Coffee Cake Muffins

 As a little girl, Saturday mornings meant helping my dad make breakfast. It was usually either pancakes or French toast, and my "helping" meant accidentally splashing batter out of the mixing bowl or trying to decide whether a pancake was ready to flip or not. Even if breakfast was at 8 a.m. before swim practice, I always looked forward to that fun start to the weekend.
  Now, Saturday mornings often consist of my getting out of bed just in time to grab coffee to have on the subway ride to a voice lesson. This past weekend, I woke up early and whipped up these simple muffins. While they are about as basic as it gets, they're homey and fluffy and delicious. Maybe I'll make them for my roommates in college; but more likely, I'll be calling my dad to ask him for his French toast recipe.
  Enjoy!

Coffee Cake Muffins

(from The Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large eggs at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1 1/3 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

2 cups coarsely chopped pecans

2 teaspoons cinnamon

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease 18 muffin cups, or line with paper liners.

In a large bowl, on the low speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter with the sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Mix in the sour cream. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups.

To make the topping: In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, the pecans, and the cinnamon. Sprinkle the topping evenly (and generously) over the batter.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Mint Chocolate Chip Muffins

 When it comes to holidays, I'm a giant food nerd. Valentine's day? Chocolate is a must. Christmas cookies? Count me in. The only thing that kept me from baking a pie on Friday (3.14, Pi Day, get it?) was that I didn't get home until eleven, and even I'm not a big enough pie fan to put myself through a midnight baking session without a particularly pressing reason.
  So with St. Patrick's Day around the corner, I felt something festive was necessary. While you're much more likely to find my friends and I sitting in math class tomorrow than bar-hopping, we can celebrate anyway, can't we?
 When I tried to think of a list of green foods, the first thing that came to mind was mint chocolate chip ice cream. This worries me slightly, because (1) I feel that the appropriate reaction would have been to think of spinach or kale or even broccoli, and (2) mint chocolate chip ice cream isn't even naturally green to begin with, as it gets its vibrant color from copious amounts of food dye.

 Nevertheless, mint chocolate chip ice cream it was. The issue was that I really didn't have time to be cooking custard or waiting for ice cream to churn, and I wanted something I could throw in a plastic bag and share with friends at school. So I took my favorite muffin recipe and threw in some ice cream flair. And the result was a batch of Shamrock-green, minty little cakes that are great any day of the year.
  Enjoy!

Mint Chocolate Chip Muffins

(adapted from this base recipe)

 3 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

                                                    1 teaspoon salt                                                    

 2 eggs, room temperature preferred

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons mint extract (you may have to adjust this based on the strength of your extract)

1/2 teaspoon green food coloring (again, adjust based on strength and desired color)

1 cup bittersweet or dark chocolate chips

coarse or pearl sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray 15 muffin cups with non-stick spray or line with muffin liners. Set aside.

In a large bowl, gently toss together flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until all dry ingredients are combined. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, vanilla, mint extract, and food coloring. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand with a wooden spoon. Avoid over-mixing. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. The batter will be thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Top with a sprinkle of coarse or pearl sugar, if preferred. Bake at 425F degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and continue to bake for 18 minutes until tops are lightly golden and centers appear set.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan before moving to cooling rack.

     -Makes 15 muffins

Traditional Financiers

 Financiers are my new favorite thing. Ever. I bet you're dying to know why, so here's a list (partly because I like lists, but also partly because my SAT-practice-test-brain can't handle much more than that right now).
1. They are chewy with crisp edges, which is always lovely.
2. They have a wonderfully nutty flavor from the almonds and browned butter in them.
3. They are just about the most perfect snack to have with a cup of tea or coffee.
4. They are the namesake of one of my favorite bakeries. 
5. They gave me an excuse to use one of my new baking molds I bought in France this summer (because let's be honest here, what isn't better when it comes from France?).
6. They are insanely easy to make.

I baked the extra batter in tiny tart pans for an even more bite-sized treat

 I totally wasn't kidding about #6. The batter for these comes together in the time it takes to preheat the oven, and you can have a perfect snack, dessert, or breakfast (because I won't judge you) in under half an hour. When isn't that a good thing?

