Dried Apricot & Gingerbread Muffins

Happy Halloween! Jagger is feeling festive in his jailbird costume.

Dudes... it fucking snowed. Actually it didn't snow where I live (Illadelphia), but it snowed everywhere else that I was (which was Brooklyn and Newtown, PA and all in between). A tree almost fell on my car (Good news: it didn't. Bad news: it totally fell on someone else's car, which sucks, so much). That totally would have one upped my flat tired from last week, in terms of annoying things that can happen to your automobile (by a lot). So, thank you automobile karma gods.

But like, seriously. It snowed. Before Halloween. I love snow, but not when it takes over my Fall. We haven't even set the clocks back yet and I haven't even slept an extra hour. I wasn't ready for my winter coat. I was wearing loafers, for god's sake. And people deny Global Warming. Reality check people. Hi, hello, it's snowing. IN OCTOBER!

Look how festive!

So anyway, I got home from my quick stint to Brooklyn, slept for like 12 hours, and then made some gingerbread muffins. Because the way in which I decided to deal with this ridiculous turn in the weather was to buy some new teas and make gingerbread muffins. And I was avoiding laundry. And the oven being on helps me to not shiver.


But these muffins really hit the spot. They're fluffy, REALLY ginger-y (in a good way), and not too sweet. The apricot adds a great contrast to the spice of the muffin. I've been really into mini-muffins as of late; perfect portion control. I like to grab a mini muffin or two with a piece of fruit for breakfast. Just sayin'!

Many mini-muffins <3 Alliteration

Soundtrack:


SBTRKT ESSENTIAL MIX by sbtrkt   


Dried Apricot & Gingerbread Muffins
Adapted from Bon Appetit, Dec 2000

• 2 3/4 c ap flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp plus 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 c sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 c molasses
• 1 1/3 c cold water

1/3 c dried apricots, chopped finely

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar with an electric mixer until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until blended and mixture begins to look fluffy. Add molasses and beat on low until combined. Continue beating to mix in 1/2 of the dry ingredients, then beat in the rest. Mixture will be thick.

Add water slowly, continuing to beat the mixture on low, just until all water is incorporated into the batter, scraping down the sides with a spatula when necessary. Try not to over-beat. Add apricots and mix in using a spatula, in as few strokes as possible.

Pour batter into greased muffin cups.

For mini-muffins, bake for 12-13 minutes. For full sized muffins, bake about 25 minutes. For larger muffins, cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Rosemary Cardamom Pumpkin Muffins

In a minute, muffins. But first...

I have a confession to make...

I have recently developed a huge nerdy obsession with shopping for spices.

In a super-food nerd sort of way, I found myself meandering through Penzey's Spices in Chestnut Hill for an hour or so this Sunday smelling every last spice. They display a jarred sample of each spice that features a description of the flavor and practical applications. I could get lost in there for days (and it's not even really that large). The place totally rules.

Some smell terrible, which is very interesting. But the majority are amazing. 


The best part about Penzey's is that the prices are really reasonable, with some even being cheaper than the grocery store (yea, I was shocked too, but cardamom is about 1/2 the price I've seen at Wegs). Most of the spices that aren't cheaper do actually say that you should use less anyway, as they are more potent.


The highlights? They have around four different varieties of Cinnamon (I needed it after my discovery of the Stop 'N Shop Cinnamon), Cardamom, Sweet Hungarian Paprika, Shallot Salt, Zatar... and then of course a long list of necessities for fall baked goods. 

The nerdiest part? Every time I go there or order online, I always try to grab one new spice or seasoning that I've never used before. Before I left on Sunday, I did a little research online to get some ideas. So I actually had settled on the shallot salt before I even left my house. I'm sure lots of people do this for lots of things. I don't. I don't plan well and I have no foresight. So this was huge for me, but it isn't the nerdy thing that I'm referring to. It's just the intro, but it's important because (take notes) I planned ahead.


