Fit For A President

My boyfriend recently surprised me with a new cookbook titled, Politics and Pot Roasts, An Unofficial, Unauthorized and Completely Unclassified Cookbook by Sarah Hood Salomon. It's an interesting, fun, and educational read, filled with some of the "favorite" recipes of over 40 U.S presidents and their wives. Starting with George Washington and rounding up with George W. Bush, I got a kick out of learning about our former president's food preferences as well as tidbits on entertaining styles of the presidential families. I decided to try this simple and quick recipe for Corn Muffins from the collection of Ida McKinley who was the wife of our 25th president, William.
According to the author, the recipe was first published in 1896 in The Canton Favorite Cookbook by the Ladies of the First Baptist Church in Canton, Ohio. The simplicity of this recipe makes it very appealing--it can all be made using just one bowl and one wooden spoon for mixing, and the muffins turned out moist and light with just a hint of sweetness. My boyfriend took one bite and declared them "presidential-tasting!" Okay, you be the judge. Enjoy!

Mrs. McKinley's Corn Muffins :
Preheat oven to 425 degrees farenheit
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Mix the dry ingredients together. Beat egg lightly and add to the dry ingredients.
2. Pour in milk and melted butter.
3. Mix until everything is just moistened.
4. Spoon into muffin tins, about two-thirds full.
5. Bake at 425 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Yields 6-8 muffins

Sunday Morning Banana Crumb Muffins

Aside from banana bread, which I love, I'm always on the lookout for new and delicious ways to use up those overripe bananas that sit on my kitchen counter or that I have hidden away in my freezer. One recipe that I have made before and loved is for banana crumb muffins which I discovered on Allrecipes. They were a huge hit when I made them the first time for a brunch party and I decided to make them again this weekend. Like most banana bread recipes, everything can be done by hand, no need to use your electric mixer for this one! It's also one of the easiest and quickest recipes to put together, and would make a very nice addition to say, your Mother's Day breakfast table, perhaps? Happy Mother's Day to all you moms! This post is dedicated to my own mother, who was a fabulous cook and who gave me so many beautiful and wonderful memories. She has been my inspiration for this food blog. Thank-you, Mom!

Chocolate Toffee Scones

I have another scone recipe to share with you. It comes from the cookbook, Desserts By The Yard by Sherry Yard. I was pretty excited when I first got this book because the author happens to be the executive pastry chef at one of LA’s trendiest and swankiest restaurants, Spago. Yes, call me a little impressionable and star-struck but this really is one beautifully photographed and well written cookbook. It reads like an autobiography of Yard’s life, chronicling her career over the years at the various restaurants she’s worked at including of course, Spago.
These scones were a little different than the kinds I’m used to baking. For one thing, and I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, I have never used cream of tartar in a scone recipe before. Little did I know that this is a commonly used ingredient if you’re going to make a traditional English scone, which this recipe is. This resulted in a scone that was lighter and flakier than what I'm accustomed to. I also liked the sugar and cream coating that I brushed the scones with before popping them in the oven. This added such a nice crispness and subtle crunch to the scone in addition to giving it a bit of sweetness. The recipe is a very versatile one and you should feel free to add whatever suits your fancy. I was thinking of making chocolate chip scones but ended up chopping up some chocolate and toffee candy and mixed it into the dough. Next time, I think I’ll try some juicy raisins.

Traditional English Scones (from Desserts By The Yard by Sherry Yard)

Ingredients--

2 C AP flour

1/4 C sugar, plus more for sprinkling

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/8 teaspoon salt

4 oz (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 tablespoon grated orange zest

1 large egg

1/4 cup heavy cream, or more as needed

1/4 cup milk, or more as needed

1/2 cup chocolate-toffee bits (or chocolate chips, or toasted nuts, or raisins).

Directions--

1. Place racks in upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line two 12x17 inch half sheet pans with parchment paper.

2. Sift together the first 5 ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the butter and orange zest and mix on low speed for 1 minute, until the butter and flour are broken down into pieces the size of walnut meats. Use your thumb and forefinger to flatten the "walnuts". Then take up the mixture and rub briskly between your hands.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, cream, and milk. Add to the flour mixture along with the chocolate toffee bits (or whatever you choose), and blend at low speed just until the dough comes together, about 10 seconds. If it seems dry, add a bit more cream or milk, a tablespoon at a time.