 These are also perfect for tons of different variations. Sick of making almond-flour-everything? Substitute ground pistachios (plus you'll get a lovely light green color). Want something fruity? Thrown in some berries. Something richer? Chocolate chips would be delicious. Anyway you make them, they're quick, easy, and will be gone in less time than it took to throw them together.
  Enjoy!

 Traditional Financiers 

(from Bouchon Bakery)

1/2 cup + 1-1/2 T. (120 g) sugar
1/4 cup + 1 T. (40 g) unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 cup + 2 t. (60 g) almond meal
100 g egg whites (from about 3 large eggs)
1/2 cup (100 g) unsalted butter, browned (still hot)

Preheat oven to 425F degrees, and butter 12 financier molds, roughly 1-1/4" x 2-1/4". (My tin only makes 7 financiers - if yours is like this, either set aside batter and wait to use the tin again or bake in a mini muffin tin or mini tart pans.) Refrigerate buttered tin.
Sift together sugar, flour and almond meal into a medium bowl.
Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add in egg whites; whisk together by hand until ingredients have been combined.
While still hot, slowly pour browned butter into batter, simultaneously whisking the batter until combined.
Evenly distribute batter among molds or mini-muffin tin wells, leaving about 1/8" of space from the rim.
Lower oven temperature to 350F degrees, and bake on the center rake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool unmolded financiers on a wire rack.

Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins

     No matter how fun it can be to bake delicate fruit tarts and sky-high layer cakes, sometimes I just need some classic, less indulgent breakfast. A few weeks ago, when I was studying all weekend, everything became magically, a million times more interesting than history. Suddenly, when faced with a stack of notes and review books, oatmeal muffins seemed like the perfect study break.

      I decided to throw in a little twist with some dried cranberries, but other than that these muffins are super simple. You could throw in any add-ins you want, but don't get crazy - these are meant to be simple. They are full of oatmeal and have less sugar and fat than most muffins, making them okay for an everyday breakfast.
     Maybe I shouldn't have started with the healthy description, because that tends to make bakers disappear - but bear with me. These are hearty, yes, but in the best way possible. They are moist, sprinkled with dried cranberries throughout, and they are absolutely delicious! Especially with a bit of jelly (or nutella, but let's keep it healthier here). This recipe is definitely a keeper in my kitchen.
     Enjoy!

Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins

(adapted from The Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook)

2 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking oats)

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Grease well a 12-cup muffin tin, or line with paper liners.
In a medium-size bowl, mix the oats and the milk and set aside for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, making a well in the center. Stir in the liquid ingredients and the oatmeal mixture until just combined, being careful not to overmix. Batter may be lumpy.
Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake for 16-18 minutes until lightly golden or a cake tester inserted into center of muffin comes out with moist crumbs attached. Don't overbake.
    -makes 12 muffins

Bakery-Style Chocolate Chunk Muffins

     Remember my Bakery-Style Blueberry Muffins? These are a lot like those - the same big, crunchy top, the same buttery flavor and tender crumb. In my opinion, though, these are even better than blueberry muffins. Because these have chocolate instead of fruit. And that kinda always makes breakfast better.
    I just realized how many muffin posts I have had recently, but these muffins were kind of necessary (please understand that when I say necessary, I'm saying that as a 15-year-old girl who really likes chocolate). I spent Easter in Brazil with my mom's side of the family, and Brazilians have an Easter tradition of giving each other giant chocolate eggs. By giant I literally mean about the size of my head - and, due to the fact that I have quite a big family, I came home with 8 giant chocolate eggs. Thank you airport security for not taking away my Easter candy, even when one of my suitcases was devoted entirely to chocolate.
    When I got home, I realized that I needed to find some recipes to use up the chocolate, and fast - my parents and I couldn't possibly eat all of that chocolate! I decided to start with a classic, and I'm so glad I did.
    Enjoy!

