These muffins came dangerously close to being devoured before they were even muffins. Let me just say that there is nothing like the flavor of browned butter, especially when combined with cinnamon, oats, and sugar. Whole wheat flour adds depth and nuttiness, and perhaps a bit of health to these muffins. I certainly [...]]]>

These muffins came dangerously close to being devoured before they were even muffins. Let me just say that there is nothing like the flavor of browned butter, especially when combined with cinnamon, oats, and sugar. Whole wheat flour adds depth and nuttiness, and perhaps a bit of health to these muffins. I certainly had no guilt as I tested spoonful after spoonful of the batter, thinking “browned butter, where have you been all my life?”! Friends, this actually happened. I may need an intervention.

See all those little brown bits on the bottom? That’s where all the flavor is. Delicious, nutty, buttery flavor. It’s not quite as pronounced in the final product as it is in the batter (go ahead, taste a bit of the batter. I won’t tell.), but it definitely adds a little somethin’ that puts these muffins over the top. They absolutely taste like oatmeal raisin cookies.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Muffins
Adapted from Pinch My Salt
Yield: 12 muffins

3/4 cup milk, room temperature
1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup extra thick rolled oats
2 eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 375°. Grease muffin tins with butter and set aside. In a large measuring cup or small bowl, add the vinegar to the milk and allow to sit until needed.

To brown the butter: place the butter in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, it will begin to bubble and foam. Continue cooking, watching very closely, until little brown bits appear on the bottom of the pan. This will happen very fast and it will burn if you’re not careful. As soon as you see brown bits on the bottom, remove the pan from the heat. It will have a pleasantly nutty aroma. Transfer the butter to a heatproof bowl and allow it to cool for a few minutes.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in the oats. In a separate bowl, combine the browned butter, eggs, milk mixture, and sugar with a whisk. Whisk in the vanilla extract. Add the butter mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon just until combined. Fold in the raisins.

Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups and bake for 18-22 minutes. The muffins are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and place on a cooling rack to cool completely. As is the case with most muffins, these freeze well.

The sun may have come out for an hour or two today. But mostly the blue-tinted sky had an ominous look about it. There’s another storm brewing. Last Friday, we had a glorious thunder and lightning storm that filled up our rain barrel in no time flat. The mountains still show patches of [...]]]>

The sun may have come out for an hour or two today. But mostly the blue-tinted sky had an ominous look about it. There’s another storm brewing. Last Friday, we had a glorious thunder and lightning storm that filled up our rain barrel in no time flat. The mountains still show patches of white snow among the evergreens, a sure sign that it’s been a chilly week. Just perfect for curling up on the couch with a cat at my side and a mug of tea and an orange oat scone on the coffee table in front of me.

Working with scone dough is a quick and dirty process. You get permission to dive right in with your hands and blend the ingredients, albeit gently. Flour, oats, and crumbly bits of dough end up all over the kitchen, if you’re anything like me. The dough comes together quickly and the baking time is short. In no time, I had a half dozen scones on my counter and another disc of dough in the freezer for later.

These scones are hearty, with a slight sweetness and satisfying crunch from the turbinado sugar on top. I used extra thick rolled oats, and they lend a wonderfully chewy quality. I like my scones to have a bit of structure. The hint of citrus adds some bright, summery cheer. With the sounds of Gov’t Mule in the background and a good book awaiting me, it’s going to be a cozy evening.

Orange Oat Scones
Adapted slightly from 101 Cookbooks
Yield: 12 scones

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached, unbromated all-purpose flour
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup unsalted butter, cold
2 cups rolled oats
zest of 1 orange
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon plain yogurt
2/3 cup dried currants
turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top

Preheat the oven to 350°. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, stir together both types of flour, the sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. Cut the butter into 1/4 inch cubes. Using a pastry blender, incorporate the butter cubes into the dry ingredients.

Stir in the oats and orange zest. Pour in the cream and yogurt, mixing gently just until combined. Do not overwork the dough. If more moisture is needed to bring the dough together, add a small amount of cream at a time.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface. Gather the dough with your hands and split it in half. Form each half into a disc approximately 6 inches in diameter. You may wrap one disc and freeze it at this point, if desired. Slice the disc(s) into six triangles. Place the scones onto the baking sheet, leaving an inch or two in between. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown. Allow to cool on the pan.