4. Line your work surface with parchment, dust the parchment with flour and scrape out the dough. Shape into an 8-inch square, about 1 inch thick. You can use a rolling pin for this. Cut the dough into 2-inch squares. Flip the scones over and place on the parchment-lined pans. Brush with cream or milk and sprinkle with sugar.

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until dark golden brown and puffed.

Ga Ga For Granola

I love granola. I love eating it for breakfast with some yogurt and fruit, or for dessert with some vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce, or how about sprinkling granola on a slice of wholegrain toast that's been slathered with peanut butter? Need more ideas? The next time you make a batch of blueberry pancakes, why not top it off with a few handfuls of granola for some added texture and crunch? That one happens to be a favorite of my boyfriend's who discovered this at one of his favorite breakfast spots in Chicago long ago. You can even stir some granola into the batter and have some granola-baked pancakes. Okay, you get the picture. Now, what I really don't love about granola is all the sugar and fat that many store-bought ones have in their ingredients. Luckily, I have the solution to this--make your own granola at home. It's really quite easy and does not take much time at all. This recipe for granola has been my go-to granola recipe for several years and has never let me down in the taste department. It’s loaded with all sorts of goodies and of course, you’re free to improvise as much as you‘d like. Feel like adding shredded coconut to your granola? Go for it. Or how about some dried banana chips? Chocolate or carob chips perhaps? The possibilities are endless! This recipe also makes a huge batch so why not throw some together now and share it with your friends? You’ll be giving them a hearty and healthy treat and I think they’ll love you for it. How do you eat granola?

Homemade Granola (adapted from Alton Brown):

ingredients--

1 and 1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup water

4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon salt

8 cups rolled oats (quick or old fashioned)

Chopped pecans, walnuts, whole almonds, pistachios, sunflower seeds, cashews (or any combination/proportions to equal 2 cups chopped nuts)

Dried fruit suggestions: chopped up dried pear, cranberries, blueberries, golden raisins

directions--

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F
Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Combine the brown sugar and water in a microwave safe bowl and heat in microwave for 5 minutes or until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from microwave and add vanilla extract and salt.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts, and brown sugar syrup mixture until thoroughly mixed. Spread the granola onto the cookie sheets and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until golden and crunchy. After removing from the oven, add the dried fruit and allow granola to cool completely. Store in airtight container once cooled.

This Scone's A Star

Being the early-morning person that I am, I actually enjoy waking up early on the weekends to cook something special for breakfast. This time I went back to a favorite recipe of mine, maple pecan scones. I made similar scones and wrote about them last year after I was searching for something that resembled the maple oat scones that Starbuck's sells. The ones I made certainly came close! On this particular morning, I baked a batch and decided to have some fun with the dough. Happy Baking!

Maple Pecan Scones (adapted from Simple Joys of Friendship):
ingredients-
1 egg beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup milk and 1 /2 tablespoon lemon juice)
1 t. vanilla extract
2 T. maple syrup
1 t. maple extract
3 c. AP flour
1/2 c. uncooked,quick-cooking oats
2-1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 c. butter
1/2 c. chopped pecans

lemon glaze (optional)
Simply mix 1 cup powdered sugar with a couple tablespoons of milk and a dash of lemon juice. Stir it up to desired consistency.

directions- (preheat oven to 425 degrees F)
1. Mix first 5 ingredients; set aside.
2. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the next 6 ingredients; cut in the butter until mixture has a cornmeal consistency.
3. Stir in pecans. Pour in egg mixture; stir with a fork to make a soft dough.
4. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead to get a slightly uniform dough.
5. Shape into a circle about 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick. Cut into 16 wedges (or use biscuit or cookie cutters if you'd like).
6. Place on a greased baking sheet at 425 degrees F for 16-18 minutes or until lightly golden.
7. Allow to cool on a rack and then if you'd like, drizzle with the lemon glaze.
Yields about 16 scones.