Bakery-Style Chocolate Chunk Muffins

(slightly adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction)

 3 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 eggs, room temperature preferred

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk (skim, 1%, almond, rice, soy are all ok – room temperature preferred)

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and 1/4 cup milk chocolate chunks

coarse or pearl sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray 18 muffin cups with non-stick spray or line with muffin liners. Set aside.

In a large bowl, gently toss together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix until all dry ingredients are combined. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, and vanilla. Mixture will be pale and yellow. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand with a wooden spoon. Avoid over-mixing. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. The batter will be VERY thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Top with a sprinkle of coarse or pearl sugar, if preferred. Bake at 425F degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and continue to bake for 18 minutes until tops are lightly golden and centers appear set.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes in pan before enjoying.

     -Makes 18 muffins

Dulce de Leche Swirl Muffins

    Dulce de leche is an absolute classic dessert in Brazil. It's often served after lunch with slices of mild cheese or guava paste - as weird as the combination may sound, it's delicious. When I was in Brazil earlier this year, I wanted to make my family something wholly American - muffins! - but still bring in one of their favorite desserts.

   These muffins are the perfect combination of indulgent and hearty - they are fairly dense and feel substantial enough to have for breakfast, but the dulce de leche makes them sweet enough to eat for dessert if you wish (although in my opinion, I would rather save them to use as an excuse to eat dulce de leche for breakfast!)

    This is a simple batter which I mixed up by hand. After being divided into muffin tins, swirl in a liberal amount of dulce de leche (or your favorite sweet spread), bake and enjoy! They are lovely enjoyed on a weekend morning, weekday afternoon, or just about any other time you could use a bite of a sticky-sweet goodie.
   Enjoy!

 

Dulce de Leche Swirl Muffins

(adapted from Baking Bites) 

10 tbsp butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
dulce de leche, about 1/3 cup (if you can find it, use the Brazilian kind - it's a bit thicker)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners.
Cream together butter and sugar until light, 2 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, until fully incorporated. Don’t worry if the batter doesn’t look smooth. Add vanilla. Stir in flour, salt and baking powder until batter is uniform and no flour remains.
Fill each muffin liner evenly with batter. They should be 3/4 full, if you’re not using a scoop. Top each cake with 1 1/2 tsp dulce de leche. Swirl dulce de leche in with a toothpick, making sure to fold a bit of batter up over it.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out fairly clean (it may have a streak of dulce de leche on it, which is perfectly fine).
Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

   -makes 12 muffins

Bakery-Style Blueberry Muffins

     There are some foods that people seem to think can only be made perfectly in restaurants and cafés. Until this weekend, I thought that muffins were one of them. I mean, I've made some great muffins, but they've never been incredible. I woke up on Sunday wanting a muffin like those you get in the best bakeries: soft, tender, and with a big, crunchy top. That's exactly what I got with this recipe. The perfect tops come from the large amount of baking powder in the recipe, and from the baking method: these are baked at an unusually high temperature for 5 minutes before lowering the heat to a normal level for the rest of the baking time.

     These are, in my opinion, the perfect blueberry muffin to have for breakfast. They aren't like the muffins you get in cellophane packages at the grocery store; those are more like really sweet cake with some blueberries thrown in. These are less cakey, a little bit chewier; they are the perfect brunch food or afternoon snack. The soft, tasty interior make them delicious; the big, crunchy tops make them unforgettable. I didn't have coarse sugar for topping them, so I used pearl sugar; it ended up being a great idea, because it added an extra crunch. This is a great base for variations - you can expect more muffins in the near future!
     Enjoy!

Bakery-Style Blueberry Muffins

(slightly adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction) 

3 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and 1/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

pearl sugar for sprinkling (or you can use coarse sugar)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray your muffin tin of choice with non-stick spray or line with muffin liners. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon until all dry ingredients are combined. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until combined. Mix in milk, oil, and vanilla. Mixture will be pale and yellow. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand. Avoid overmixing. Gently mix until all the flour is off the bottom of the bowl and no big pockets of flour remain. The batter will be very thick and somewhat lumpy. Fold in the blueberries.
Pour batter into prepared muffin tins, filling all the way to the top. Top with a sprinkle course sugar, if preferred. Bake at 425 degrees F for 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees F and continue to bake for 25-26 minutes until tops are lightly golden and a skewer inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes on a cooling rack.
Muffins taste best fresh the same day. Store muffins at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Muffins freeze well for up to 3 months.