Part of undertaking a challenge such as October: Unprocessed is getting out of your food comfort zone. I’ve always been comfortable with my routine of buying boxed cereal at the store. Of course I bought organic, and of course it contained only a few wholesome ingredients. But it’s still a processed food and [...]]]>

Part of undertaking a challenge such as October: Unprocessed is getting out of your food comfort zone. I’ve always been comfortable with my routine of buying boxed cereal at the store. Of course I bought organic, and of course it contained only a few wholesome ingredients. But it’s still a processed food and it’s pretty intensely packaged. Five or six cups of cereal inside a plastic bag inside a paper box? Why pay for all that packaging?

It was time to take the plunge and make my own granola. My weekends are already packed with baking and cooking projects to keep us fed with homemade lunches and snacks all week, so I was wary about adding one more project to my list and more dirty dishes to my sink. But this granola is well worth it. I’m addicted to this stuff, and I have no doubt that my tub of homemade granola will be a fixture atop our refrigerator long after October: Unprocessed has finished. The recipe is infinitely adaptable (we’ve already enjoyed variations with raisins and cranberries too!) and the prep takes hardly any time at all. Once it’s in the oven, you can get right back to that mountain of dishes waiting for you in the sink.

Maple Walnut Granola
Created by Simple Math Bakery
Yield: approximately 6 cups granola

3/4 cup pure maple syrup (use 1 cup if you’d like it extra sweet)
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup chopped walnuts
6 cups old-fashioned oats
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat the oven to 300°. Line a baking sheet or a 9″ by 13″ pan with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, heat the maple syrup, vanilla extract, and butter over medium heat, stirring, just until the butter melts.

In a large bowl, stir together the oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Pour the maple syrup mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.

Pour the granola onto the baking sheet, making sure to spread it as evenly as possible. Bake the granola for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to ensure even toasting. Let cool, then enjoy.

I have good news and bad news. Shall we start with the good news? These florentine cookies manage [...]]]> The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Nestle Florentine Cookies.

I have good news and bad news. Shall we start with the good news? These florentine cookies manage to achieve both chewy and crunchy cookie status in the same bite. And as an added bonus, the dough is basically a big sweet bowl of oatmeal with tons of butter in it. Definitely good news.

The bad news? Panna Cotta and I just didn’t gel. I haven’t had a very successful track record with desserts that gel, but I approached this challenge with optimism. I was defeated yet again. I used the vegetarian gelling agent, agar powder, which was successful for many of my daring baker peers but not so for me.

I have a feeling that the secret lies somewhere within the instructions for heating the cream. The recipe instructions: “heat until hot, but not boiling, about 5 minutes”, and after adding the rest of the ingredients, “making sure that the mixture doesn’t boil, heat for 5-7 minutes”. The instructions on the agar package: a very unspecific “heat for 5 minutes”. I heated for 7 minutes, just to be safe. The cream was not even simmering. Maybe it should have been simmering but not boiling? If you know the secret to gelling panna cotta, I’d love to hear it.

As I waited hours in vain for my panna cotta to gel, at least I had a big comforting bowl of oatmeal cookie batter. Delicious.

These cookies were a breeze to whip up, and they baked just as thin and almost as crispy as promised. My first batch came out rather chewy so I left the second batch in the oven for a few minutes longer, until the edges were dark brown. The crispy edges balanced the chewy, buttery oatmeal center perfectly. A drizzle of dark chocolate on top adds the perfect touch!

The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Florentine Cookies.

Here’s the panna cotta recipe, as I tried it. I can make no guarantees as to whether this will work for you. It didn’t gel for me.

Maple Panna Cotta
Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis
Yield: 6 servings

1 cup whole milk
4 teaspoons agar powder
3 cups whipping cream
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
pinch of salt

Pour the cold milk into a saucepan, sprinkle in the agar powder, and let sit for 5 minutes. Heat the mixture until it is hot but not boiling, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Making sure the the mixture doesn’t boil, continue to heat and stir occasionally until the maple syrup and salt dissolve, about 5-7 minutes.

Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly. Pour into glasses or ramekins and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until firm, at least 6 hours or preferably overnight.

I do highly recommend these Florentine cookies, and I can say that they make a particularly good consolation prize if your panna cotta doesn’t gel!

Florentine Cookies
Adapted from Nestle Classic Recipes and Meals.com
Yield: 18 cookies

2/3 cup unsalted butter
2 cups quick cooking oats
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup agave syrup
1/4 cup rice milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
3 ounces dark chocolate (I used 70%)

Preheat the oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Melt the butter over medium heat, then remove from the heat and add the oats, sugar, flour, agave syrup, milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Stir until well combined. Drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto the cookie sheet, 3 inches apart. These babies spread quite a bit! Flatten the dough balls slightly with the back of your spoon.

Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown. Place the cookie sheet on a cooling rack and allow the cookies to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Dip cookies in melted chocolate, use chocolate as cookie sandwich filling, or drizzle abstract designs onto cookies with a spoon.

Sometimes good breads come in small packages. This bread was not a high-riser, but it certainly packed a lot of flavor! I may have used pans that were too large for the amount of dough. But looks aren’t everything, and I’ll eat a good slice of bread no matter what shape or size [...]]]>

Sometimes good breads come in small packages. This bread was not a high-riser, but it certainly packed a lot of flavor! I may have used pans that were too large for the amount of dough. But looks aren’t everything, and I’ll eat a good slice of bread no matter what shape or size it comes in.

My kitchen is a mishmash of pots and pans that have been acquired from a vast array of sources, mostly one at a time. Nothing fancy and nothing that matches. Except for my two 9″ loaf pans, a gift from my mom. They are my new go-to pans for baking loaves of bread. Which is why I automatically reached for them when making this bread, even though the recipe suggested 8″ by 5″ pans. My 8″ pans look to be more like 8″ by 4″ and I didn’t want to have overflow issues with the dough. So 9″ pans it was.

I oiled the pans and sprinkled some oats inside. The dough came together easily, giving off a fabulous molasses and oatmeal aroma. I always love the depth of flavor that molasses adds. This bread is slightly sweet with a definite whole grain taste.

This bread has been submitted to Yeastspotting, a weekly bread showcase.

Molasses Oatmeal Bread
Adapted slightly from Yankee Magazine
Yield: 2 loaves

1 cup old-fashioned oats, plus extra for pans
1 3/4 cup boiling water
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
3 tablespoons molasses
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup canola oil
4-5 cups whole wheat flour

Place the oats in a medium bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let soak at room temperature for one hour.

If you’d like to use active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, dissolve it in the lukewarm water and let it sit until it starts to bubble.

In a large bowl, or the bowl of your mixer, combine the oat mixture, yeast, water, molasses, salt, and canola oil. Add the flour one cup at a time, stirring well or beating with the paddle attachment of your mixer after each addition. Add enough flour so that the dough comes together into a ball. Place the dough ball in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it for about 5 minutes. Form it into a ball and place in a clean, lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise again until doubled, about 45 minutes this time.

Grease two loaf pans (preferably 8″ pans) with canola oil and sprinkle with uncooked oats. Divide the dough into two halves. Gently flatten each half into a rectangle about 5″ x 7″. Starting with the long side, roll each dough rectangle up and gently seal the seam with your fingers. Place each loaf, seam side down, into a loaf pan. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.

While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 350°. When the loaves have risen sufficiently, bake them for 40-50 minutes. The bread will be a deep brown color and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Remove loaves from pans immediately and place on a cooling rack to cool.

It has been way too long since I’ve made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. When my friend Susannah announced that she was coming to visit me, I asked her what kind of cookies she’d like to snack on. Oatmeal chocolate chip was her answer, and I couldn’t have been more thrilled.

These cookies have [...]]]>

It has been way too long since I’ve made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. When my friend Susannah announced that she was coming to visit me, I asked her what kind of cookies she’d like to snack on. Oatmeal chocolate chip was her answer, and I couldn’t have been more thrilled.

These cookies have the perfect amount of chewiness in the center, and the edges are lightly crisped. Absolutely divine!

We spent lots of time this week at the museum and the beach. I don’t get to visit the beach as often as I would like, so it’s always a treat when I have an excuse to go. We took lots of photos, and we even photographed these balanced rocks while lying on the ground in true Susannah fashion! Susannah frequently photographs from unique angles, which is part of what makes her work so fascinating. It’s a constant joke that we have, since her bio shows her lying in the middle of the road to get the perfect angle for a photograph.

What a beautiful and peaceful pastime it must be to balance these rocks along the shoreline. This was one of my favorite sights at the beach.

And after a day full of exploring, what better way to wind down than with oatmeal chocolate chip cookies?

This recipe makes 4 dozen cookies. That’s a lot of cookies! I didn’t bake them all (although we might have polished them all off if I had). I froze some of the dough to bake later, or perhaps to eat straight from the freezer. Either way, it’s delicious.

