Blueberry Muffins from The Careless Cook

 

Sometimes someone snaps the whip to let me know I better get cracking and bake something for a hens’ party that starts within the hour. Normally happens when I have just mixed an icy martini, and settled into my lounge chair, just at kickoff.

 

But, the Careless Cook is one fast cookie, or muffin man. He’ll be back in front of the TV rapidly. 

 

Few know that my muffins are quick.  I say let those of the gentle sex continue to think the Careless Cook is a kitchen marvel. Or as the French say, C’est une merville! !  (Say-toon-mairvay) Sounds better in French. A lot of things do. But we’ll discuss that over a second martini.

 

Dang! My team just fumbled! It's time to get baking!

 

Ingredients

 

¼ cup sugar

1/3 cup butter melted

2 eggs

1 teaspoon or a quick slosh of vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

¾ cup milk

Two cups blueberries, fresh or thawed

 

Puttin’ It Together

 

Oven to 425 F or 220 C. Do it now!

 

Large bowl.  Put together sugar and melted butter and mix well. I used an electric hand mixer.

 

Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat well. 

 

Toss in flour, salt, and baking powder, and beat well.

 

Pour in the milk a little at a time and beat just long enough to be combined.

 

Gently fold in the blueberries.

 

Drop scoops of the batter into greased muffin tins or do as I do and use paper muffin cups (Amazon), as you can see.

 

Bake muffins for 22 minutes.  

 

Took me about thirty minutes or less to get it in the oven and get back to the game. Quelle merveille! Kel mer-vay.

 

 

Sunshine Muffins by The Careless Cook

 

I admit this is not totally my recipe. Well, it kinda is.  This is one of those bakery stories that can have many endings.  As you will see, there is room to customize, add, subtract, and make these extraordinarily delicious muffins your very own.  That’s what The Careless Cook did! What the heck, it’s your kitchen and you’re in charge! 

 

Maybe you’re the cook who likes a quick time in the kitchen, ending with breaking open the Procecco and basking in glory, surrounded by appreciative guests begging for more, which may even include your spouse! Well, maybe. Well,  I'm here for you my close, gastronomic friend! Quick. Easy. Delicious.

 

Ok, time to chill the Prosecco and press the button on the oven that says 350ºF or 180ºC. Baking time is 25 minutes in my oven. Yours may be different.

 

Sunshine Muffins by The Careless Cook

 

Ingredients

 

This recipe makes 24 muffins, but feel free to half it.

Grease two muffin pans or one if you’re making half the recipe.

 

2 ½ cups flour (I used unbleached, all purpose flour)

2 ½ cups sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons of ground cinnamon

1 heaping cup chopped nuts (or more). I used walnuts, but others use pecans

10 oz frozen mango, chopped.  I chopped them while frozen and let them thaw. Here’s where you can steer your own course with any fruit that delights you, such as apples and berries

½ heaping cup golden raisins, or other raisins if you wish

1 heaping cup unsweetened shredded coconut

4 large eggs

1 cup vegetable oil (I used Canola)

3 tablesppons vanilla extract

 

Puttin’ It Together

 

In a big bowl, mix all the dry ingredients, including the nuts and raisins and coconut, then mix in the mango.  I used my hands for mixing the dry ingredients.  Yes mama, I did wash my hands several times. Yes, I could have used gloves. Yes, let’s get on with the recipe.

 

In a separate bowl, mix well the eggs, oil, and vanilla

 

Add the liquids to the dry incredients and mix well.  Make sure to mix in ALL the flour. Flour tends to hide at the bottom of a big bowl! I used a Danish Dough Whisk. Works well and doesn’t mash things up.

 

 

I used a heaping tablespoon to fill the muffin cups about ¾ full, but a little more or less will do the job.

 

25 minutes later you will be the toast of the hungry neighbors! Recharge those Prosecco flutes and wait for the smiles!

 

Rosemary-Maple Cornbread Muffin from The Careless Cook

 

Had enough of cornbread?  Maybe tired of muffins?  Let’s not dwell on silly notions!  Wipe away the drool and let’s tackle another simple and simply wonderful use for cornmeal.

 

With this recipe, the toughest job you’ll have is sliding the pans in the oven.  I take that back.  The toughest job is keeping the hungry hands from grabbing every last one before you get out of the kitchen.

 

I don’t want to scare you, but if word gets around that you baked for some and didn’t invite some….well…you’re on your own.  If I invite ten, I make two times that, so when some whiner beats on my door, I say:  “You didn’t get the email???  Gosh, I wondered, and I saved you some muffins.  Just sorry we’re out of Irish Coffee and just finished the last bottle of a rare and addictive brandy.  Will instant decaf do?”

