Yesterday I made a breakfast recipe. I was hoping for phenomenal muffins, but what I got was mediocre. Don't get me wrong, they were good, just not the "restaurant quality" I was hoping for. I might have known they'd be different than what I expected because I used whole wheat flour, but alas, I did it anyway. That said, I'd make them again...just maybe not in a Recipe Challenge.
The Recipe:
Spiced Carrot Muffins
I found the recipe in a William Sonoma "Baking" cookbook I got for Christmas. I've adapted the directions to what I did.
What you need:
Spiced Carrot Muffins
2 c flour (Again, I used whole wheat)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt (or just a sprinkle which is what I do)
1 tsp ground cinnamon (I just sprinkle generously...very generously. I love me some cinnamon.)
2 eggs
2/3 c light brown sugar, packed (I had exactly 2/3 c left in the bag!)
1 c buttermilk or sour cream (I used buttermilk because I have it from the naan)
6 tbsp unsalted butter (using unsalted is important with baking, especially in scones)
2 carrots (I used 4 small organic carrots, just use your discretion)
1/2 c raisins (optional, but we love raisins around here)
What I did:
1. Prehead oven to 425˚. Butter muffin pan (or line with liners, I think that's a waste so I just use butter).
2. Mix the batter. In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In another medium bowl, wisk together the eggs and brown sugar until blended.
Whisk in the buttermilk and melted butter. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and, using a spatula, stir until just evenly moistened. Fold in the carrots and raisins, until evenly distributed. My batter was really thick which I thought was strange. I thought it would be runnier.
3. Bake the muffins. Spoon the batter into muffin tins.
Bake until golden brown, 15-18 mins. Let cool and serve with butter or cream cheese.
What I added:
The Farmer added black walnuts to 3 of the muffins. Had I had them on hand, I would have added pecans because everything baked is better with nuts.
The Results:
Again, they were good; but not what I was hoping for. The batter also made 12 muffins plus 12 mini muffins so it would have easily made 18 muffins.
The Grade: B+. The Farmer said that was for lack of originality because it tasted like something we had had before! (Broke a rule I guess!) I agreed and then wished I'd made something more spectacular from the "Baking" cookbook like Brown Sugar Blondies for breakfast (which I will be making at some point this week). Oh well, it's still a good muffin recipe to have on hand and I'll definitely make them again.
Check in tomorrow, I'm making whole wheat tortillas and spinach, chickpeas and tomatoes for lunch!