I browsed around for a bit before finding the shallot salt. One whiff and I was convinced (it smells aaa-mazing) so I threw it in my basket (actually I placed it gently, since it's in a glass jar). 


So here's the nerdy part: I'm at the counter and the two (extremely nice) cashiers (who ruled) begin to comment on how much they love this shallot salt seasoning. I volunteer that I read about it online, etc, etc. They warned me to keep it away from humidity as it has a tendency to clump. Thank you, I explained, but I already knew this. I did my research. I was planning to keep it in the fridge. And then we had a pretty long intense conversation about well... shallot salt. It was beyond nerdy. 


Did I build that up too much? Maybe. Or maybe I just wanted to tell everyone how great I am now at being prepared. I'm so mature. Look at me!


Anyway, excited to use my new spices, when I got home I baked these delicious, yet healthy (as always! ok, ok, not always... ) pumpkin muffins. Some of you may have seen this basic recipe in a different incarnation here. I changed it up a bit, adapted if for fall. Still a very moist muffin, still very healthy, and maaayyybe an even better flavor this time around.


Soundtrack: Jamie XX - FACT Mix (No embed code, so ya gotsta click the link!)


Rosemary Cardamom Pumpkin Muffins
Yields about 20 muffins


3/4 c oat bran

3/4 c whole wheat flour

2/3 c sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp cardamom

1 tsp dried rosemary

1/4 tsp salt

1 c. cooked pumpkin (I used a canned variety; just make sure not to buy pumpkin pie mix, that's different from canned pumpkin!)

1 large egg

2 large egg whites

2/3 c plain Greek yogurt

3 tbs vegetable oil

1/2 c apples, peeled and chopped finely

1/2 c walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oat bran, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, rosemary and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, egg, egg whites, yogurt, oil and apples.

Add wet ingredients to dry and fold in with a spatula, just to combine. Add walnuts in as few strokes as possible.

Divide batter into muffin tins 1/4 c at a time. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Action Action Oat Bran

Mmm.. Cinnamon!

Blopppp!

Don't you love my silicone baking cups!?

Smooth!

PS This is what Jagger does all day on Sundays...

Chipotle Mango & Zucchini Bread

That's right. I said chipotle. Just a little, don't get any crazy ideas here. Just a tang.

Looks so innocent and sweet, but don't let that fool you!

Long weekends are aaaa-mazing aren't they? It's Sunday today, but no Monday blues tomorrow! The thing about Philadelphia 4th of July weekend, is that it's deserted. Not desserted, that would be awesome, but deserted. Everyone's gone "down the shore." It's sort of nice, the peace and quiet. Until Monday when the hoards will come in from the suburbs and descend upon the Art Museum area for the fireworks and live music (Just reminded myself of this movie trailer, 1:00 minute in lol). But for now, I feel like I'm alone in the big city! Ok, that's a bit of an exaggeration; there are certainly people around, but you catch my drift. This has been one much needed long weekend of relaxation. And I'm certainly going to need it considering my plans for next weekend. (No sleep 'til Brooklyn, people.)

Btw, I'm still thinking about a desserted Philadelphia and wishing I was better at Photoshop. I would put donuts around the sky scrapers, a giant Franklin Fountain ice cream sundae atop the state building, William Penn on city hall would be holding a birthday cake (for America obvs)... etc.etc.etc. All in good ole' red, white and blue. It's the thought that counts sometimes.

Anyway, this bread is NOT one of those "thought that counts" instances. It's delic. It's a great summer bread; Florida mangoes are in season (making them cheaper!) and zucchini is coming out of the garden (or you can definitely find some locally grown very easily!). The bread is moist and flavorful; the chipotle adds just a tiny zip to make things interesting.

The recipe was derived from the basic Sweet Zucchini Bread from The Joy of Cooking. Subbed half the oil for some yogurt to cut the fat (I also just think it makes for a moister bread), subbed in some wheat flour, and added some cut up mango and chipotle seasoning.

