Marvelous Zuchinni Muffins. Tops like a sugar cookie, bottoms like a crumb cake.

It's amazing to me that just now, with Sawyer edging towards 17 months, I JUST now feel like I have control of my life again. And that said, now that he's in his second round of teething - that's even debatable most days.

Yet I feel kind of giddy that last Friday evening after a crazy workday, I managed to dream up this recipe and have it turn out as well as it did. It's so classic - I have no less than a couple hundred cookbooks and yet I couldn't find the trusty zuchinni bread recipe I made last. So I wrote down what I thought would work, set out the butter and eggs and went to bed, thinking I'd likely be tossing my experiment the next day. Quite the contrary - I don't think I'll make zuchinni bread or muffins from another recipe for a long time to come.

You can dress these up for winter with a hit of orange zest (or a grating of fresh ginger) or for summer with some lemon zest or just make them exactly as is. I do have to tell you, they are more of an adult muffin recipe as they have a nice mildly salty bite to them. Kris and I love a little salt in our sweets and in my opinion, the flavor balance here is perfect. But it gives them a more complex taste than most super sweet muffins - not that this bothered Sawyer Lee in the least. He LOVES them and to say he is picky is an understatement.

I hope you make them. The crust gets this amazing sugar cookie/oatmeal cookie texture while the center is dreamy and fluffy and soft. Eat them warm (micro the leftovers) with a pat of butter.

Marvelous Zuchinni Muffins
If you set out the butter and eggs the night before so you can literally whip this up in the morning in a half an hour. I was too lazy to get out my electric hand held mixer so I just whipped the butter an oil together by hand with a whisk. Totally worked but no doubt the hand held would be faster.

Ingredients:
1 stick salted butter, room temp (leave out the night before morning of baking)
1/2 cup oil (I use Spectrum Canola/Coconut blend) though vegetable or canola would work
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt (if using table salt, 1/2 teaspoon)
2 eggs, room temp and beaten
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 cup grated zuchinni, pressed with a towel to remove excess moisture
1/2 cup chopped pecans
20-24 muffin liners, optional, or baking/nonstick spray

Directions:
In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and oil with a handheld mixer until smooth. Add in the sugar and cream again until well blended.

In a separate (smaller) bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Fold into the sugar/oil/butter mixture in three additions until combined. Stir in the eggs then vinegar, zuchinni and pecans.

Fill prepared muffin tins (either lined with muffin cups or sprayed with nonstick spray, number depending on size of your muffins tins but usually between 20-24) 3/4 the way full and bake at 375 for 15-17 minutes, just until tops are very light gold and cake tester comes out clean/with crumbs rather than wet batter when poked down the center.

Serve right away with butter or let cool completely and store in an airtight container up to 3 days.

Juicy Blackberry Pecan Muffins. Hello Spring, nice to see you.

                                    
So gluten free, dairy free, soy free baking is a little tricky. Coconut oil works wonders as a butter substitute but often times imparts its signature flavor. Coconut milk is also a miraculous substitute for milk or heavy cream but same issue. And if you're religiously doing Paleo, almond flour technically works but so far everything I've made has a spongy/wet quality after cooling which isn't so great for things like quick breads or muffins.

So this time I tried modifying a Martha Stewart recipe with Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour and hooray! Muffins that act and eat like muffins and don't get soggy or weird when left out over night!

Like I said with my baby's allergies I got all hippie on you and made these gluten free and dairy free and with coconut sugar. But don't worry. My husband who is literally the pickiest eater when it comes to baked goods on the planet didn't notice the difference. In fact I have a hunch the coconut milk might have made them even richer but if you don't have the need to avoid dairy or gluten feel free to use regular 'ol butter and flour and sugar and cow's milk. I'm sure they'd be mighty fine.