A Bran New Day

I love a good bran muffin. I seriously would choose to eat a delicious bran muffin over a chocolate brownie any day (well, okay, how about on most days)? But the bran muffins I've tried from various bakeries over the years have let me down either in the way of taste or in ingredients. Many of them have been way too sweet or very high in fat which is why I much prefer making my own muffins whenever I can. This recipe is one I've had my eye on for a few weeks now, and comes from the cookbook, Nancy Silverton's Pastries from the La Brea Bakery. Nancy Silverton is, in my book, one of the queens of bread and pastry making, and I'm a huge fan of her two restaurants here in Los Angeles, La Brea Bakery and Campanile. I am also a huge fan of these bran muffins and I hope you will be too. They came out moist, slightly chewy, with just the right amount of natural sweetness from the pureed raisins and brown sugar. Enjoy them with a big cup of coffee and you're good to go!

Bran Muffins (adapted from Nancy Silverton)
ingredients:
2 cups unprocessed bran
1 and 1/2 cups golden raisins
1 and 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon orange extract (or use 1 teaspoon finely chopped orange zest)
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup canola oil
1 extra large egg
1 extra large egg white
1/2 cup unbleached AP flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt

directions:
1. Place oven rack in the middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F.
2. Spread the bran on a baking sheet, toast for 6-8 minutes until toasted; stir half-way through so it doesn't burn.
3. In a small saucepan, stir together 1 cup of raisins and 1 cup of water, simmer on low heat until the water is absored, about 15 minutes. Place in a blender or food processor and process until pureed.
4. Pour the bran into a large bowl, add buttermilk and the remaining 1/2 cup of water and stir to combine. Stir in the raisin puree, orange extract, and brown sugar.
5. Add the oil, whole egg, and egg white and mix well to incorporate.
6. Sift the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the raisin mixture; add the remaining whole raisins and stir to combine.
7. Spoon the batter into prepared muffin tins, filling the cups to just over the rim.
8. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the muffins are well browned and firm to the touch.
yield: about 10 muffins

Hold The Syrup, Please.

Hmmm...I know these pancakes look a little on the, uh, naked side, but let me explain. I wanted to douse the stack with maple syrup before taking the photo but my boyfriend, who I made this particular plate for, is a maple syrup dipper. See, he likes to take a piece of his pancake with a fork and dip it into a small container of syrup instead of having his pancakes bathed in the sweet, sticky stuff. Actually, that's the way I usually eat my pancakes too and since this recipe makes just enough for two people, we settled for the bare, au naturale look for this post. Now that I've explained my picture to you, let me tell you what a treat these cranberry pancakes were. This recipe was another great find from my Eating Well subscription. The pancakes are made from a combination of white and whole wheat flour, a bit of cornmeal, and of course, fresh cranberries. The flavor of the pancakes was a little nutty with a mix of sweet and tart, and the texture of the pancake was surprisingly light. And you know what? These pancakes were so good on their own that I ended up eating them plain without a drop of maple syrup. My boyfriend on the other hand, dipped to his heart's content. Let me know what you think.

Cranberry Pancakes from Eating Well Nov/Dec 2007
(makes 2 servings of 2 pancakes each)
ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
1/4 cup AP flour
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
6 tablespoons nonfat milk
2 tablespoons egg substitute (like Egg Beaters)
1 and 1/2 teaspoon canola oil
directions:
1. In a small saucepan, bring 2 inches of water to a boil. Add the cranberries and boil for 2 minutes. Drain and cool for 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, whisk AP flour, whole wheat flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg in a large bowl until combined.
3. Whisk milk, egg substitute and oil in a small bowl until combined.
4. Coarsely chop the cranberries; stir into the milk mixture. Stir the milk mixture into the dry ingredients just until combined.
5. Coat a griddle or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat. Using 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake, cook 2 pancakes at a time until bubbles dot the surface, about 2-3 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until browned, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining batter.

A Pumpkin Treat

I’m a sucker when it comes to pumpkin desserts so when Anna from Cookie Madness posted this recipe for marbled pumpkin cream cheese cupcakes, I was sold! Doesn’t the name of these just make your mouth water? The way they turned out reminded me of a pumpkin version of black bottom cupcakes. The cupcake was moist and not too sweet, and the combination of the cream cheese and the pumpkin flavor was pretty darn good. I added one-half teaspoon of pumpkin spice in place of the allspice and nutmeg that the recipe called for.
I personally think they make the perfect quick breakfast to go with a big mug of coffee (or hot cocoa).