TWD Rewind: Buttermilk Crumb Muffins

   The few weeks before winter break are always crazy busy, and amidst all the Christmas cookie baking, I didn't have a chance to get to several of the latest Tuesdays with Dorie recipes. Here's one of the ones I missed: Buttermilk Crumb Muffins.
  These were chosen a few weeks ago. The ingredient list is simple, and so are these muffins; they have a classic, comfort-food flavor, which can be really nice sometimes. They have a great, tender crumb, and are perfect alongside a big cup of creamy coffee or tea.
 The recipe was hosted by Alisa at Easier than Pie - the recipe can be found on her blog. Enjoy!

Double Chocolate Greek Yogurt Muffins

As much as it may seem like it from reading this blog, I don't actually spend all day eating custard pies and cupcakes topped with small mountains of icing. Usually, my family and I have a bit of whatever it was I made, and my dad takes the rest of it to share with his co-workers. I have been baking a bit more than usual this week, since I had the whole week off from school (thank you, Hurricane Sandy! No, actually, I hope everyone is okay - I was lucky to not have been affected at all at home). Yesterday, I was flipping through recipes calling for cups of sugar and multiple sticks of butter when I realized that my dad wasn't going to work today, so whatever I baked, it would be in our house for the next couple of days. Enter these muffins.

 These are fairly healthy (as muffins go) - they have some sugar and a bit of oil, but their chocolatey taste comes from unsweetened cocoa powder (with a few chocolate chips thrown in - I used semisweet, but feel free to use your favorite kind), and I made them with half white whole wheat flour, which adds some heartiness without changing the texture. As a vegetarian, I'm always trying to get some extra protein in, and Greek yogurt is filled with it; these muffins are made moist and ever-so-slightly tangy from the rich, creamy yogurt.
  This is the perfect breakfast muffin, in my opinion - it is moist, pairs perfectly with a creamy cup of coffee, and tastes almost as indulgent as your favorite bakery's double chocolate muffin, but is healthy enough to be acceptable for a weekday morning.
  Enjoy!

 Double Chocolate Greek Yogurt Muffins

(adapted from Knead to Cook)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line with paper liners.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and sugar. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, vanilla and oil.  Stir the yogurt mixture into the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined.  Fold in the chocolate chips.
Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Make sure that the toothpick isn't coming out dirty due to hitting a chocolate chip - you don't want to over-bake your muffins!

Banana Muffins with Butterscotch and Chocolate Chips

These were described to me by a taster as "a real dessert muffin." This taster was absolutely right. These muffins are not like a banana muffin you might buy at a coffee shop, which can be dry and tasteless. Those are often disguised as breakfast foods, when in reality they are full of sugar and butter, but these are a perfect dessert - every bite is full of chocolate and butterscotch chips.

These are not low-fat. If you want a low-fat banana muffin, go someplace else, or just have these for dessert instead of breakfast! All of that said, these are super quick and easy enough to whip up for a weekend morning - if you choose to do so, I promise I won't judge. I may or may not be eating these for breakfast too ;)
Enjoy! <3

Banana Muffins with Butterscotch and Chocolate Chips
(slightly adapted from Phemomenon)

2-3 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour (or a combination of all-purpose and whole wheat flour)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray 12 muffin cups with oil or line with paper liners. Set aside.
Whisk together the oil, eggs, and vanilla in a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Set aside.
Whisk together the flour(s), sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the oil/egg mixture and stir well till just combined. Add the mashed bananas till just mixed in. Fold in the chips.
Distribute the mixture evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Bake the muffins for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly golden and springy to the touch. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store completely cooled muffins in an airtight container.
- makes 12 muffins

TWD Rewind: Corniest Corn Muffins

You might have noticed that I've been baking a lot of TWD rewinds recently. I've sort of gotten back into it, and have set a kind of insane goal to finish my rewind list by September. I can't realistically see that happening, because my list of "to-bake" recipes is longer than my list of already-made recipes, but I've been having fun baking the recipes I've seen people write about but missed out on making myself.

