Muffin Mania

So in my last post I posted a picture of the little muffin baskets or should I more accurately say pots that I made for our neighbors. You are probably wondering where I got the crazy idea to put muffins inside flower pots. I know my husband was! He kept saying, "And you put the muffins inside the flower pot? Like just in tissue paper inside the pot?" Well this little creative idea came from something my siblings and I used to do with my mom every May growing up.

On May 1st or May Day as we called it, she we made batches and batches of chocolate chip cookies and we would put them in clay flower pots with tissue paper and then we would get to deliver them to the neighbors. However, it wasn't your typical drop off. We would place the pot of cookies on the front porch, ring the door bell, and run away. We would always run and hide so that we could see the neighbor come out and see our special delivery. It was supposed to be a secret as to who these cookies came from (but I have a sneaking suspicion that they may have had a good hunch!), and as a kid what is more fun than a secret and having permission from your mom to ring doorbells and run away!?! I cannot wait to do May Day with Phinn!

Anyway so that is where my idea of the muffin pots came from. I also threw in some seed packets so that perhaps the pots could serve another purpose when they were finished holding muffins.

As promised here are some great muffin recipes. All of them are easy to make and are great to take for a brunch or keep on hand for breakfast.

Poppy Seed Muffins

My mom made these when we were kids. Both of my siblings were crazy about them but I always refused to try them. In my head, I had myself convinced that I did not like poppy seeds even though I don't think I had ever tried them. So as a 26 year old adult I tried one and they are the most delicious thing ever! My husband says they are more like cupcakes than muffins.

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour (I have not used whole wheat flour yet with these but have considered it...)

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3 eggs

1 1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup oil

2 1/4 c. sugar

1 1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

You can also add a little orange or lemon zest for an added kick.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Soften butter to room temperature then cream. Gradually mix in sugar. Then add eggs, oil, and milk. Mix again then add all dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder) followed by vanilla extract and almond extract. Finally add poppy seeds and orange/lemon zest if you choose. Mix for a least 3 minutes. Pour into muffin pans and bake for 22 minutes or until golden brown on top (It usually takes me closer to 25 minutes). This recipe makes about 30 muffins and can be trimmed if you don't quite need that many.

Meg's Blueberry Muffins

I have been making these muffins for years. It was a recipe from my babysitter when I was a kid. My mom would help me make them for the annual neighborhood garage sale and I would sell blueberry muffins and coffee - quite a little entrepreneur.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup margarine (I have used margarine and butter - either will do.)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup low fat yogurt (I use vanilla Greek yogurt)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups flour (I use whole wheat flour - much tastier if you ask me!)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup blueberries (I tend to mix in blueberries until I think it is enough!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream margarine/butter and gradually add sugar. Mix until well blended. Add eggs and yogurt, mixing well. Add in vanilla and mix again. Combine dry ingredients and add combination slowly to creamed mixture. After it is well mixed, fold in blueberries gently. (I recommend fresh blueberries as opposed to frozen ones.) Spoon into lined muffin tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Optional: For a little something extra, sprinkle with powdered sugar after removing from oven. This recipe makes about 18 muffins.

Banana Oatmeal Cups

This is a new recipe that I got off of another mom blog Real Mom Nutrition who got the recipe from GreenLite Bites. I was not a huge fan of them, but I tend to not like banana flavored food (The only exception is my father-in-law's banana pudding - somehow I can't refuse that!), but Hunter loved them. They were also very easy to make.

Ingredients:

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup vanilla Almond milk (I used vanilla soy milk because that's what I had in the fridge.)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon Baking powder
3 cups Old Fashioned or Rolled Oats
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons mini chocolate chips(I am sure I used more than that! Three just didn't seem like enough...)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients except the chocolate chips together, and let sit while you prepare the muffin pans. Spray a muffin pan and/or liners with with non-stick spray. Stir the chocolate chips into the oatmeal batter. Divide batter into 15 muffin cups. Bake 20-30 minutes, you’ll see the edges just starting to brown and they will be firm to the touch. The muffins may stick when hot but are removed easily when cooled for a bit.

So there you go! Hope you enjoy them. They are perfect to have around the house for quick breakfast or packing in lunches and they are also great to take to the office (Your co-workers will love you!) or to give as neighborly gifts.

*I wanted to post some picture of each individual type of muffin but I learned that in a full house, you have to be pretty fast with the camera because these muffins tend to disappear quickly :)