clementine spice muffins

I am in the middle of a beach trip with my girlfriends.  It is glorious.  We’re in this gorgeous house with a to-die-for kitchen… but when you’re vacationing you don’t really use a kitchen, right?   Wrong.  This house happens to have a lot of staples, and given what we brought with us, I searched the internet and found a recipe for which we only had to buy two spices.  I feel extra impressive right now. *grin*

Clementine Spice Muffins (adapted from this recipe)

INGREDIENTS

Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour

1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

6-8 clementine oranges, peeled and separated into segments

Topping

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine all muffin ingredients except clementine segments.  Once mixture is blended well, fold in clementines.  

Spoon carefully into foil muffin liners or greased muffin tin. Fill each muffin liner about 3/4 full. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until muffins are golden brown and set.

Remove from pan while still hot.  To top, dip crown of each muffin in melted butter, then dip into cinnamon sugar mixture. Yields 13-16 muffins.

The original recipe called for canned mandarin oranges, and I think that recipe may result in muffins with a more uniform appearance.  That said, these are delicious right out of the oven, and because the clementine segments hold together, each bite is a surprise of texture and flavor.  If I make the recipe again, I’ll use more cinnamon and a tad more sugar, but as is it was declared an unqualified success.

Recommended for: a fruity breakfast morsel, delectable nibbles for afternoon tea, and a treat to share with friends for any time.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking!

egg and sausage casserole

For my roommate’s birthday brunch in July I made a white wine sangria that was well received, and for the meal I tinkered with an egg casserole dish.  As I’m not much of a breakfast person, I had never made one before.  It was super simple and also got high marks, so I made it again this week when I had my friend Leigh over for breakfast for dinner.

Egg and Sausage Casserole

INGREDIENTS

2 slices whole wheat bread

5 hot Italian sausages, chopped into bite-size pieces

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1 tablespoon minced garlic

8 eggs

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.  Prepare a 7"x7" casserole dish or 8"x8" pan by coating with non-stick baking spray, and set aside.

In medium skillet or 10" omelet pan, cook sausage, minced garlic and bell pepper together over medium-low heat for 7-8 minutes, or until sausage is cooked through.  The fat from the sausages should be enough to grease the pan, but stir often.  For the last minute, turn up heat to medium and brown (but don’t burn) the contents of the skillet.

Meanwhile, cube the bread and spread in the bottom of the baking pan.  When sausage mixture is done, spread evenly atop the bread.  In medium bowl, whisk eggs together until blended.  Pour slowly over the meat and bread.  Using a fork or spoon, press contents of pan down under the egg mixture until all is coated, but do not stir.  Let sit for 5 minutes.

Place pan in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until center of casserole is firm to touch.  Yields 4-6 servings.

The first time I made this casserole I made two large (9"x13") pans worth, and I used ground sausage and onions.  That incarnation tasted delicious, but I wanted a bite of spiciness in this one, and that’s why I changed it up.  You could also add cheese… really, it’s open to interpretation.  And good news, it’s delicious heated up the day after for lunch!

Recommended for: fans of egg dishes, brunch experiments, breakfast for dinner (accompanied by pancakes!), and anyone who likes a little bit of a bite to their morning dishes.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking.

cocoa almond meal banana muffins

You know how you have that one friend who is always sending you yummy-looking recipes, but then she makes it herself and substitutes out stuff like butter? Then when you make your own recipes with butter (because dear Lord, why wouldn’t you?!) you feel guilty and unhealthy? I’m the opposite of that. I take recipes that are supposed to be uber-diet-y and make them less healthy, I do not feel guilty about it, and I can make you feel guilt-free, too. Turns out you just need a dose of my supreme confidence (your way is the right way, honey).

Waaait a minute… is that a good thing?! Never mind. Behold: a recipe that is still pretty healthy but which I totally made less healthful by using REAL SUGAR. And more of it than is called for. Because I love you. And me. And my tastebuds, especially.

Cocoa Almond Meal Banana Muffins (modified from this recipe by FitnessLovingMom)

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 1/3 cup almond meal (if you can’t get your hands on almond meal, it’s just finely ground almonds – you can make it yourself in a coffee grinder or food processor)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 bananas (I used overripe bananas that I had been keeping in my fridge for banana bread)
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
non-stick cooking spray

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 300˚F. Prep muffin pan by lightly spraying with non-stick cooking spray, and set aside.

In medium bowl, mix almond meal with baking powder and set aside. Combine eggs, sugar, bananas and cinnamon with electric mixer for 5 minutes on medium setting. Pour in almond meal mixture slowly and stir thoroughly. Divide one third of batter and return to medium bowl – mix the cocoa powder into this portion to create the batter for the muffin cocoa center.

Fill muffin cups partway with the normal batter, then layer on a tablespoon or two of the cocoa filling. Cover cocoa filling with more normal batter, making sure not to overfill the muffin cups. Sprinkle tops of muffins with chopped almonds.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Yields 9-12 muffins.

So I’m not going to lie to you: I liked this recipe, but I did not love it. However. The roommate LOVED IT. Like, wanted-to-take-it-to-bed-at-night loved it (okay, so that was hyperbole, but whatever). And several days after the fact the muffins are still flavorful and have good texture, which is a sign of a good recipe. I dub this baking experiment a guilt-free success.

Recommended for: a tasty morning treat or dessert that is perfect to share with your health-nut friends (or your gluten-free eater), or just that time when you have a lot of overripe bananas and don’t want to make banana bread for the umpteenth time. Enjoy!

Interested in other food-related posts? Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.

the last breakfast

On my last morning in Atlanta we went to one of my favorite breakfast places, The Flying Biscuit.

So in honor of general Atlanta awesomeness, specific Candler Park Flying Biscuit genius, and the wonder that is breakfast food + strong coffee, I bring you...our meal!

My mom had the Egg-stravaganza. Yes, that's an oatmeal pancake with peach compote on the left. And a small bowl of grits. Delicious!

Elizabeth had the French toast with raspberry syrup and honey anglaise. Seriously YUM.

Lincoln had a Piedmont Scramble.

I had the Southern scramble, which included spicy collard greens, bell peppers and turkey bacon. WOW.

I think I'd be quite willing to switch to food blogging, as long as it includes lots of eating and pretty pictures. Will have to discover how that works. In the meantime, I hope you are drooling!