven, drizzle glaze over top. These are best served warm, straight from the oven.

 

Lemon Cream Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract, emulsion or essential oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2-3 tablespoons cream

Combine all ingredients together and mix thoroughly until a runny glaze forms. If too thick, add more cream. If too thin, add more powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.

All of your holiday people (like, uh… family) are going to love you!

{ 82 comments }

Cheddar + Brown Sugar Cornbread Muffins. {Dinner Tonight: Part 2}

September 16, 2011 · 108 comments

Don’t leave me just yet.

Cheese…

sugar…

weird?

 

I know you. I know what you’re thinking. Specifically you there… who is eating breakfast while reading your screen with glazy eyes and wondering why.the.heck I’ve gone and ruined cornbread. Hush.

By the way, you have milk on your chin.

Same goes for you, with your eyelids drooped halfway because it’s Friday and… well, you just want to get out of work. Is it the happiest hour yet? Let’s start early.

But no. These are not weird. Trust me.

See that little golden brown jacket the muffin below is wearing? That’s a caramelized coating of mixed brown sugar, sharp cheddar and… crunchy cornbread stuff. I think that’s what it’s called. You bowl of chili is begging for one.

Plus, we all know that muffins are just cupcakes without hats.

Cheddar + Brown Sugar Cornbread Muffins

[adapted from my fluffy delicious cornbread]

makes 12 muffins

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup finely ground cornmeal

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 cup creamed corn

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup heavy cream or half and half

1 egg

1/3 cup freshly & finely grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder together and mix with a spoon. Add the egg, corn, heavy cream, melted butter and milk, stirring until smooth. Fold in cheddar cheese. Spray a muffin tin with non-stick spray (or use liners) and using a 1/4 cup measure, spoon batter into each muffin tin. Bake for 15-18 muffins, or until tops are golden and muffins are cooked through. Serve hot with cinnamon or honey butter.

I think the wisest thing you could do would be to spread these muffins with some of this.

{ 108 comments }

Mango Colada Muffins.

April 27, 2011 · 87 comments

I really don’t know what I did before I made these muffins.

I think I woke up. I think I ninja-kicked Mr. How Sweet out of bed so he would stop snoring.  Waddled my way down the stairs and promptly threw myself on the worn carpet where I cried out, “I seriously can’t wake up. I will die if I wake up now!” After relishing in my now 36-hour sugar hangover, I’m pretty sure it was this moment that I remembered brushing my fingers across a squishy mango in the crisper drawer the day before. Right after I declared that I was “never baking again!”

 

Mangos must be squishy to taste good. Fact.

Other things that have seen better days in my crisper drawer? A molded grapefruit that is jammed beneath five pounds of apples, two pounds of lemons, three more mangos, and two bunches of cilantro, and therefore is far too much work to dig out. A half-used bag of pre-cut celery, opened two weeks ago for chicken noodle soup, but is now being saved for something that I might think of in the next six minutes.  A semi-eaten orange that seemed like a good idea at the time but was chucked when the devil on my shoulder wanted frozen peanut butter cups instead.

 

If you happen to drop by today, I hope you aren’t craving fruit.

But I do have muffins. So feel free to ring my bell.

After recalling the cushiony mango, I was deadset on combining it with creamy coconut and mashed banana, preferably in the form of a frothy, iced beverage laced with shots of tropical rum and served in a sugar-rimmed glass with a large slice of lime. And a cherry.

 

You see how well that turned out. Muffins are the next best thing. Consciences are for chumps.

Mango Colada Muffins

makes 14-16 muffins

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large ripe banana, mashed

2/3 cup chopped mango

1 cup lite coconut milk (I used Trader Joe’s brand)

1 cup shredded coconut

coarse sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with liners.

Combine flours, sugar, salt and baking soda in a large bowl. In a food processor of blender, add banana, egg, mango, coconut milk, vanilla and butter. Mix or pulse until ingredients are combined and mango is almost but completely blended in with a few chunks remaining. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ingredients to form a batter. Fold in coconut.

Using an ice cream scoop or 1/3 cup measure, add batter to each muffin line and top with coarse sugar. Bake for 15 minutes, or until muffins are cooked through.

I’m thinking that these muffins would make happy hour even happier… perhaps crumbled on said icy drink? That’s todays plan.

{ 87 comments }

Dark Chocolate Blueberry Muffins.

Did you ever have a diary? I did. I think I got the idea from the Babysitter’s Club books. You can tell I read many classic novels as a child.   Anyway, this diary of mine. I wrote in it a lot. I’d write in it every single day. And sometimes when I was done writing in my diary, I’d doodle big hearts on the inside cover with a boy’s name in them. David, Doug, Don, Dwight… clearly I liked boys whose names began with the letter D. One diary was a hot pink and purple squishy plastic. Stereotype city. It had a lock and a key, which I just thought was cool. I stashed the book underneath my mattress and the key somewhere in my desk drawer, which I frequently lost, so my brothers couldn’t find it. It was chock full of top-secret news, like what I really thought about Judy Blume’s Forever.   I don’t have a diary anymore; instead I have this little page on the internet that most people over the age of 60 don’t “get” and an impulsion to take pictures of my food and talk to my computer screen about them. I don’t tell [...]

137 comments Get More Sweet Eats →

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Muffins.