My Granola Bar Challenge

It is not every day that my sweet boyfriend becomes enamored with the taste of a granola bar. I mean, granola bars are not exactly his food of choice or anything, but when some friends shared a few of their "sweet and salty" cashew bars by Nature Valley during a recent hiking excursion, my boyfriend could not stop raving about them. I decided then that I would make him some home-made granola bars similar to this store-bought kind he was munching on. After doing a little online search for a recipe, I found one that appeared to fit the bill. This recipe was actually posted by another fan of the sweet and salty cashew bar who was also trying to recreate the bar. The ingredient list reminded me of a rice krispie treat except that 3 cups of oats are mixed in, and there are no marshmallows anywhere to be found. The granola bars are pretty simple to make and only take a few minutes. In addition to the cashews, I also added some toasted macadamia nuts. The hardest part was probably cutting the bars after leaving them in the fridge overnight to set. I must have cut about 3 bars before my hand became tired and my boyfriend took over and cut the rest! So you may be wondering how close these tasted to the "real thing"? Well, according to my BF, they were pretty similar but maybe a little "too sweet" for him; and texture-wise, my bars resembled peanut-brittle more than a traditional granola bar. Hmmm. Makes me want to go back to the granola-bar-drawing-board and try it again. I think next time I'll cut back on the amount of butterscotch chips and maybe even cut down on the brown sugar since the condensed milk already is pretty sweet. If that doesn't work, I also bought him a box of the Nature Valley cashew bars (just in case)!

The Joy of Coffee Cake

I was determined to make something with the tub of sour cream I had sitting in my fridge so when I came across this recipe for Quick Sour Cream Coffee Cake, I knew I found what I was looking for. Not only did it have sour cream as its main ingredient, but the title of the recipe also said "quick." Now that's my kind of recipe! This one comes from a 1964 paperback edition of the Joy of Cooking, a book I picked up from a local thrift store and one that I, admittedly, have never cooked from. The coffee cake was really a breeze to make--just a few ingredients to throw together and you don't even need to take out your mixer. Though the baking time in the book states 20 minutes, I had to bake my cake for 30 minutes so do keep an eye out on the progress of your cake since you don't want to over bake this. I actually didn't get a taste of the finished product yet because I want to bring it into work tomorrow morning (and it's getting close to my bedtime), but looking at the photo, it does look pretty yummy, doesn't it?

Quick Sour Cream Coffee Cake--The Joy of Cooking 1964 edition
(preheat oven to 350 degrees F)
dry ingredients:
1 and 1/2 cups AP flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
wet ingredients:
1 cup sour cream (I used light sour cream)
2 eggs

Streusel topping:
2 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoons butter, 5 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 cup chopped walnuts--combine these in a bowl until crumbly.

1. In a medium size bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together and mix well.
2. In a large bowl, combing the sour cream and the eggs together, and mix well.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the sour cream mixture and stir until smooth.
4. Pour into a buttered 9X9 inch cake pan and pour the streusel mixture over the top of the batter.
5. Bake for approximately 30 minutes (baking times may vary so watch the cake after 20 minutes).

A Pineapple Dance

I baked a batch of pineapple muffins to bring into work today for a breakfast potluck. The breakfast is in honor of a fellow employee who is retiring tomorrow after 30+ years of hard work! This recipe is adapted from one that came from the cookbook, Vegetarian Nights by Bonnie Mandoe. Though this is the first time I'm actually posting from it, I've used quite a few recipes from this cookbook which is a compilation of both savory and sweet recipes from the author's native Hawaii. As you can see from the ingredients, the Hawaiian "touch" in these muffins would be the use of both pineapple and macadamia nuts. It also uses relatively little oil, and lots of whole grains like wheat germ, bran and rolled oats. Pretty healthy, yes, but what about the taste? Sorry to say that I'll have to find out later on today after our breakfast event to tell you that answer. Congratulations, Mike!