Soundtrack: Old Crow Medicine Show (ROCK ME MAMMA LIKE A WAGON WHEEELL. No question, it's going to be stuck in my head all day.)

Chipotle Mango & Zucchini Bread 

Makes 1-9x5 loaf

1 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. whole wheat flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground chipotle seasoning

2 large eggs

3/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. vegetable oil

2 tbs plain yogurt

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups finely chopped zucchini, squeezed of excess water (interesting process)

1 large mango, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x5 loaf pan; set aside. Combine in a medium sized bowl the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and chipotle with a whisk; set aside.

In a larger bowl, beat the eggs. Add in the sugar, oil, yogurt, vanilla and salt. Continue to beat until blended. Add dry ingredients and stir until combined.

Add zucchini and mango, and using as few strokes as possible, stir these into the mixture.

Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes. The bread will pull away from the sides when done. Don't try the toothpick trick, you might still get some stuff on it, as it's a very moist bread!

Chopping, using my immersion blender attachment

Cutting mangoes is really very pretty, huh?

The dry stuff

GOD I LOVE THIS THING! hehehe

Mixin' it together

Stir in chopped zucchini

Raspberry Sweet Potato Muffins

Let's just be honest with ourselves for a minute. Most muffins are just an excuse to eat cake for breakfast. That's right. I said it. Because, let's just consider the difference between muffins and cake for a minute: ....wait... does anyone know what it is? I would expect that cupcakes should be sweeter and lighter, while muffins are slightly denser and fruity. But who here has never had a chocolate chip muffin? Strawberry cupcake? Certainly a cupcake will always have frosting right? Wrong. C'monnnn!.

Breakfast anyone?

But, all that confusion aside, this recipe makes it easy to say with certainty, "I am eating a muffin, not a personal cake for breakfast." Because these muffins are actually healthy and a great way to start the day. Promise! (PS I can't say muffin this many times and keep a straight face, thanks to this video right here). They are made with healthy grains (oat bran and wheat flour) and plain yogurt. The raspberries and sweet potato are great antioxidants and have many other great health benefits as well.

PS again, that Photoshop program I downloaded about 6 months ago... finally learning to use it! Go me! Go me! I've really recently been realizing that my camera just doesn't do some things justice, so my plan is to just learn to retouch the colors, do some background work, etc and really make you guys drool! And, if that means I can make sure I look great in every picture I have of myself, then so be it! That's a side effect I am just willing to live with. Check out my first attempt here:

Radioactive muffins! Eat one, and you could become.... THIS!
In which case, I'll have six!

So, for example, doesn't this look amazing:

Relax, your screen isn't growing raspberries

So, great things to come I promise! Like I said, it's only getting better from here, people!

And so, we are back to muffins. Let's get baking! This recipe was adapted from an original I found here, which also happens to be amazing (I like to add craisins to these). So give it a try as well! Maybe in the fall...

Soundtrack: Yacht - Shangri-La (interesting, I know)

Raspberry Sweet Potato Muffins 

Makes approximately 20 small muffins.

3/4 c oat bran
3/4 c whole wheat flour

2/3 c sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 c. sweet potatoes, boiled and mashed

1 large egg

2 large egg whites

2/3 c plain Greek yogurt

3 tbs vegetable oil

3/4 c fresh whole raspberries 

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare 20 muffin cups in trays and spray the bottoms with cooking spray.

Combine oat bran, wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside. Combine sweet potatoes, eggs, oil and yogurt in a large bowl, using a whisk. (This will look really gross for quite some time. I'm sorry - tough it out.) Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet until a batter is formed. Add in the raspberries, crushing them with the spatula as you stir.

Spoon 1/4 c of batter into each cup. Bake for 20-25 mins or until done (check with a toothpick!).

You will need to boil/mash a potato about this size!

I warned you... this part is gross!

Ok, I actually did this the opposite way that I instructed you.
I don't lead by example.

Batter up!

PS, I love this picture and had to share. From Cakespy