Brown Sugar Muffins

This morning, I woke up with nothing to blog about. Nada, rien, zilch…..

So I went down to the kitchen and made these muffins. Don’t you love having all the ingredients at hand?

The recipe used light brown sugar, but I changed it to dark brown. They are very good and not too sweet. Perfect to go with your morning coffee.

Brown Sugar Muffins

Makes12 Muffins

1 cup old-fashioned oats
1½ cup flour
¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 eggs
¾ cup milk
¼ cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla

In a small bowl, combine the first five ingredients. In another small bowl, beat the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 400° for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve warm.

A Heavenly Bread

This heavenly bread recipe comes from the Monastery of the Angels, Los Angeles, California.  It is delicious!!  The nuns sell this homemade bread in their gift shop. The bread freezes well and makes a good make-ahead holiday gift. It’s been a best seller at the nuns annual Holiday Boutique, a fund-raiser with the proceeds going to charity, held in the rotunda of the Los Angeles City Hall. This popular recipe has been published several times in the Los Angeles Times food section, reader request column; and can also be found in the “Los Angeles Times California Cookbook” 1981 (republished in 1990) on page 264.

Monastery of the Angels Pumpkin Bread

3½ cups flour
3 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1½ tsp salt
4 eggs
1 cup oil
2/3 cup water
2 cups pumpkin, cooked & mashed or 1 (15 oz) cans pumpkin puree
1½ cups walnuts, chopped
walnut halves, for decoration

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
Combine eggs, oil, water, and pumpkin and mix well.

Stir wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Add chopped walnuts.

Turn into three greased 8 X 4-inch loaf pans.Top with a few walnut halves.

Bake for one hour or until a wood pick inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean.
Cool before removing from the pans.

Spinach Cheddar Muffins

A Savory Breakfast Muffin

I received a call from my good friend, Shannon, yesterday. She was very excited about this savory muffin she had at The Heirloom Bakery in South Pasadena for breakfast. I am embarrassed to say that when I received the call, I was eating a hot, off the conveyer belt, glazed donut at Krispy Kreme. Mind you, I have never done this before!

Shannon called me and told me, not only was the muffin delicious, but a much healthier option than the typically sweet version. You can imagine how I felt as I bit into my hot, steamy, glazed confection! Anyway, I am posting a recipe for the savory muffin. I have not had one yet, but will try one on Friday morning, I promise!  Thanks for the tip!

Spinach Cheddar Muffins

Serves 12

1½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
6 Tbs butter, melted
1 egg
1 cup whole milk
½ cup frozen chopped spinach – thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350˚. Lightly grease 12 cup muffin cups.

Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a mixing bowl.

Stir the melted butter, egg, milk, spinach, and Cheddar cheese together in a large mixing bowl until evenly blended. Slowly stir in the flour mixture to form a batter. Spoon about 2 tablespoons into each muffin cup.

Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 35 minutes.

Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a mixing bowl.

Stir the melted butter, egg, milk, spinach, and Cheddar cheese together in a large mixing bowl until evenly blended. Slowly stir in the flour mixture to form a batter. Spoon about 2 tablespoons into each muffin cup.

Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 35 minutes.

Bran Muffins

Eighties Muffins

My college roommate, Allegra, used to make these bran muffins.   This was in the eighties when bran muffins came into fashion.

They are absolutely delicious. The recipe makes a very big batch so that you can keep them in the freezer and always have them on hand.

Bran Muffins

1 cup bran
1 cup boiling water
½ cup scant oil
2 cups raisins
Set aside.

2 eggs, beaten
1½ cups sugar
2 cups buttermilk
2½ cups whole wheat flour
2½ tsp baking soda
¼ cup molasses
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups bran (3 all together)
¼ cup wheat germ

Mix all ingredients and put in the refrigerator overnight.  Full muffin cups.

Bake at 400˚for 20 minutes.

They are great to freeze, then you can pull one out at a time and microwave them for about 45 seconds.