Pineapple Muffins (adapted from Vegetarian Nights): yields 14 standard size muffins

ingredients

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (can also use 1/2 cup AP and 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry)

1/2 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup wheat bran

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1 tablespoon baking powder (aluminum free)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup canola oil (or try coconut oil)

1/2 cup honey

2 eggs

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 cup minus 1 tablespoon milk (I used non-fat)

3/4 cup chopped, sweet pineapple (can use fresh or canned--make sure it's well-drained)

1/2 cup golden raisins

Macadamia nuts for garnishing

directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F; combine the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl.

2. In another bowl (medium size), whisk together the wet ingredients, then fold in the pineapple and the raisins.

3. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing only to moisten the batter thoroughly.

4. Distribute the batter evenly into a standard size cupcake pan (can use paper liners also). Place 1 macadamia nut in the center of each muffin.

5. Bake the muffins in the center of the oven for about 15 minutes--do not overbake! (do the toothpick test--insert into the center of a muffin--if it comes out clean, it's ready).

addendum:

okay, it's well into lunch time now and I've taken a few bites of these muffins and...I like them a lot! They are sweet without being too sweet, and they're light; sort of reminds me of a chiffon or sponge cake. Hard to believe there's all that good-for-you fiber inside of them. If you give the recipe a try, do let me know what you think!

Flat As A Blueberry Pancake!

I made these pancakes using a recipe I've been wanting to check out for some time now. It comes from the Cook's Illustrated folks who tested out several different blueberry pancake recipes before publishing one they really liked. The description of these pancakes said things like, "fluffy", "tender", and "flavorful." I'd have to agree with them on the flavorful part, but my pancake certainly was not "fluffy" or "tender". Instead, they came out rather thin and more crepe-like but still quite light. I liked the taste of the pancake though and the fact that they were not dense or heavy was a big plus for me. And as the article states, the blueberries did not break or bleed into the pancake upon cooking, another plus. I'm still willing to give this recipe another try the next time I have blueberries on hand however. If you're inspired to give this one a try yourself, let me know if your pancakes turn out the same way the Cook's Illustrated testers did. I'd love to hear back!

Blueberry Pancakes (makes about sixteen 4-inch pancakes, serves 4-6)

ingredients

1 tablespoon juice from 1 lemon

2 cups milk (I used nonfat)

2 cups unbleached AP flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1-2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 cup fresh blueberries (you can use frozen but make sure to rinse them under cool water in a mesh strainer until the water runs clear, then spread them on a paper towel-lined plate to dry-this will prevent them from bleeding).

directions

1. Whisk lemon juice and milk in a medium bowl or large measuring cup; set aside to thicken while preparing other ingredients. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to combine.

2. Whisk egg and melted butter into milk until combined. Make well in center of dry ingredients in bowl; pour in milk mixture and whisk very gently until just combined (a few lumps should remain). Do not over mix.

3. Heat your pancake griddle or a 12-inch skillet over medium heat for 3-5 minutes; add 1 teaspoon oil and brush to coat griddle or pan bottom evenly. Pour 1/4 cup batter and sprinkle 1 tablespoon blueberries over pancake. Cook pancakes until large bubbles begin to appear, about 1 and 1/2 to 2 minutes. Flip pancakes and cook until golden brown on second side, another 1-1 and 1/2 minutes. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings.

Waffles Al Fresco

We decided to have a small get together to break-in my new Belgian waffle maker. My dear brother and his wife gifted me with a Waring Pro Professional Belgian Waffle iron for my birthday and I have been happily making waffles ever since. Now I've owned a waffle iron before but I don't recall it producing this quality of waffles. Think thick, crisp-on-the-outside, warm and soft on the inside waffles, and

you'll know what I'm talking about. We made the waffles poolside on a sunny, bright, Southern California morning. I used a buttermilk recipe from Mark Bittman's How To Cook Everything cookbook which only took minutes to prepare. As you can tell from the picture, I dressed my waffle up with some fresh berries, whipped cream and powdered sugar. You can be as creative as you 'd like when it comes to topping off waffles. How about some mascarpone cheese with applesauce, or candied pecans and vanilla ice cream? Or, if you're like me, a waffle sandwich with a few slices of crispy bacon, melted cheese, whipped cream, and strawberry sauce in between. Okay, I'll save that one for next weekend!

Buttermilk Waffles by Mark Bittman (How To Cook Everything):

ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda1

3/4 cup buttermilk or 1 1/2 cups sour cream or plain yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup milk (I used a combination of buttermilk and sourcream)

2 eggs, separated

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter melted and cooled

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

canola or neutral oil for brushing on waffle iron (I used an olive oil spray)

directions

1. Combine dry ingredients. Mix together the buttermilk and egg yolks. Stir in the butter and vanilla (if using).

2. Brush waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat. Stir the wet into the dry ingredients. Beat egg whites with the whisk or electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. Stir them gently into the batter.

3. Spread a ladleful or so of batter onto the waffle iron and bake until waffle was done (usually 3-5 minutes). Serve immediately, or keep warm in low oven.

Sunday Morning Breakfast--Bran Muffins

I’ve been baking so many muffins these days that sometimes I think this site should be named “PBJ on Muffins!" Seriously though, I just love a good muffin, especially when I’ve baked it myself.
One of my favorite kinds is the classic bran muffin. I must confess that I used to frequent Winchell’s Donut Shop almost on a daily basis on my way to work just for their bran muffin. Theirs were about the size of a very large baseball, was super sweet, and had lots of raisins speckled throughout. I loved it! These days though, a sugar-laden, humongous muffin isn’t really what I should be, or want to be putting into my body. Nope. Instead, I try to bake with more whole grains and less sweeteners while at the same time, still producing a muffin that is satisfying and delicious to eat. I adapted this recipe for bran muffins from the farmgirl fare blogsite. They're made with whole wheat pastry flour, honey and molasses. You can do your own variation by adding dried fruit or nuts if you like. I personally enjoy the full flavor of the bran so I like mine simple. Give them a try and let me know what you think.

Wholesome Bran Muffins (yields 12 standard size muffins)
Ingredients:
2 cups wheat bran
1 cup oat bran
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup soy milk or regular milk
2/3 cup lowfat plain yogurt
1/3 cup coconut oil (can substitute with canola oil)
1/3 cup pomegranate molasses (or regular molasses)
1/3 cup honey

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F; grease a standard size muffin pan (I use an olive oil cooking spray).
2. In a large bowl: combine the first 6 ingredients and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the eggs, milk, yogurt, oil, molassess and honey and mix well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
3. Fill the muffin cups with batter (I was able to fill pretty much to the top)
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick placed in the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool for 10-15 minutes, remove from the pan and eat them warm or allow to cool further on a wire rack.

I Kneaded That!

Well, okay, actually, I didn't, but since I love puns, I really wanted to use that line for the title of this post. I finally made the infamous “No-Knead Bread” that everyone was talking about some months back. You know, the one that was created by Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery, and published in the New York Times. Many food bloggers before me baked this bread and wrote about how wonderfully amazing it was. Trying it myself was on my list of things to-do for some time now and over the weekend, I finally got around to baking it. You can still find the recipe here. You have to take your time with this recipe because of the extra long rising process that it entails—around 18 hours. The reward however is a carbohydrate-lover’s dream: a beautifully golden loaf of crusty-on-the-outside-fluffy-on-the-inside white bread that without restraint, can be easily devoured in one sitting. We enjoyed a few hearty slices of this for our Sunday morning breakfast while it was still warm, right out of the oven. It’s just as delicious all by itself or slathered with a bit of butter and strawberry jam.

Blueberry Banana Puffins

I've been baking muffins lately. Last week I baked a batch of pumpkin bran muffins that I've been munching on during my morning commute to work. These make the perfect simple breakfast plus they're packed with lots of healthy oatmeal and bran, and are very low in fat and sugar. This time around I added some beautiful Turkish dried apricots that I bought at the grocery store. Plump, sweet, and juicy, dried apricots are a great way to add some zing into baked goods like muffins and cookies.
On Sunday morning though I wanted to bake muffins that I thought my blueberry-loving-boyfriend might like. So, I baked him "healthy" banana and blueberry oat bran muffins and surprisingly, he liked them!

I only say surprisingly because I've tried out several muffin recipes in the past for my BF and so far, he wasn't impressed with any of them. Til now.

These muffins (recipe here) take only a few minutes to prepare and to bake. I thought I messed them up when I realized I forgot to add the baking powder and this was when I was already putting the batter into the muffin tin! So, I threw the batter that was in the tin back into the bowl, tossed in the baking powder, gave the mix a few stirs, and hoped for the best.

Though the muffins didn't rise as high as I hoped, as you can see from the picture, they didn't turn out half bad. I call them pancake-muffins or "puffins" because of their flat tops. Best of all, these puffins tasted delicious, were moist with a bit of chewiness in the texture, and with oat bran thrown in, are even good for you. Did I tell you my boyfriend ate two of them that morning?

Romancing the Scone: Maple Pecan Scones

Baking and cooking has taken on greater meaning to me these days because of my boyfriend. Cooking for him is one of my greatest pleasures in life. Not that he loves everything I make, mind you. Oh no. In fact, he's quite honest in his opinions about my latest creations from the kitchen. He's not only my best friend, but my best food critic! At first his thoughtful critiques were a little hard to take, but nowadays, I welcome his frankness. His feedback and encouragement is always helpful to me. So when I noticed that he loves eating the maple scones from Starbuck's, you know the ones that cost almost two bucks a pop, I was determined to bake him a scone that tasted as good as the Starbuck's one. I found this recipe off the internet while doing a very intensive search of THE ultimate maple scone. I can't tell you how many sticks of chilled butter I went through before putting a big smile on BF's face.

Maple Pecan Scones (adapted from a recipe found on Cooks.com):
Scone:
3 and 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour
4 tspn baking pwdr
1 tspn salt
2/3 cup chilled butter
1 cup finely chopped pecans (you can substitute with walnuts if you like)
1 cup milk (I used non-fat)
1/2 cup maple syrup (try to use REAL maple syrup if possible)
1/2 tspn maple flavoring (I omitted this)

Maple Frosting:
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tblspn cream or milk--you may need to add more depending on desired thickness or thinness
1 tblspn maple syrup

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix the flour,baking pwdr, and salt.
2. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Stir in the pecans.
4. In a medium size bowl, combine the milk and syrup.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until a dry soft dough has formed.
6. Flour a work surface generously and scrape the dough out of the mixing bowl onto the floured surface.
7. Divide the dough in half.
8. Gently pat each half of dough into a 7-inch circle about 7/8 inch thick.
9. Transfer the dough (it will be soft) onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
10. Using a sharp knife or a pizza wheel, divide each dough circle into eight wedges.
11. Place the wedges about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet.
12. Bake the scones for 15-18 minutes in a pre-heated 425 degree oven until golden brown; transfer to a rack.
13. Meanwhile, to make the frosting: mix the powdered sugar, milk and maple syrup together until creamy.
14. Drizzle the slightly-warm scones with the frosting and let stand until the glaze sets.

Comfort Me With Pancakes

Breakfast is one of the most comforting meals of the day for me. During the week, I usually try to add some variety for my first meal of the day. I actually lull myself to sleep the night before with thoughts of what I'll be eating in 8 hours or so! Sometimes I'll fix myself a warm bowl of oatmeal mixed in with dried cranberries, raisins and almonds. Or maybe it'll be a toasted slice of homemade banana bread topped with peanut butter. On weekends though, I love making a batch of pancakes. I love pancakes and so does my boyfriend which makes whipping them up even more fun. One of our favorites is a buttermilk recipe that I found in an old Martha Stewart magazine. These pancakes have that slightly chewy texture that I'm particularly fond of with just a hint of sweetness to it. See what you think:

Best Buttermilk Pancakes (adapted from Martha Stewart Living Magazine)-makes about nine 6-inch pancakes:

2 cups AP flour
2 tspn baking pwdr
1 tspn baking soda
1/2 tspn salt
3 tblspn sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 cups buttermilk
4 tblspn unsalted butter, melter plus 1/2 tspn for the griddle

1. Heat griddle to 375 degrees F. Whisk together flour, baking pwdr, baking soda, salt and sugar in a medium size bowl. Add eggs, buttermilk, and 4 tblspn butter; whisk to combine.
(do not overmix as batter should still have some small lumps)

2. Ladle about 1/2 cup of the pancake batter onto the buttered griddle. When pancakes have bubbles forming on top of them (approx. 2min), flip over the pancake. Cook until golden on the bottom.
Repeat with the remaining pancake batter.

3. Pour your favorite syrup over the pancakes, eat, and enjoy!