 As I've told friends... I remember that puppies are a lot of work. What I forgot is, I'm old. My days and nights are consumed by playing, feeding, and cleaning up after Bisous, who I've renamed, Busy-Baby-Bisous... and I wouldn't have it any other way. We just love him. But these Blueberry, Oat, and Greek Yogurt Muffins are all I've been able to make in my kitchen today. I promise you, it will not take you two hours to make these muffins, as it did me. They are extremely easy to mix up and bake. I just had a few interruptions by little, Busy-Baby Bisous...    + adapted from a Donna Hay recipe • 2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour, sifted • 1 tablespoon baking powder • 2/3 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling • 3 large eggs * 3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil • 1/2 cup thick, natural Greek yogurt • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 1/3 cup rolled oats, plus extra for sprinkling • 1 cup frozen blueberries 1. Preheat oven to 375˚F. 2. Place 2 tablespoons of the flour in a small bowl; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining flour and the baking powder. Add the sugar, eggs, oil, yogurt, and vanilla to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. 3. Add the blueberries to the reserved 2 tablespoons flour and toss to coat. Gently fold the blueberries and the oats into the batter in the large mixing bowl. 4. Divide the batter between twelve 1/2 cup-capacity muffin tins lined with paper cases. 5. Sprinkle tops with extra oats and sugar. Place on the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. TAKE a LOOK:
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 I think you can call me an olive oil junkie... possibly an addict... and I'm embarrassed to say, maybe a snob. I love the stuff. I may even use olive oil more than butter. Probably. Next to my kitchen range, I have an old French lemonade bottle filled with a very reasonably priced extra-virgin olive oil that I use primarily for sautéing, the frying of eggs, or the oiling of molds. For that purpose, I've been buying Trader Joe's Extra Virgin California Estate Olive Oil, named by the Wall Street Journal as one of its favorites, and "a workhorse" in the kitchen (read about it HERE). On the opposite side of my range are the oils I use for finishing or whisking into a vinaigrette. I purchased an amazing one last summer at the Carpentras, France outdoor market and paid more for it than I like to spend, but it's heaven! It's truly the best one I've ever had in my kitchen... And, it's almost gone :( But just because I adore really good extra-virgin olive oils, I will not drop a bundle on them. One EVOO I always try to have on hand in my kitchen is Nicholas Alziari from Nice. I refuse to purchase it here in the U.S. (carried by Williams-Sonoma and Zingerman's) because of the steep price -- it costs half in Paris. If I happen to be there, I will stock up, bringing several home. And, Nicholas Alziari is something I always request if a friend is traveling to France and generously asks, "Is there something you'd like me to pick up for you?" Packaged in a tin instead of glass bottles, it packs easily in a suitcase. But unfortunately, I cannot afford to hop a flight just to restock my pantry. My solution to that is shopping discount retailers. I've scored big time at places like HomeGoods. You won't always find an exceptional oil there, but if you're persistent, you will eventually snag a winner. I recently found Le Château d'Estoublon there for less than you'd pay in France. Always check the expiration date before purchasing, and store any unopened oils in a cool spot away from direct sunlight until needed.  This recipe for gluten-free Blueberry Muffins made with almond flour and olive oil is from a great article in a past WSJ OFF DUTY about olive oil myths (read it HERE).  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease 8 cups of a standard muffin pan with extra-virgin olive oil or use muffin liners. In a large bowl, stir together 2 cups almond flour or very finely ground blanched almonds, ¼ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon. 2. In a small bowl, combine 2 large eggs, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons plain yogurt, then stir wet mixture into dry ingredients. (It’s OK if there are lumps in the dough.) Use a rubber spatula to fold 1 cup blueberries into batter. 3. Spoon batter into muffin pan, filling each cup to just below the brim. Bake 5 minutes, then decrease heat to 350 degrees and continue to cook until tops of muffins are lightly golden and dry to the touch, 15-20 minutes more. Transfer muffins to a rack to cool. TAKE a LOOK: 
I always have fresh bananas on hand. I like them sliced over Greek yogurt and granola with dried fruit. My daughter throws a banana into the blender every time she makes a smoothie. And my French Bulldog, Pipi... well, she'll take them any way she can get them. And during the warm summer months, bananas in my kitchen ripen faster than any other time of year... time to make MUFFINS! 
