Recipe #86: Oat-and-Jam Muffins

Oat-and-Jam Muffins

The recipe in 201 Muffins made oatmeal-based muffins with brown sugar and buttermilk, with the jam  added as a kind of glaze. The recipe I chose, Oatmeal Raspberry Jam Muffins from the Sweet and Simple Kitchen website, used the jam as a filling, so that was different, and preferable. The recipe also called for drizzling some jam on top, which I did to some of the muffins, but not all.

I added walnuts to the batter, and that may have made it a little bit thick, so I decided to add 1/2 cup applesauce, which thinned it a bit but also made the muffins a little bit chewy, I think. Also, in honor of Valentine's Day, I added some red sugar to the tops which unfortunately looks a bit lurid in the picture.

Nonetheless, they were good tasting, and my tasters enjoyed them as well. I would not rate them as top-notch, however, as they had to be tinkered with a bit and the result was not as good as I usually expect.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Next up: Oat-Bran Muffins 

Recipe #85: Nutmeg Muffins

Nutmeg Muffins

The recipe in 201 Muffins was a little plain--basic muffins with nutmeg seasoning. So I chose a recipe that I could add nuts to: Nutmeg Muffins, from the Taste of Home website. This recipe called for a streusel topping that was taken from the initial butter-flour mixture. I didn't want to do it that way so I mixed all the ingredients together, leaving me with an extra 3/4 cup of butter and flour that was supposed to have been topping. Well, that probably was not the smartest thing to do, but the muffins turned out okay anyway. I used oil instead of butter and a little bit more buttermilk than the recipe called for to compensate for the extra flour. I also added walnuts, and in lieu of the streusel topping, I used a brown sugar-walnut-mini chocolate chip crunch topping. The muffins came out a bit dry (not surprisingly), but they tasted pretty good nonetheless.

I wouldn't use this recipe again and probably would use a recipe that has a more common method of combining ingredients.

My tasters liked the muffins, especially the strong nutmeg flavor (I used 2.5 teaspoons of nutmeg), which I also enjoyed.

I rate these muffins 4 out of 5, just because the method was too complicated and my alterations to it were not completely successful.

Next up: We begin the "O" muffins with Oatmeal-Jam Muffins.

Recipe #84: Nut Bran Muffins

Nut Bran Muffins

The recipe in the 201 Muffins Book called for walnuts, bran and dates. I found a recipe with all those things plus orange flavoring at the Florida Citrus website: Florida Orange Date Nut Bran Muffins. The recipe was a good one, I think. I mostly followed it, except for adding some triple sec for some of the orange juice and 1/2 cup extra sugar, since it seemed they weren't going to be sweet enough.

The muffins came out great. They were moist, hearty and delicious. The bran as well as the dates really made them rich and fibrous. My tasters enjoyed them almost as much as the double chocolate expresso muffins that I made at the same time!

I would definitely make these muffins again. I rate them 5 out of 5.

Next up: Nutmeg muffins.

Recipe #83: Mushroom Muffins

Mushroom Muffins

The recipe in 201 Muffins was designed to produce savory muffins, and so I found a recipe that made some very nice mushroom muffins that were cheesy and tasty. I took the recipe, Mushroom Parmesan Muffins, from the website of a Greek chef, Akis Petretzikis. The ingredients were given in metric measurements, but I was able to convert fairly easily.

The preparation of the mushrooms was a little bit time consuming, but otherwise the recipe was fairly simple.

The muffins were nice looking as well as good tasting and full of mushrooms, although a bit saltier than I would have liked. I used dried grated Parmesan cheese, and that may have been the cause. Fresh Parmesan might have been less salty.

My tasters liked them, and though I don't often eat savory muffins, I would make these again if the need arose.

I rate these 5 out of 5. Well, we're finally done with the M muffins. On to the Ns!

Next:  Nut-Bran Muffins

Recipe #82: Molasses, Raisin and Bran Muffins

Molasses-Bran Muffin

This recipe called for molasses, bran, and raisins. I was able to find a variety of such recipes, and I chose Moist Molasses Bran Muffins from the Bob's Red Mill website. It was a good recipe and I made it according to the directions (except for the whole wheat flour, which I substituted with graham flour). They came out a bit flat, however, but that may have been because there was not only graham flour but wheat bran included. The amount of molasses (1/2 cup) made for a very strong molasses flavor, which I quite liked. I thought they were nicely fibrous, too, or "woolly," as I like to call it, reminding me of a nubby wool sweater, the kind you'd find in Northern Scotland, for instance. My tasters also enjoyed them. I would definitely make these again. I rate them 5 out of 5. (I'm such an easy grader!)

Next up: Mushroom Muffins

Recipe #81: Mincemeat Muffins

Mincemeat Muffins
taken from Dinner With Julie

The 201 Muffins recipe for Mincemeat Muffins called for mincemeat and walnuts--pretty simple, really. I found several mincemeat muffin recipes on the internet, but decided to go with Mincemeat Muffins from the website, New England Today Food. The recipe suggested using homemade mincemeat, which I would have done except it requires at least two weeks to "cure." Since I didn't have that much time, I decided to buy some already prepared. Or at least I did until I realized mincemeat is no longer as easy to come by as it was when I was a child. I guess it's less popular than it once was. I still like mincemeat, though, and finally did track some down (a bit expensive) and used it in the recipe.

Since mincemeat without the meat (the only kind I would consider these days) is really just apples, raisins, spices and orange/lemon peel, the muffins came out tasting like other raisin/apple combinations. They were tasty, though not terribly sweet, which was fine with me and my tasters. Mincemeat muffins, though, are not at all like mincemeat pie, as the mincemeat is distributed throughout the batter and doesn't really assert itself very much, so I was a little disappointed at that.

I did enjoy them, however, and might even make them again. I rated them 5 out of 5.

Next up: Molasses, Raisins and Bran Muffins

Recipe #80: Marmalade-Almond Muffins

Marmalade-Almond Muffins

This recipe in 201 Muffins called for marmalade and almonds, which was, as it turned out, an easy combination to find on the internet. I chose the recipe Marmalade Almond Muffins, which appeared in the website, The Australian Women's Weekly Food. I had to make a few adjustments to the recipe, however--some had to do with the measurement differences between U.S. and Australia (we go with volume; they go with weight). But there were other changes, too: the recipe called for self-rising flour (I made my own and used some white whole wheat), butter (I used oil), caster sugar (I used brown sugar), flaked almonds (I used chopped almonds), and milk (I used buttermilk). I did stick with the 3/4 cup of marmalade and the two eggs, however!😊 After 80 recipes, I feel pretty confident about making changes to ingredients.

These muffins were very good--hearty and nicely orange flavored. I did put on the marmalade glaze recommended in the recipe. That made them a little sweeter. My tasters also enjoyed them. I rate these 5 out of 5.

Next up: Mincemeat Muffins