If you like your cookies to spread, use the dough right away. Refrigerating the dough for at least 20 minutes will produce more compact, puffy cookies. Here are the cookies that I baked right away:

The cookies below were baked with dough that had been refrigerated for 20 minutes:

I didn’t notice any difference in taste between the two methods. Both batches of cookies were wonderfully soft in the center! I’ll definitely be making these again very soon.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from The Frog Commissary Cookbook via Bakingsheet
Yield: about 4 dozen cookies

1 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons soy milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned (rolled) oats
2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the soy milk and vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients by hand, or with the mixer on low speed. Add the oats and chocolate chips, stirring by hand.

If you’d like smaller, puffier cookies, refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes before baking. Form the dough into 1 inch balls, and place them on the cookie sheet 1 1/2 inches apart.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges start to brown. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet, placed on a cooling rack, for 5 minutes. Remove the cookies from the baking sheet and continue to cool them directly on the rack.

Banana oatmeal muffins are my go to muffin.  I always have the ingredients on hand and it’s so easy to whip up a batch.  My basic recipe is very forgiving.  I can change it up in any number of ways and the muffins still come out delicious.

This time I’ve made them healthier [...]]]>

Banana oatmeal muffins are my go to muffin.  I always have the ingredients on hand and it’s so easy to whip up a batch.  My basic recipe is very forgiving.  I can change it up in any number of ways and the muffins still come out delicious.

This time I’ve made them healthier and added a bit of spice.  Now I don’t feel so guilty when I reach for one to help me get through those last two hours of the workday!

Before I get to the muffins I’ve got to share this photo.  I live in southern California, and I woke up to this view of my street:

We’ve been having this huge rainstorm all week.  Torrential rainfalls, flooding, tornado warnings, and now snow!  I don’t get to see snow very often so it’s definitely a treat.

Also, my week was made a little brighter by Josie at Daydreamer Desserts.  She presented me with this Happy 101 award.

To accept this award, here’s what I need to do:

List 10 things that make me happy:

1. Baking and cooking
2. Ballet class
3. Listening to or playing music
4. Camping and hiking
5. My cat
6. Yard work
7. Contra dancing
8. Daydreaming about my next vacation
9. Reading a good book
10. Chocolate

Tag 10 other bloggers who brighten my day, link to their blogs, and notify the recipients.  Also, link back to the blogger who gave the award (see above).

Bloggers who brighten my day:

1. Lauren of Celiac Teen
2. Anita of Leave Room for Dessert
3. Kelly of The Picky Plate
4. Jen of My Kitchen Addiction
5. Sarah of Blue Ridge Baker
6. Rosalie of Mary Poppins in Heels
7. Emily of What’s Cooking in Emily’s Kitchen
8. Mimi of Delectable Tidbits
9. Claire of Culinary Goddess
10. Charlene of Secrets of a Southern Kitchen

And now, back to muffins.

Banana Oatmeal Spice Muffins
Recipe by Simple Math Bakery
Yield: 12 muffins

1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour (all-purpose works, too!)
1/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 medium-sized bananas, very ripe
1 egg
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

Preheat the oven to 375°.  Grease a muffin pan, or line muffin cups with paper liners.

Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mash the bananas.  Add egg and applesauce and beat until combined.

Pour the banana mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until combined.  Divide the batter between the muffin cups, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

I bake muffins every weekend.  Then I stash them in the freezer and eat one each day at work.  This challenges me to make healthy ingredient substitutions, and also to keep trying new flavors!

Apple season is winding down at our local orchards, but there are still [...]]]>

I bake muffins every weekend.  Then I stash them in the freezer and eat one each day at work.  This challenges me to make healthy ingredient substitutions, and also to keep trying new flavors!

Apple season is winding down at our local orchards, but there are still plenty of apples to be had.  I’m always on the lookout for a new muffin recipe, and this is my latest find.  Maple syrup and apples?  Yes please!  Oh, and oats.  Gotta love muffins with oats!

Promise me one thing: if you make these muffins, use real maple syrup.  The fake stuff is not worth your time.  Trust me on that.

Maple Apple Muffins
Adapted from Recipe Girl
Yield: 12 muffins and 12 mini muffins

1 1/3 cups flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 cups apples, peeled and chopped

Preheat oven to 400°.  Grease muffin tin with butter or line with papers.

Combine the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon in a large bowl.  Set aside.

In a smaller bowl, combine buttermilk, applesauce, maple syrup, and egg.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened.  Gently fold in the apples.

Spoon batter into muffin cups.  I filled up 12 muffin cups and had enough batter left over to make 12 mini muffins as well.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes in pan, then remove from pan and place on cooling rack to cool completely.