BUTTERMILK MUFFINS

This recipe was on All RECIPES here.

See the cook's notes at the end. I'm going to try it with cheddar cheese and cooked bacon. I couldn't tell that there was any bacon in it but one family member could and said it added a little something.

BASIC BUTTERMILK MUFFINS
"This is a great basic muffin batter that can be adapted to almost anything."

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup butter, melted (I was out of butter so I used 3 Tbs. olive oil and one Tbs. water and the muffins tasted fine)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease 12 muffin cups, or line with paper muffin liners.
2. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla.
3. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and stir just until mixed (the batter will not be smooth). Gently stir in fruit, if desired (see Cook's Note).
4. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tins; fill the cups almost to the top. Bake in the preheated oven until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 18 minutes.

Cook's Note

You can add 1 cup of almost any fruit, nut, or baking chips to this recipe by folding in at the end, and adding spices to match (blueberries and lemon zest, for example, or peeled chopped apples and cinnamon).

RECIPES ON COOKBOOK BLOG

Went to lunch today with wonderful friends. Twice. Some of the recipes are here.

THESE ARE ON MY COOKBOOK SITE

Zippy salad--Phil loves this and so does our darling daughter-in-law, Nurse Giggleswitch.

Crunchy sweet and savory salad

I made these two salads this week as we are trying to eat a more healthy diet and are eating a lot "raw."

Cookbook blog here.

MAKE THIS

It's almost spring--don't look outside, at least not here--the snow is piled deep. But spring is coming and with it, sales on asparagus. Last week I found asparagus for 99 cents at a local grocery store so I bought four pounds. Enough to make Mushroom asparagus lasagna twice. The first time was yesterday and it was wonderful.

Recipe here.

WHY, OH WHY?

I have two main recipe files on my computer--plus a couple dozen I never look at. One is "Lynne's Recipes," and the other is "Recipes to try." Tonight I went through the entire "Lynne's Recipes" one. All 859 pages of it. Whoa, don't get too impressed, they are in 3x5 format and each recipe is considered a page. Some recipes take two 3x5 cards and occasionally they will take more.


Most of them are not even my recipes! I have dumped what looks like hundreds of "to try" recipes in there. And most of my "real" recipes aren't even in there. What a jumbled mess. I should plan to straighten it all out as a New Years Resolution but I'm not going to. I am going to start a new file called, "Lynne's Real Recipes." And then I will probably dump some "to try" recipes in there by mistake and by the time I'm eighty years old and don't cook any more it won't matter.


So, why am I even thinking about it when I could be thinking about the "white sales" that are supposed to be happening in January or that the grapefruit in January and February that makes wonderful juice? Or that there are lots of interesting blogs out there to read? The heck with the recipes. On to greater things.


But before I go here's the easiest recipe I own. I got it the second year I was married and it has been a family favorite all those years.

CHERRY CREAM CHEESE PIE

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 (8 oz.) pkg. Cream Cheese
1 tsp. Vanilla
1/3 cup Lemon Juice

1 Graham Cracker Crust
1 can Cherry Pie Filling (This is too much pie filling. If making several pies two cans filling are adequate for three pies.)

Blend first three ingredients until smooth and creamy. Add lemon juice and blend until mixed. Pour into prepared graham cracker crust. Refrigerate. Top with chilled pie filling.

PS And why do the desserts outnumber salads by four to one and they outnumber the side dishes--veggies--probably fifteen to one? Something is basically wrong with my sugar covered brain.

PPS And I wish I could take credit for the photo but it's from the Eagle Brand site. Some nice food stylist took it.