Last week, I decided to make the Corniest Corn Muffins. I've made the other corn muffin recipe in the book before, but this one seemed more my style: it's sweeter and something I would like to have for breakfast. The batter for these is easy to whip up and takes fresh corn, something I had never put in cornbread before! I discovered it's actually a nice addition.

When I took these out of the oven, they looked really yummy. Still warm, they were corn-y and delicious. After a couple of hours (when I took the picture), they became kind of sad-looking, in addition to losing the crispiness to their tops. After that, they just weren't very good - even warmed up for breakfast, they were fine, but nothing special. We ended up throwing away most of the batch, which doesn't happen very often around here!
Overall, probably not one I'll make again. I'm still looking for a great corn muffin recipe - do you have any favorites? If you want to try this one out, the recipe can be found in Baking From My Home To Yours.
<3

One Lovely Blog and BFMHTY's Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

When I was checking my comments the other day, I saw one in particular that made me smile (although any nice comment makes me smile). Paula from Vintage Kitchen Notes gave me a One Lovely Blog Award! Thanks Paula! Apparently how this works is that you receive the award and tell your readers 7 things about yourself. Here we go...
1. I am finishing my freshman year of high school.
2. I started baking for real when I was 9 and have been in love with it ever since.
3. I also cook. A little bit. Not really all that much. But I like to help other people cook.
4. My favorite thing to bake is probably muffins. Like these that I made last week...

A very old TWD from Baking From My Home To Yours, these were delicious! Light, fluffy and the perfect breakfast during finals week! Check out the recipe from the original host. And back to the list...
5. I don't actually post everything I bake on here. There are plenty of things that I spare you. For example, a while back I made a gluten-free "pineapple upside down cake" that really was like a big pile of batter with a few chunks of half-baked cake. Hey, it was yummy, but I like to keep certain standards when posting on here...
6. I am fluent in Portuguese. My mom is from Brazil, thus the Brazilian recipes on here.
7. My dream trip is to go to New Zealand. Mainly so I can jump off of the skytower. Hey, I'm a teenager, I'm allowed :)

Now here comes the fun part! I get to nominate five blogs I like! I'm all about the teen baking thing, so here are some of my favorites:
1. Lauren from Celiac Teen (yep, she's pretty famous already, but I like her blog)
2. Elissa from 17 and Baking (okay, she's famous too...)
3. Erica from Cannella Vita
4. Mia from The Little Blue Bicycle
5. Lucy from Teen Baker
This is a group of five other teenage girls baking their way through high school/college, and each has a great, unique blog. Girls, here are the rules...

The Rules of Acceptance:
-Thank the person who gave you this award
-Include a link to their blog
-Next, select 5 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly.
-Nominate those bloggers for the Awards
-Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.
-In the same post, include this set of rules.
-Inform each nominated blogger of their nomination by posting a comment on each of their blogs.

<3

Mini Maple Chocolate Chip Pancake Muffins

These are the perfect brunch food. Don't be discouraged by the unreasonably long name - these can be whipped up in under half an hour. They really do seem like little bites of fluffy pancake, but don't require all the fuss with pouring and flipping. That fuss can be fun (and delicious) sometimes, but other times it just takes too much energy for a weekend morning!
I made these to bring over to a friend's house for brunch. They are so easy to make and are perfect alongside some sort of savory dish (we had them with a frittata and a salad). Since they aren't the texture of most muffins, but instead are a bit chewy, they aren't so great on their own. Serve them dunked in maple syrup!