+ adapted recipe from King Arthur Flour • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt • 1 large egg • 1/4 cup canola oil • 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas • 3/4 cup sugar • 1 cup oat bran • 1 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour • 2 teaspoons baking powder • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda • 1/4 teaspoon freshly-grated nutmeg STREUSEL TOPPING: •1/4 cup brown sugar • 1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats • 2 tablespoons unbleached, all-purpose flour • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon • 1 tablespoon butter, softened PREHEAT OVEN to 375˚F 1. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line with paper. 2. In a medium bowl, combine the yogurt, egg, oil, bananas, sugar, and oat bran; whisk to combine. Set aside for 10 minutes. 3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg; whisk to combine. 4. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, rolled oats, 2 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon. Work the softened butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly. Set aside. 5. Whisk the yogurt-banana mixture into the dry ingredients and divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with the streusel mixture. 6. Bake muffins on middle rack of preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden. Cool muffins briefly then unmold onto a rack to cool completely. TAKE a LOOK:  • • • • • • • • •  It's well known (by family and some friends) that I'm not much good for anything unless I've had my morning cappuccino. On rare occasions, I have been forced to dash out of the house without one. It is not an ideal situation. Even my French Bulldog Pipi knows there's no hope of a walk unless I've downed a double espresso first. Breakfast can wait, and usually does, until later. When I get myself out of bed, down the stairs, and into the kitchen, it's all about the cappuccino and nothing else... well, a little cookie or muffin on the side is always welcome :)  BREAKFAST: Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins and a Cappuccino • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened • 1 cup sugar • 2 large eggs, room temperature • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt • Finely grated zest of 1 small, organic lemon • 1 teaspoon almond extract • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds • 2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda • 1 teaspoon baking powder • 12 fresh blackberries 1. PREHEAT OVEN to 400˚F. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper or silicone baking cups. 2. In a large bowl, cream butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add yogurt, lemon zest, almond extract, and poppy seeds. Mix well. 3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir into the creamed mixture. Spoon batter evenly into the prepared muffin tin. Press a blackberry into the center of each muffin. 4. Place tin on the middle rack of oven. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown; cool for 5 minutes before serving. TAKE a LOOK:  What a relief... I had everything in my kitchen to make these Mixed Berry and Greek Yogurt Muffins. If I don't have to bundle up and go out into the numbing cold to pick up ingredients, I'm thrilled! I made the muffins for tomorrow morning, but they are disappearing fast. They're really good.   adapted recipe from MARIE CLAIRE SEASONAL KITCHEN by Michelle Cranston • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt • 3 1/2 ounces canola oil • 2 large eggs • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract • 2 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour • 2 generous teaspoons baking powder • 3/4 cup brown sugar • 1 3/4 cups frozen mixed berries • Raw (demerara) sugar, for sprinkling 1. PREHEAT OVEN to 375˚F* Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line with paper baking cups. 2. Combine the yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Sift the flour, baking powder, and brown sugar into a large bowl. (I like to put the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse, especially if the brown sugar is lumpy.) Gently stir the frozen berries into the flour mixture (reserve 12 large frozen berries to top-off the muffins). Add the yogurt mixture to the flour and stir until combined. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups and place a reserved berry on top of each muffin. Sprinkle muffins generously with the raw sugar. 3. Place muffin tin on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Recipe makes 12 muffins. * The original recipe calls for an oven temperature of 350˚F. It took my muffins an additional 10 to 15 minutes at that bake time; I suggest 375˚F. TAKE a LOOK:   I feel as though I've been in a (Passions to Pastry) hibernation of sorts; a bit uninspired lately. Can I blame it on the weather? Many of the things coming out of my kitchen recently are tried and true (and already posted) comfort foods that are all I want during this winter of endless deep freeze. I have never been as anxious as I am now to get outside and plant my vegetable garden -- at best, another three months off. Dreams of an outdoor pizza oven (and it may be just that... a dream) have kept both my husband and my imagination piqued. If anyone has any suggestions (hand-built versus portable), please email me, or leave a comment.  