Mmmm.....Muffins!

We are known for our muffins. Guests talk about them in social media, write online reviews about them, and ask if we're serving them for breakfast when they check in. Our guests debate which is the best flavor and are pretty adamant about which one gets their vote.

Yes, Greg bakes them fresh each and every morning. He times it so they come out as close as possible to 8:30 am so they are perfectly warm for breakfast service. And if you do have a favorite, let us know so we can make sure we have one set aside just for you.

We get asked for the recipe all the time, so here it is:

Ingredients:
2 c white flour
1 Tbs baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp xantham gum (optional)
2 Tbs white sugar
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 c milk
¼ c melted butter

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375F. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, xantham gum, sugars in large bowl. Add egg, milk and butter, stirring enough to dampen flour mixture. Batter will not be smooth and do not overbeat. Spoon into muffin pans (or paper muffin cups), filing each cup about 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

And here is the "secret" to how we make a variety of flavored muffins each and every morning....we divide the batter up into how ever many flavors we're going to make (it's usually at least 4) and then you just add whatever you want - chocolate chips; chocolate chips and cocoa powder (for double chocolate); chocolate chips, cocoa powder, and coffee (for double mocha); chopped apples; pecans; walnuts; dried cranberries; orange zest; lemon zest with poppy seeds; blueberries - the possibilities are endless.

Notes: Muffins do not hold well and are best eaten immediately after baking. The xantham gum will help them stay moist for a few hours after baking; otherwise they tend to dry out and get chewy. Xantham gum is usually available in stores that carry gluten free items. I don’t know if it comes in other forms, but we used powdered.

"C" is for Cookie

That's good enough for me! And are they good! Greg has spent quite a bit of time perfecting his chocolate chip cookie recipe and I am always happy to sample. The key to a great chocolate chip cookie, at least in our minds, is the chip. Our favorite is Guittard, but we can never find them. We used to find them at BJ's but they haven't carried them in years. So we wind up using Nestle or Hershey's because those are the easiest to find, but they're not the same. Ghiradelli are pretty good with a richer, darker flavor but if you're making cookies for kids, I say go with Nestle.

For "C" week at school, Greg got out the Nestle chips for a tasty batch of cookies for the little ones.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 lb butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
In medium bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In large bowl, cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Gradually add dry ingredients until blended. Add chocolate chips and nuts (if desired). Drop by rounded teaspoonful onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.

The cookies come out more evenly shaped when you use an ice cream scoop. These were made with mini chocolate chips.

I like cookies a little chewier so I bake on the shorter side, but if you like crispy, go for 12 minutes.

And if anyone has leads on where to get Guittard chocolate chips, let us know. What I wouldn't do to find Guittard chips again!

"B" is for Banana Bread

We're continuing on our mission of making weekly treats for the Pre-K class at one of our local schools and blogging out our recipes. Each week the class studies a letter of the alphabet, so for "B" week, Greg made banana bread muffins. This is a very easy recipe to make, but not my personal favorite when it comes to banana bread.

Here is the recipe we made for the students:

Ingredients for Banana Bread

Ingredients:
3 over-ripe bananas, cut into slices
6 Tbs butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda



Directions:

Butter & sugar with bananas.

Cream together butter and sugar. Add in sliced bananas and whip in electric mixer until smooth. Add vanilla and salt and mix. Add one egg at a time and mix until each is incorporated. Add flour and baking soda and mix together. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes for mini muffins; 15 minutes for full size muffins.





Here's the recipe I prefer to use when making banana bread. It's not as simple and requires a lot more bowls, but I think the muffins are much lighter and more moist. And if you really want to jazz them up, toss in a handful of chocolate chips for Chocolate Banana Nut Bread.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp salt
2 cup flour
2 large bananas mashed
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 egg whites
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
Cream together butter and sugar. Add yolks, salt and mix. Add flour and mix. In separate bowl, mash bananas with baking soda. In another bowl, whisk egg whites to stiff peak. Add bananas to flour mixture and mix until blended. Fold in egg whites. Do not over mix, but you do want to make sure you don't have any streaks of egg white. At this point, add nuts or chocolate chips if desired. Fill pans about 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees until dark brown - about 20 minutes if making loaves, and 10 minutes if making mini muffins. If you make loaves, the bread freezes well and you can defrost overnight. You can toast lightly and smear with a little butter - makes this person who really doesn't like bananas, like banana bread.

Try out the recipes and let us know which one you prefer. 