Or just pour it on! You can really taste the syrup in these, so please use the real stuff, not the "breakfast syrup" made from corn syrup. You can thank me later ;) My other word of advice is not to use liners in the mini muffins tins - the muffins will stick and make eating them a little trickier.
Enjoy! <3

Mini Maple Chocolate Chip Pancake Muffins
(from Bakerella)

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a medium bowl. Sift together with a wire whisk.
In another bowl, stir buttermilk, egg, maple syrup and melted butter until just combined.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until combined.
Stir in chocolate chips. Reserve a few chips to sprinkle on the tops.
Bake for 8-9 minutes.
Let cool slightly and remove from the pan. You may need to use a toothpick around the edges to separate the pancake muffins from the pan.
Serve with maple syrup for dipping (or pouring!)
-Makes 24 mini pancake muffins.

Pumpkin Apple Muffins

Yes, I realize that it's now officially spring. And yes, I realize that I'm supposed to be breaking out the berries and various other fresh produce. But this morning, I wanted muffins, and we happened to have none of said produce. What we did have was a can of pumpkin left over from the fall, and an apple. I went online and searched for a while. And yes, I mean a while - as in, I could have gotten dressed and gone to the grocery store for some blueberries a while. I finally found a recipe I liked on Smitten Kitchen (I love that blog, go look at it). I got my dad peeling an apple and got to work on the batter. I made a few little changes like adding vanilla and apples, and within 15 minutes we had muffins in the oven.

These are so much better than I expected from such a simple recipe. They are super fluffy and perfectly sweet. This is one of those recipes that allows you to say you're eating breakfast, when really you feel like you're tasting a delicious pumpkin cake. Hey, these would be great with cream cheese frosting. I've got to get on that...
These are great for a quick breakfast or brunch on a weekend, so bookmark it for this fall. Or, if you happen to be like me, make them now and pretend it's cold out. Except for it actually is... wait is it really spring??
Enjoy!

Apple Pumpkin Muffins
(slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin (from a 15 ounce can)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 apple, peeled and chopped

Put oven in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Put liners in muffin cups.
Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, 1 cup of the sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour and baking powder until just combined. Stir in apple pieces.
Stir together cinnamon and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in another bowl.
Divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about three-fourths full), then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake until puffed and golden brown and wooden pick or skewer inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.
Cool in pan on a rack five minutes, then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.
Makes 12.

Vanilla Chocolate Chip Muffins

Sometimes you really need a last-minute treat. This used to happen all the time when I was at my old school, because we had these little groups called advisings that met once a week. My advising had a snack schedule, where each week somebody different would bring in a snack. I used to realize the day before that the next day was my turn, and I had to bake a quick treat (Seeing as how I was always bringing in homemade food, it was kind of expected of me). These were some muffins that I made one night for school, and they were pretty yummy. Not the greatest muffins out there, but I had been wanting to make a recipe from the book they are in, because as you look through it you really just want to dive in to a mountain of muffins and eat your way through. They are a nice last-minute treat or breakfast (hey, muffins are the perfect excuse to have cake for breakfast). Enjoy!

Vanilla Chocolate Chip Muffins (from Muffins Galore)

2 cups self-rising flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup superfine sugar (I just use regular)
Scant 1 cup milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 400F. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan or line the cups with paper muffin cups.
Mix the flour and baking powder in a large bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and chocolate chips.
In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract, then pour the milk mixture all at once into the dry ingredients. Mix briefly until just combined.
Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, dividing it evenly. Bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes, or until well risen, golden, and firm to the touch. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Serve warm or cold.
Muffin tip: For chunkier chocolate chip muffins, measure 1 cup from a bar/block of milk or semi-sweet chocolate, then cut it into small chunks using a sharp knife, and use the chopped chocolate instead of the chocolate chips.
Makes 12.

A new sort of TWD

Okay, sorry, no pictures here - my camera isn't working right now. I've recently realized how much there still is for me to bake from "the book", and how since I really don't have all that much time, there's no way I can finish with the rest of the group, however much I would like to. So, I've decided. I'm not giving up on the book - I've done too much to do that. But I am going to just bake whatever I want from it, whenever I want, until I'm done. And I'll try to post on here more often :)
Recently, I've made three things from Baking from My Home to Yours. The first two were actually made the weeks that twd chose them, and they were both delicious. The first was the Cream Scones. These come together quickly and easily, and are best right out of the oven. I used a mixture of currants and raisins, and they were so good.



