Apple Cider Muffins

After apple picking last weekend Brian and I have A LOT of apples. For a family of more than 2, the amount might not seem huge, but our fruit bowl was overflowing and I worried about eating them before they went bad. Though we did make a pie, I found myself wanting something breakfast-y. I immediately remembered our delicious apple cider donuts-which then turned into a muffin idea. After searching the web for a bit I found this. This is not my recipe-I only added apples. (I don't remember where I found this-but let it be known-I love the recipe!)

These muffins are ridiculously addictive. They are moist and apple-y and pretty much evoke New England fall. Though this recipe calls for a bit more ingredients than normal, I think you'll find them to be very easy to make. Oh-and your house will smell divine when they are baking.


Yield 18 muffins

Streusel:
2 T. Packed Dark Brown Sugar
4 t. Flour
.5 t. Cinnamon
1 T. Unsalted Butter, Cold-cut into cubes
2 T. Chopped Nuts-Optional (I always leave the nuts out-I like my baked goods female)

Muffins:
2 C. Flour
1 1/2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Baking Soda
1/4 t. Salt
1 T. Cinnamon
1/2 t. Nutmeg
1 Egg (large)
1/3 C. Packed Dark Brown Sugar
1/2 C. Apple Butter
1/3 C. Maple Syrup
1/3 C. Apple Cider
1/3 C. Plain Low-Fat Yogurt
1/4 C. Oil
2 Apples, Peeled, Cored & Diced

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 400. Place paper cupcake liners in muffin cups. Spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, prepare streusel. Mix all ingredients and use your fingers to cut in the butter. Mixture should resemble coarse crumbs. Set aside.

3. Prepare muffins: Combine all dry ingredients in one large bowl and whisk together. Set aside.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk egg, brown sugar, apple butter, syrup, cider, yogurt and oil until smooth. Add apples.

5. Make a well in the dry ingredients-add the wet ingredients and gently fold together until combined. Scoop batter into pans and sprinkle with streusel.

6. Bake 20-25 minutes. Cool in pan 5 minutes then remove and cool on a wire rack.

So far these muffins have remained moist and fresh for 5 days-we keep them on the counter in an airtight container.

Lemon Breakfast Bread

Eating this moist lemony bread is like eating a little slice of sunshine. The key to it's bright flavor is to use freshly squeezed lemon juice-don't skimp on this. Those lucky enough to start their morning with this bread will thank you.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C. Flour
2 t. Baking powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 C. Plain Yogurt (not lowfat)
1 1/3 C. Sugar, divided
3 Eggs
2 t. Grated Lemon zest (About 2 lemons)
1/2 t. Vanilla Extract
1/2 C. Vegetable Oil
1/3 C. Lemon Juice, freshly squeezed

For the glaze:
1 C. Confectioners' Sugar
2 T. Lemon Juice, freshly squeezed

Method:Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla.

2. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

4. Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

5. When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

6. For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Better Batter?

It's 8am on a sunny Saturday morning and you and your honey want something more than your regular bagel and cream cheese. In fact-you want pancakes.

But do you know how long pancakes take to make?

Neither do I, but I do know that if I'm waking up on a sunny Saturday morning next to my honey I want to milk it for all it's worth and making pancakes does not help my cause.

Enter Batter Blaster: an organic pancake batter that is fast and easy-and it might even taste good. (This is up for debate considering I've never tasted it, and it's not yet available in Boston.) However, what might possibly usurp Batter Blasters flavor is its coolness.

Ladies and gentlemen, this batter is in a can.

Think Ready Whip (but not nearly as tasty-this is a fact I know because almost nothing is as tasty as Ready Whip-especially if it's in a can.) but instead of creamy goodness, the can is filled with beautiful batter that you can simply point and shoot into a pan creating fluffy pancakes every time.

Just point, blast and cook! Check it out by clicking HERE.

Let's Do...Brunch?

I confess: I love brunch.

I love going out to brunch and making brunch at home. I love the prospect of sleeping in on a Sunday morning knowing that there are places out there that will accommodate me-places that know that I don't want to eat a burger and fries or pasta vongole when I wake up. Yes, brunch is where it's at.

Recreating a nice brunch for your family and friends does not have to be difficult-in fact, if you pick and choose the right recipes, you might even be able to stay in bed almost as long as you want to. This recipe is tried and true, and has always brought me rave reviews.

Shirred Eggs

1/2 t. Garlic
1/2 t. Rosemary
1 T. Parsley
8 Eggs
4 Slices of Ham, Thin
4 T. Heavy Cream
2 T. Butter
Salt & Pepper To Taste
Toasted French Bread, Croissants or Brioche

Method:
1. Preheat broiler. Prepare 4 ramekins with 1 T. of cream and 1/2 T. Butter each. Place a piece of ham in the dish. Set aside.
2. Combine Rosemary, Parsley and Garlic. Set aside.
3. Crack 2 eggs into each ramekin, taking care not to break the yolks. Sprinkle herbs on top and season with salt and pepper.
4. Broil ramekins until the white of the eggs are no longer clear. Allow to rest for 1 minute and serve with toasted bread.

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This is a modified recipe from culinary school. I don't know where they got it. Picture from Wikimedia Commons.

Banana Walnut Muffins w/ Cinnamon

Being someone who truly enjoys the cold weather, of course I love everything associated with it. I don't know about you-but for me there is nothing better on a cold winter morning than fresh baked muffins.

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One summer evening while I was lying in bed cursing the humidity I found myself craving winter something fierce. Suddenly, it became fairly obvious that I would not rest until muffins were made.

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Yes, I know I'm a bit of a freak-who bakes muffins at midnight in June? I guess that goes to show you that when a girl needs a muffin, a girl needs a muffin! When these delectable little suckers came out of the oven not only did my house smell divine, but I truly forgot about the heat as I devowered two of these babies right away....

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1 1/4 C. Flour

1 t. Baking Soda

1/2 t. Salt

2 Eggs, room temperature

1/2 t. Vanilla Extract

1/2 C. Unsalted Butter, room temperature

1 C. Sugar

4 Very Ripe Bananas

1/2 C. Chopped Walnuts

1 t. Cinnamon

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Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line muffin tins with paper muffin cups. Lightly spray the top of the pan with cooking spray.

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2. In a bowl, whisk flour & baking soda together. This takes the place of sifting as the whisk is aerating the mix and breaking up any lumps. It's also evenly distributing the levener.

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3. In a separate bowl cream the butter and sugar until light & fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time until incorporated.

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4. Add the salt & cinnamon, and then the bananas. The batter will look curdled and lumpy-this is OK.

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5. Working quickly now add the dry mixture into the batter only until it is incorporated. DO NOT OVERMIX THE BATTER! Stir in most of the nuts, reserving some for the topping.

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6. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 of the way and sprinkle remaining nuts on top. Bake for 15-18 minutes. As a general rule, but especially for cakes and muffins-do not open the oven door during the first 15 minutes of the baking process. Doing so may cause your cakes to flatten and your muffins to fall.

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You can eat these muffins at any time, but I hear they especially hit the spot around midnight...

Breakfast

Shirred Eggs
Cinnamon Banana Muffins
Lemon Yogurt Bread

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