Juicy Blackberry Pecan Muffins 
*Adapted from Martha Stewart
*Modifications for gluten free/dairy free below
*Coconut palm sugar imparts a dark golden color onto these muffins so don't be shocked if yours are lighter if using regular granulated sugar

Ingredients:
*2 cups AP flour or Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups fresh blackberries
*1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or Earth Balance Soy Free, Dairy Free Buttery Spread, at room temp
1 cup sugar (or coconut palm sugar)
2 eggs, room temp
zest of a small lemon
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
*1/2 cup whole milk or coconut milk at room temp
1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Line a 12 standard muffin cup pan with paper liners or alternatively spray with either nonstick spray or brush lightly with melted coconut oil (if you need to avoid soy found in many sprays.) If not using liners, lightly sprinkle the greased cups with a little flour then tap out excess.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Take a heaping tablespoon of this mixture and sprinkle it over the blackberries in another medium bowl. Give a gentle toss to lightly coat all the berries and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a standing food mixer or large bowl with hand held mixer, blend the butter and sugar for 3 minutes until fully mixed, pausing midway to scrape the bottom and the sides.

Add the eggs in one at a time, blending well each time. Add in the zest and vanilla extract and mix until incorporated. Add the milk and blend just until incorporated.

Carefully add in the flour mixture in two additions, blending just until incorporated each time. Use a spatula to fold in the blueberries and nuts.

Use an ice cream scoop to divide the batter into your 12 cups. The cups will be full but don't worry - these muffins rise very well and don't spill over (though a baking sheet underneath is always good insurance.)

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden on top and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Enjoy warm or store in an airtight container for 2 days.

Whole Lemon Muffins with Dried Cherries

Sometimes I think my taste buds have split personality. For example when I made these muffins last October (lured in by a recipe involving pulverizing an entire lemon - skin, pith and all. Woo hoo!) I remember being completely let down by them when they came out of the oven. I'm not much of a baker so after spending the morning dusting my kitchen with flour, I just wanted to throw the whole batch away. BUT because I'm also a serious food hoarder (seeking therapy), I decided to freeze them just in case the aliens should attack or something and we were in a real bind for breakfast.

Cut to six months later. This morning to be exact. We were working (the advertising industry doesn't believe in Easter - or in holidays in general) and I was too busy to make anything. I checked the freezer and found these muffins. Of course I didn't have much hope since I didn't like them the first go around and they'd been in the freezer longer than any sperm on record in a sperm bank. But I thew them on a pan and put them in a 325 oven anyway.

And thank God. They were delicious. In fact I wished I could rewind time and taste them again that first fateful day when I considered throwing them out. What was wrong with me? Was it the weather? The hormones? We'll never know. All I know now is that I love them. Now and forever. Amen.

By the way - Happy Easter to those lucky enough to enjoy it with your families - and to those having to celebrate without them!!!

Whole Lemon Muffins, adapted slightly from Rebecca Rather

Ingredients:
1 medium lemon (preferably unwaxed, organic)
1 cup unsalted butter/2 sticks (at room temperature)
1 1/4 cups sugar plus 2 tablespoons (Rebecca uses 1 1/2 cups)
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Generous grating of fresh nutmeg, or 1/4 teaspoon from a spice jar (Rebecca doesn't add this)
2 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 2/3 cups plain whole or reduced fat plain yogurt
1 cup dried tart cherries (Rebecca uses walnuts)

GLAZE, optional (Rebecca uses but I don't)
1 cup powdered sugar
2 freshly squeezed lemons, juice of
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Prep Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 55 mins

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F Grease 12 texas size muffin cups with butter or cooking spray or line with paper muffin wrappers.
2 Wash and dry the lemon. Cut into quarters and remove the seeds. Process the quartered lemon (all of it!) in a food processor fitted with a metal blade for 1 minute or more, until it is completely ground up. Scrape the lemon into a bowl.
3 Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter in a large bowl on medium high speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the sugar and beat on medium high until light and fluffy. Add the eggs all at once and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the vanilla and nutmeg and beat for about 30 seconds. Mix together the dry ingredients. Beat one third of it into the creamed mixture just until incorporated. Add half the yoghurt and do the same. Repeat, ending with dry ingredients. Gently stir in the lemon mixture then use a spatula to hand fold the dried cherries into the batter.
4 Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (mine took longer) until they are slightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.
5 Combine glaze ingredients and drizzle over the warm muffins. Glaze will harden in about 15 minutes.
6 These are at their very best served warm, but if wrapped tightly in plastic wrap once cooled, they will still taste great for up to 3 days. They can be frozen for up to 3 weeks (or if you're me - 6 months!!)