The second was the Chocolate Chunk Muffins. I had high expectations for these, and although they were great right out of the oven, I didn't find them all that good after they had cooled. They were fine, but for the amount of chocolate in them, you would expect them to taste more chocolate-y.
Earlier this week, I made a recipe that was chosen a while back: the Split-Level Pudding. These were actually really good, although I must have done something wrong with the ganache, because it was still pretty liquid when we ate it. Oh well, it was delicious either way! We served them with whipped cream and raspberries.
So, what's going to happen with this blog? I don't know, but I'm going to try my best to post more often (and with pictures!), especially with all of the Dorie recipes I bake. Strangely, it motivates me to bake more knowing that I can choose anything I want - there's no reminder that I still have to bake this week's TWD. So, maybe there will be more posts on here than I think.

Update: I was able to find a picture of the muffins! (Obviously....)

Oh Wow.

Oh my gosh. I haven't posted in a really long time, and I'm SO sorry. But this time I do have an excuse.
If anybody reading this has ever been in 8th grade in New York City, you know what I'm talking about. I think this past month has been the craziest in my life. Why? I'm dealing with applications to NYC Public High Schools. Admissions to the really good schools is very competitive, and I have spent all of my free time studying for tests, practicing for auditions, going to open houses and tours, and sleeping. :)
Now all of the tests are over, and I seem to have a bit more time on my hands (although I'm still super busy). Also, I was recently on Tuesdays with Dorie's website and read about how anybody who doesn't post by today is getting kicked out. SO.... I decided it was time I put up a post :)
I'm just going to talk about a jumble of TWD recipes I've made over the past few months (no pictures today, because I'm too tired and busy to find them).
Peanut Butter Crisscrosses - I actually made these way back in February, before they were chosen. I believe I doubled the recipe, because I was making them for a big party. They were pretty simple to make and delicious. A hit!
Peach Ice Cream - Oh my goodness, this stuff is amazing and SO addictive. In August, we went peach picking and I had to find something to do with all the quickly ripening peaches, so I went with this. It's actually very easy to make (although a bit time-consuming). The next time you have some extra peaches, go make it!
Crunchy Custardy Peach Tart - This was also a hit. The crust was same as usual, and the thin layer of custard was delicious. My only complaint was that the peaches were baked for so long, they seemed to lose a bit of their flavor. But all in all, a yummy dessert.
Mango Bread - I made this one because I was bored over the summer and wanted to cross something off the old rewind list. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this spicy bread, and I will make it again sometime!

Oatmeal Breakfast Bread - Oh, what we did for this bread. We were in Rome when we decided we wanted this bread. So we looked up the ingredients, got the people at the supermarket annoyed with our hand gestures as we tried to communicate what we were looking for, and went back to the house where we were staying. When we got there, we realized we had forgotten the applesauce. Back to the store we went. And who would have known? Apparently Italians don't believe in applesauce :) So we went back to the apartment, cut up and cooked some apples, and mashed them in a ricer. And you know what? That applesauce was pretty good. The bread, on the other hand, was just okay. This might have been a result of our not really knowing what baking powder/baking soda we were dealing with, and our measurements having been slightly off. We also didn't make the crumble, just sprinkled some spices and sugar on top. I guess I'll just have to make it again!
Raspberry Blanc Manger - When I went peach picking, I also went raspberry picking. When I got home, I decided to make this cold dessert. It was actually a bit of a let-down for me. The agar-agar (vegetarian substitute for gelatin) sort of clumped, making weird lumps in the custard. However, the taste was good, and everyone else liked it.
Blueberry Pie - I had never made a blueberry pie before, although I had always wanted to. I loved seeing the blueberries and sugar become a syrupy, yummy mess. I'll definitely make this one again.

Coffee Break Muffins - It's coffee in a muffin. What's not to love? Mmm, I want one right now.....
Tarte Fine - This was one of the easiest recipes in Dorie's book that I have made. It consists of a thin layer of puff pastry, some apples and sugar, and jam brushed on top. I didn't have high hopes for it, but it was really, really good. And so easy! (Especially when you used frozen homemade puff pastry, because you get the flavor of the homemade in a few minutes.)
Apple Pie - I loved loved loved this pie! It was a simple filling, but the best I've made. Definitely one I'll make again.

So those are the recipes I've made recently. Hopefully I'll be back next week with a more detailed post!

TWD: Lots of Ways Banana Cake and Chewy, Chunky Blondies

Sorry for not being here so much anymore. Hopefully when school starts again I can get back to posting on time! Anyways, I did make the last two Tuesdays With Dorie recipes, which were both hits here at home!



Last week's recipe was chosen by Kimberly of Only Creative Opportunities. She chose the Lots of Ways Banana Cake. This recipe has lots of flavor possibilities. I ended up not using the coconut milk, and I substituted white sugar in place of brown. As my add-in, I chose raisins. Also, instead of baking the cakes in round pans, I decided to make muffins. I got 28 good-sized ones. They were so yummy, and they got eaten quickly! If you want to try it for yourself, you can find the recipe here or in the book.



This week's recipe was chosen by Nicole of Cookies on Friday. She chose the Chewy, Chunky Blondies. I have made these SO many times, because they are my mom's absolute favorite thing I make. I decided that I had to make them again, for photography purposes ;)
Substitutions for the add-ins are fine for these - as long as you have 4 cups. I love love love these blondies, and you absolutely HAVE to make them. You can find the recipe here or in the book.

Enjoy! (P.S. - DB post up soon). :D

Maple Pecan Muffins

Finally, an end to the chocolate madness! Last Wednesday, as you might know, was a snow day in New York (yes!). We had gone to see a show the night before, so we slept in. We woke up and I wanted something freshly baked. Not wanting to wait too long, I turned to my new book, Muffins Galore, for a recipe. I found these Maple Pecan Muffins, which looked good, and we had all the ingredients for, so there you go.

They were pretty good - not very sweet, though, but that might be just what some people want for breakfast. The glaze is simply maple syrup brushed on top. Yum. Enjoy!

Maple Pecan Muffins (from Muffins Galore)

1/2 cup butter, softened

2/3 cup superfine sugar (I used regular)

2 tablespoons ground almonds

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

pinch of salt

3/4 cup buttermilk

7 tablespoons maple syrup

6-12 pecan halves, to decorate

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan or line the cups with paper muffin cups.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy. Stir in the ground almonds, then gradually beat in the eggs. Stir in the chopped pecans.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the creamed mixture. In a small bowl, blend the buttermilk with 4 tablespoons of the maple syrup. Pour the buttermilk mixture all at once into the flour and creamed mixture, and mix briefly until just combined.

4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, dividing it evenly, then top each muffin with a pecan half. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until well risen and firm to the touch.

5. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Brush or drizzle the remaining 3 tablespoons of maple syrup over the hot baked muffins and serve warm or cold.

Muffin Tip: Use real maple syrup for these muffins rather than artificial maple-flavored syrup.

TWD: Coco-Nana Bread

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe was chosen by Steph of Obsessed with Baking. She chose Coco-Nana Bread. I was excited about this week's pick, first because it's a really simple recipe (no layered bars, 4-part cakes, frosting...), and second because I love the combination of chocolate and banana. But according to the P&Q on the TWD site, I am one of just a few. I love bananas and chocolate sauce with ice cream, chocolate chip banana bread... yum. This bread is like Dorie says - the chocolate is the main flavor, but then the banana kicks in, and you can taste both.

The batter is easy to make. I used some new muffin top papers I got. The batter made twelve muffin tops and six cupcake-sized heart-shaped cakes. I should have followed the directions in the book and stacked two baking sheets, but I only used one, so my bottoms burned. Strangely, they didn't taste very burned, they were just black. But they were yummy, and I might make this recipe again if I have a chocolate-banana craving :D

If you want the recipe, you can buy the AMAZING book or find it here on Steph's blog. Enjoy!