Remember the days when I used to have an outrageous muffin obsession? I took a brief hiatus from muffin making, which I thought would help my creativity and my waistline. Instead, I baked things even more sinful and more addicting. Creative… maybe. Helpful to the waistline? Ummm… how about no. Needless to say, muffins came back with a vengeance. I am not joking when I tell you that these muffins taste like oatmeal cookies.  No lie. You can even go as far to add raisins, but I’m just not down with shriveled fruit in my baked goods. Instead I choose chocolate. If I think these taste like cookies, I can almost guarantee that you will. Healthy muffins that taste like treats! Remember me? I try my best to not consume green things unless we’re talking about apple flavored Jolly Ranchers or dyed adult beverages in Pittsburgh on St. Patrick’s Day. Yes, they have a little butter. Yes, butter makes the world go ’round. Yes, they taste delicious. No, you should not sub anything else for the butter. A quarter cup of butter spread throughout 12 muffins won’t hurt you. In fact, it will probably complete you. So said Mother Lovett. [...]

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Creamsicle Muffins.

In case you’re wondering, I’m still in a cinnamon roll coma. I decided it was time for something else for breakfast. Or snack time. Or if you’re anything like me, lunch and dinner. I have issues. Most normal people would eat broccoli or something. Or maybe eggs? No thanks. I’ll make some muffins. Who doesn’t love creamsicles? And muffins? And cream? And heavy cream? I do. I love anything and everything described “creamsicle.” Especially those Push-Ups I used to eat when I was on summer break. Those were the best. Remember them? Why did I ever stop eating them? The only thing to make a delicious “healthier” muffin taste better is to add a sugary, creamy glaze on top. Creamsicle muffins topped with creamsicle glaze? Don’t mind if I do. Whole Wheat Creamsicle Muffins makes 12 muffins 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose) 1/3 cup sugar 1 egg 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt 1/3 cup milk + 2 tablespoons 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 tablespoons orange zest contents of one vanilla bean raw course sugar for garnish Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place muffin cups [...]

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Vanilla Crunch Muffins.

I think I’ll let the batter do most of the talking. I love vanilla. I love muffins. This is a recipe that brings the two together in perfect harmony. I gave my muffins some “crunch” in two places. First, inside the muffin with pecans. Feel free to use the nut of your choice. Second, on top of the muffins with additional pecans, shredded coconut and course sugar. I adore course sugar. It’s all about texture my friends. I really enjoyed the muffins with the addition of the yogurt and applesauce. They were dense but moist. And super vanilla-y. They made me want to blast I’m Every Woman by Whitney Houston and dance around like a complete maniac. But that’s just me. Vanilla Crunch Muffins inspired by Ina Garten makes 12 muffins 2 cups whole wheat flour 1/3 cup sugar 1 egg 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt 1/3 cup milk 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract contents of one vanilla bean 1/2 cup chopped pecans + more for garnish raw course sugar for garnish coconut for garnish Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place muffin cups in muffin tins. Mix sugar, applesauce, yogurt [...]

86 comments Get More Sweet Eats →

Glazed Whole Wheat Sweet Potato Muffins.

I made way too many whipped sweet potatoes yesterday for Mr. How Sweet’s belated birthday dinner and knew I had to come up with some way to use them up. Obviously it needed to be a sweet treat. And I figured that Mr. How Sweet would think that sweet potato muffins resembled pumpkin muffins and wouldn’t want to touch them. So I didn’t even tell him about these muffins. Oops. I think he would have loved them too. This was my first time using sweet potatoes in a baked good and I can’t even describe how thrilled I am with how these muffins turned out. They are so moist and fluffy, and that is with using all whole wheat flour. They are basically autumn in a cup. And since baked goods are never sweet enough for me, I whipped up a ginger glaze and topped it with some of the candied ginger that I bought on Saturday. This was an excellent idea. Or maybe not, since I ended up stuffing my face with 3 muffins in 60 seconds. If you are one of those people that likes their baked goods more savory than sweet, then just skip the glaze and go [...]

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Pumpkin Apple Muffins.

You know how annoying it is when you walk through the stores and see Halloween paraphernalia right now? Or how ridiculous it is to see Christmas decorations on October 15th?     Well, this kind of feels like that. But I just couldn’t help myself. If pumpkin in August is wrong, then I don’t want to be right. I just couldn’t stay away any longer. I want Fall and pumpkin and 50-degree weather and pretty leaves to hang around all year long. Just call that my utopia. Luckily for me, I have 6 (well, had 6) cans of pureed pumpkin in the pantry just begging to be used. I must have inherited the hoarding gene from Mother Lovett. But don’t worry, my pumpkin doesn’t expire until 2012. Mother Lovett’s would have expired in 1994. And she still would have used it.     I used my non-expired pumpkin and combined it with juicy, sweet apples and whole wheat flour for some super moist and fluffy muffins. They are oh-so delicious. Even if they are a bit… orange. You never know when you may have a pumpkin emergency. Last year I went to bake with pumpkin and couldn’t find any on [...]

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Avocado Lime Muffins.

I have issues. But I think we all know that by now, right? I never thought these muffins would work. They sounded delicious in my mind, but I had no clue how to throw them together. I knew I wanted to use avocado. And lime juice. And I have been dying to try the persian lime olive oil that I picked up in Michigan. You guys know I rarely talk about the products I use. But these I love. You must make your way over to Fustini’s and order at least one flavor. But have fun trying to choose! It’s basically impossible. So with all this other liquid, do I need an egg? Do I add sugar? Am I insane? Don’t answer that. But they worked. They just worked. In fact, they were incredible. I want one right now. Which I could have, except I ate them all. What I love most about these muffins is that they can be sweet or savory. To me, they bear a slight resemblance to cornbread – delicious with a big bowl of soup or chili, or fabulous with some nut butter or ice cream. I just ate them with butter. It was the [...]

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