 

Just lately, I baked these lightly sweetened buns for a group of older ladies in attendance at my wife’s weekly Bible Study class. I bake something different weekly and it seems attendance is constantly going up.  Probably coincidence.  Although I have heard words to the effect of “And bless the baker.” 

 

I baked a double batch for the ladies, just in case every Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John happened to stick his head in the classroom door.

 

 

Rosemary-Maple Cornbread Muffin from The Careless Cook

 

Ingredients

Heat Oven to 350ºF or 180ºC

Grease or spray a 12 pocket muffin tin

 

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt (I use sea salt)

2 heaping tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

¾ cup milk (I used coconut milk from the milk aisle, not the canned) 

1 egg

2/3 cup maple syrup

½ cup vegetable oil (I used canola)

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

 

Puttin’ It Together

 

 Large bowl. Mix the dry ingredients, cornmeal though rosemary. Stir.

In a separate large bowl, mix all the wet ingredients including the egg. I used an electric hand mixer.

 

With the mixer running, mix about a third of the dry ingredients at a time in the wet ingredients. 

 

The mixture will be loose, but not watery.  I used a 1/3 cup measuring cup to fill each muffin pocket about ¾ full.

 

Slide the muffin pan into the preheated oven.  Bake about 18-20 minutes, depending on your oven.  I use the “stick the knife in the muffin” technique to test for doneness.  The knife blade should come out cleanly.

 

I like to wait about 10-15 minutes before I take the muffins out of the muffin tin.  But, don’t wait too long.  Hot is best and besides you don’t want men, women, and children crowding the cook.

 

****************************

Like this recipe?  SUBSCRIBE!  Feel free to make comments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gluten-Free Biscuit? Muffin? Whatever, They’re Delicious

Ok, I know, the jury is still out.  Some say  - and have made an obscene amount of money saying it – that gluten is the root of all eating-evil.  They say most of the multitudinous obese Americans should blame their rotund waistlines and generally poor health on wheat, rye, barley, and being overly familiar with Crispy-Kreme.

Then I read another article that claimed, of the 18% of Americans who go gluten-free, about 1% of them really need to.  Also read the % is far less than 1%.  I’m confused, which you can tell from the whiff of first-class whisky on my breath.

http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/celiac_ez/  

http://www.celiaccentral.org/celiac-disease/facts-and-figures/

I’m ashamed to admit it, but I’m not a scientist, or a medical doctor, or a dietician.  On the other hand, I don’t have to carry a Ship Load of Insurance. And, to my credit, I’m also not either a politician or an economist.   

I’m just a normal, whiskey drinking, boob obsessed guy.  I don’t go racing through the streets, waving my arms, screaming about the downfall of civilization when I see someone eating bread.  I save that for when I run out of beer.  Beer, by the way also has gluten.  Damn you, Goddess-of-the-Harvest!

I do have friends (which may come as a shock) who are gluten-free for both cosmetic and genuine health reasons.  And I have to admit I’ve seen dramatic results from those diagnosed with Celiac disease who have chosen to go gluten-free.

Even when it’s not called gluten-free, there are a lot of diet regimens that don’t allow grains.  Akins and Peleo are just two I can mention.  Every diet has it’s bad points. Those two also leave out essentials, like pudding, and French-fries.

Some things you may think have gluten don't:  Rice in all its forms and corn in all its forms, plus millet, buckwheat, quinoa, sorghum, soy, potatoes, and others.

Ah, science.  It’s wonderful moving target.  The so-called ‘facts’ change with the next set of data points.  So refreshing.  Yesterday’s scoundrel (eggs, fat) is today’s hail-fellow-well-met.  Redemption by data.

But, let’s skip the petty bickering and get to the real ‘biscuit in the oven.’  For those who want to go gluten-free and are tired of corn tortillas, baked potatoes, and grits, I have a semi-wonderful alternative to make those newly redeemed mornings of streaky bacon and eggs-over-easy really blossom.  Gluten-free Biscuits!  Easy to make, easy to bake.  You can even call them muffins if you want to feel really, really naughty.

The very simple recipe:

Preheat the oven to 450ºF (230ºC)

In a medium bowl, mix two cups of gluten-free flour, two heaping tablespoons of baking powder, and a half-teaspoon of salt.  Stir well. 

Using a pastry cutter or a fork, cut-in 6 tablespoons of butter.  The mixture should look grainy.

Thoroughly stir in one cup of water.  The batter will be as thin as pancake batter.  Wait a minute or two and it will thicken to the consistency of cake batter.

Grease eight muffin cups and fill them with equal amounts of batter.  Put the pan in the oven and bake for 14 minutes.  The muffins will rise and turn tan.  They’re ready!  Don’t wait for them to brown.

Voilà!  Perfectly delicious!  Ready for jam, unless you’re diabetic, or lactose free, or just not into feeling really, really naughty.