Nigella's Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins

I'm on a Nigella kick and may be for a while. She rarely lets you down in the kitchen (we just won't mention her plastic lime phase, okay?) And with all the cooking I'm doing this time of year, I like to pretend she's actually in the kitchen with me. I suppose you could say it's my culinary version of singing in the shower, though possibly weirder and more disturbing. Hopefully none of my readers are psychologists.

Anyway my sweet mother in law is coming for a visit today so I made these to have on hand for an easy breakfast or snack. If there are any more diehard chocoholics out there than she and my husband, I'd like to meet them and possibly have them studied for scientific purposes. The funny thing about chocolate is, even as a person who often thinks it's over-rated and over-hyped, I usually end up being the one to finish up the last piece of chocolate cake, or in this case, muffin.

Wow, in just one post I've revealed that I'm not only somewhat delusional but that I sometimes cook with imaginary friends. I'll stop writing now.

Nigella's Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins

Ingredients:
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 large egg
¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips plus more for sprinkling on top
1 cup milk (whole or 2%)
1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 400. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin with nonstick spray (or fill with paper cups.) Set aside.

Measure the dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well with a whisk. Measure the wet ingredients into a large measuring cup or medium bowl, whisking or stirring well to break up the egg. Make a well in the dry ingredient bowl, then add about half the wet mixing with a spatula or spoon just until blended (don't over mix or you'll have chocolate bricks instead of muffins.)

Add the rest of the wet and mix again, JUST until mixed. Divide the batter evenly between the cups and sprinkle over the additional chocolate chips.

Bake for 16-20 minutes until the muffins have risen and become firm and springy. Let sit in the tins for a few minutes to finish setting before removing to a wire rack (though to be honest I often forget to remove them for a couple of hours and all ends well.)

Store in an air tight container for up to 3 days or freeze.

Good Morning, Muffin.

I love the idea of getting up on the weekend and whipping together a fancy breakfast. But as you can see from the number of breakfast recipes on this blog, morning and I don't get along that well. I can't hold a conversation before I've had my coffee, much less measure out flour.

This recipe is a blessed exception, in no small part to Bisquick which cuts out a lot of the measuring I was just referring to. Also a blessing is the fact that the cream cheese can come straight from the fridge, erasing any forethought on my part as to letting it soften ahead of time. This way it doesn't melt into the batter but stays in little chunks throughout, adding to the delight of the muffin. You'll notice I omit the addition of salt because Bisquick has it in there, but if you're a devout believer in its flavor enhancing ability you can add in a tiny pinch to the batter. (I do, but then again I'm not on the cover of Health magazine, either.)

And of course, you can fitz and futz with this recipe until the cows come home with creative additions and variations (some of which are at the bottom of this post) but what I was going for here was a good, quick muffin whose prep bowl and utensils I could wash up long before they even come out of the oven. That way, my inner ice queen stays dormant, and I can actually tell my dear husband when I hand him a hot muffin, 'Good Morning.' And mean it.

Strawberry, Granola and Cream Cheese Muffins
Ingredients:
2 cups Bisquick
1/3 cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon
2/3 cup granola - your favorite brand (I like vanilla and dried cherry)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 egg, lightly beaten
2/3 cup milk (not skim)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries, chopped
2 oz cream cheese, broken into little bits with your fingers (if you really want that creamy tang in every bite - double this)

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 350 if it's convection, 375 if it's not convection. Grease a 12 cup muffin pan well with nonstick spray, set onto a good quality baking sheet, and set aside.

Meanwhile, place the Bisquick, sugar, granola, cinnamon, and nutmeg into a large mixing bowl and stir well with a spoon. Make a well in the center, then pour in the egg, milk, oil, and vanilla. Stir just until the mixture is moistened and there are no lumps, then gently stir in the fruit mixing lightly, then the cream cheese. Use an ice cream scoop to divy the batter between your muffin cups making the additions as even as possible, and bake for 15-18 minutes, JUST until the tops are a light golden color. Let cool in the pan for 3 minutes, then carefully invert onto a cooling rack. Serve warm with either a pat of butter, cream cheese, or jam.

Meat and Potatoes Addition Options/Variations:
* add a pinch of lemon or orange zest
* sub chopped fresh mango for the strawberries, or a combination
* add 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts