• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Spoon into the muffin tin and bake about 15 minutes. These muffins are a pale, creamy color on top, and golden brown on the bottom and sides when done.

Zucchini Cheese Muffins

2 tablespoons minced onions

2 tablespoons butter or oil

1 egg, slightly beaten

½ cup oat flakes

½ cup grated Swiss cheese

1 ½ cups grated zucchini

⅔ cup water

1 ⅓ cups whole wheat flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

Like the previous recipe, but a good vehicle for the Green Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin. Sauté the onions in butter or oil.

Mix the egg, butter or oil and onion, and oats together. Stir in cheese, zucchini, and water. Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the zucchini mixture, stirring just enough to mix.

Spoon into the muffin tin and bake 20 minutes.

Blueberry Muffins

1 cup blueberries

¼ cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 ¾ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup wheat germ

3 tablespoons butter or oil

¼ cup brown sugar*

1 egg, lightly beaten

¾ cup milk

These are not your ordinary pale, puffy, supersweet blueberry muffins; they are brown, spicy, and wonderful. Steam-softened currants can sub for the blueberries when they are out of season, but we confess that we have made these muffins successfully with frozen and canned berries, as well as fresh. As usual, pastry flour is best for muffins, but in these, regular flour works too.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

Wash and drain the berries. Sprinkle with the ¼ cup flour and let them sit while you prepare the batter.

Sift together the remaining flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add the wheat germ.

Cream the butter and sugar (or honey), and beat in the egg. (If oil is used, just beat them all together.) Add the milk and dry ingredients, stirring just enough to mix somewhat, and then fold in the berries. Spoon into muffin cups—fill them nearly full—and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one muffin comes out clean.

Date-Nut Muffins

1 ¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ cup chopped dates

½ cup chopped nuts

½ cup wheat germ, or bran

3 tablespoons light molasses

2 tablespoons oil

1 cup apple juice

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

¼ teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, and soda. Stir in the dates, nuts, and wheat germ. Beat the remaining ingredients together until smooth, then combine all, stirring just enough to mix. Spoon into muffin cups and bake about 15 to 20 minutes.

VARIATION Instead of apple juice, use buttermilk and add an egg. Reduce the salt to ¼ teaspoon. For a Date-Nut Loaf, bake this version in an 8″ 4″ loaf. Bake at 350°F for about 55 minutes.

Maple-Pecan Muffins

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup chopped pecans

¼–⅓ cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons soft butter or oil

1 egg

⅔ cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla

These are subtle and slightly chewy, much lighter than the usual praline-like maple confections.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Stir in nuts. Beat syrup and butter or oil, and add the egg. Add water, vanilla, and the dry ingredients, stirring just enough to mix. Spoon into muffin tin, and bake 12 to 15 minutes.

* If you don’t have cream of tartar, use ½ teaspoon baking soda and 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder.

*Again, brown sugar really does work better in this recipe, but honey or all light molasses can be used instead.

*Honey is good too, but in this recipe, brown sugar is better.

How to Slice a Brick

Dear Laurel,

I’ve been trying for months now to learn how to bake