In the meantime, I spent the weekend in my kitchen with silicone Baking Buddies sent to me by Rizzi of the New York Baking Company. Rizzi asked me to test the silicone baking cups and give an honest review of the results. After baking individual flourless chocolate cakes followed by these Little Apricot Cakes, I say... What's not to like? What Rizzi didn't know was, other than the Silpat sheets I've used to line my baking pans, I have never baked with silicone molds before, making me the perfect candidate to test them out. The non-stick, free-standing muffin cups are BPA-free, oven, microwave, and dishwasher safe, can be frozen for ice cream desserts, and have a life-time guarantee. As I said before... What's not to like! You can see how nicely my Little Apricot Cakes browned and released from the silicone molds.  For some reason, I tend to bake with apricots more during the winter months than I do during apricot season, probably due to all of the French recipes I've run across for apricot tarts where canned fruit is drained and patted dry with paper towels. Preserved apricots are most always small and firm; just the way I like them. They worked perfectly in this recipe.  Silicone Baking Buddies and individual flourless chocolate cakes (recipe coming soon!)  recipe by Mary-Frances Heck | Bon Appetit, June 2013 • 1 cup all-purpose flour • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt • 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature • 1/3 cup sugar • 1 large egg • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 1/3 cup whole milk • canned apricots, halves drained and dried with paper towel and sliced into 1/4-inch wedges (you will not need the entire can) • 2 tablespoons raw sugar 1. PREHEAT oven to 350˚F. Either grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line with silicone or paper muffin cups. 2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and kosher salt. 3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter along with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, lemon zest, and vanilla. Continue to beat until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl when necessary. 4. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with the milk in 2 additions. Mix just until combined. 5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Top each with 3 apricot wedges and sprinkle with the raw sugar. 6. Place the muffin tin on the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from oven and place tin on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove the little cakes from the tin and cool completely. TAKE a LOOK:  SUNDAY MORNINGS at MY HOUSE   a tweaked version... Sunset Magazine | April 2013 • 1 1/4 cups sugar • 1/4 cup unsalted butter • 1 1/4 cups shredded carrots • 1 cup currants • 1 teaspoon kosher salt • 1 teaspoon cinnamon • 1 teaspoon ground allspice • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves • 1 1/3 cups water • 1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour • 1 cup whole wheat flour • 1 teaspoon baking powder • 1 teaspoon baking soda • 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature • 1 tablespoon organic orange zest 1. PREHEAT OVEN to 400˚F. Grease a 12 cup muffin tin. 2. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and next 7 ingredients. Add the water. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, just until mixture comes to a boil. 3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder and baking soda. Add the warm ingredients from the saucepan; stir just until combined. Divide mixture evenly between the muffin cups. 4. Place the muffin tin on the middle rack of oven. Bake for 15 minutes, or until browned and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cook on rack. 5. In a small bowl stir together until smooth the cream cheese and orange zest. TAKE a LOOK:  I have to admit, my garden is taking a toll on me. After a delayed planting season due to the cool, damp spring and then complaining most of the summer that I had nothing to eat from my garden, I am now inundated with produce! Every morning when I look out my kitchen windows I see more bright red and yellow tomatoes to pick, more Japanese and classic eggplant hanging from the branches, and... who knows what I'll find lurking behind those giant zucchini leaves! It's been hard to keep up.  All of a sudden I'm overwhelmed, and somewhat exhausted, by my little garden. I've found myself thinking often of my mother's huge vegetable garden and how she managed and mastered the bushel baskets full of produce every day throughout the summer -- I don't come close. I have devoted this week to tomatoes; peeling, seeding, and chopping. I have made fresh salsa several times, since it doesn't stick around for very long. (Really, is there anything better than scrambled eggs topped with fresh tomato salsa (?) -- also a good way to use up my many jalapêno peppers.) I've also been making the base for my favorite Tomato Risotto to freeze for the upcoming winter. Eating this risotto on a snowy, below zero day puts a smile on everyone's faces.  But I find all of that chopping tiresome. What I love doing most in my kitchen is baking and yesterday I did just that -- with zucchini from my garden. I made zucchini muffins with the addition of coconut and baked them in miniature popover tins. The shape reminds me of the chocolate bouchons sold throughout Paris! I had Cream of Coconut in my refrigerator, leftover from the Tropical Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting I recently made and added that to the muffins and the icing, along with finely-shredded, unsweetened, organic coconut.  And if you don't have zucchini from your own vegetable garden, I suggest picking some up at the market. This recipe's a keeper. Zucchini & Coconut Iced Muffins |
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