"A" is for Applesauce

We're doing a cookbook! Okay, don't get too excited…..Greg volunteered to do a cookbook for one of our local schools. Their Pre-K class studies a letter of the alphabet each week and the students have to bring in an item that starts with that letter. Greg's idea was to make foods with the letter of the week, and then at the end of the year the students would receive a cookbook with all the recipes. So we've been cooking and baking for the little ones and hopefully, exposing them to some fun foods.

Applesauce isn't that creative, but what Pre-K'r doesn't like applesauce?


Applesauce
4 lbs. apples - mix of Granny Smith, and something else, should be about 3 lbs peeled, cored and cut into chunks
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash ground cloves
dash ground ginger


Peel, core and cut apples. Place in dutch oven or large stockpot, and cover with water and all dry ingredients. Over medium-high heat, bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce temperature to low, and cook covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. There will still be a fair amount of liquid in the bottom of the pan (it's perfectly fine). Mash with a potato masher until desired consistency. For finer, smoother consistency, process through a food mill.

Use a mix of different types of apples.

Cut up into chunks so they will cook down faster.

Cook down apples with water and dry ingredients.

Mash away until the desired consistency.

We recommend using at least 2 Granny Smith apples. They are firmer, don't release as much water, and add a great flavor when mixed with other apples. I know that MacIntosh are usually the least expensive to purchase, but they are also the mushiest (in our opinion). You would think you would want mushy for applesauce, but they don't really have much flavor when used for applesauce. We like Gala and Fuji, but there are so many great varieties out there. Use a mix!

Sweet Potato Cheesecake

I may not have won the sweet potato pie contest, but this recipe rocks! You can make it as one large, thick cheesecake (8, 9, or 10 inch) in a springform pan, or you will have enough batter to make 2 pies. You will need to double the crust recipe if making pies. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Cheesecake Pie with Pecan Crust and Pecan Caramel Crust

Crust
1/4 c. butter, melted
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. pecan meal
1 c. graham cracker crumbs

Combine ingredients and press firmly into pie pan. Bake 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Let cool before filling. Yields one crust.


Filling
3 -8 oz. packages cream cheese, softened
3/4 c. + 2 Tbs. sugar
1/3 c. sour cream
1/4 c. heavy whipping cream
1 3/4 c. sweet potato puree
3 eggs
1 tsp. cinammon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add sugar and mix. Add sour cream and whipping cream and mix. Add sweet potato puree and mix. Add eggs one at a time and mix. Add spices and mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Place mixture in cooled pie crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. After 40 minutes, turn oven off and prop oven door ajar and leave in oven for another 30 minutes. Allow to cool and refrigerate. Must be kept refrigerated.

*If you are making one cheesecake, bake for 1 hour.


Caramel Nut Sauce
1/2 c. water
1 c. sugar
3/4 c. heavy cream
1 c. chopped nuts

Place water and sugar in saucepan and bring to boil. Do not stir and allow to boil until amber color. Remove from heat and slowly add heavy cream (mixture will splatter so add slowly). Stir together and bring mixture back to boil. Add chopped nuts. Allow to cool slightly before pouring on top of pie. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Yields one cup and makes enough to cover 2 pies with thin layer of sauce.

*You can refrigerate caramel sauce, and reheat.

 

And the Winner Is......

Greg took first place in the sweet potato pie contest at the 2013 Cape Charles Fall Festival over the weekend. The week prior was fun with trying out different recipes, taste testing and having some friendly competition about who could make the better pie. So here is the winning recipe.....enjoy!

Roasted rum sweet potato pie with pecan streusel topping

Pie Filling:
2 eggs
1 yolk
3/4 c. brown sugar
3 Tbs. dark rum
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/3 c. heavy cream
2 1/4 c. sweet potato puree

Streusel Topping:
2 Tbs. margarine
3 Tbs. brown sugar
1/4 c. + 1 Tbs. flour
1/4 c. pecans, chopped and roasted

Whisk together eggs and sugar until slightly thickened. Add rum, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, heavy cream and mix. Add sweet potato puree and mix. Pour into prepared pie crust. Bake 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare streusel topping. Mix together margarine, brown sugar and flour until crumbly. Add nuts.

After pie has baked 10 minutes, sprinkle Streusel Topping on top of pie. Bake for additional 35 to 45 minutes. Center may still be loose but toothpick inserted in middle should come out clean. Allow to cool before slicing.

Roasted rum sweet potato pie with pecan streusel topping