# Muffins



## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

I'm feeling caught in a rut at the B&B; any brilliant ideas for a different flavoured muffin? Savory is fine! I try to always have quickbreads out with early am coffee before breakfast, but I'm tired of the same ole combinations...

Thanks in advance

lynne


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Lynne what are your same old combos?

I like using currants with orange zest

Think of altering the liquid in your recipes to a juice.

I love Brunch...what do you make now?


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## katherine (Aug 12, 2000)

When I made muffins for breakfast, we always had to have the following: blueberry, raspberry/cranberry/orange, and an extremely healthy muffin with no other appeal. I will admit people bought loads of them, probably because they figured calories didn't count if the muffin was fat-free. Occasionally I made apple/spice/streusel or lemon-poppyseed. My favorite of all time, which I was only allowed to make once, is banana/chocolate chip. Take a banana cake recipe, cut the butter in half and the sugar by a third, add chocolate chips and bake. Absolute euphoria. People asked for those muffins for months, but the owner wouldn't let me bake them, saying people didn't like them. I think she was jealous because nobody ever requested her banana/bran muffins.


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## mudbug (Dec 30, 1999)

Lynn,

Browse the following websites and you are sure to have too many to try!

Bed & Breakfast Inns Recipes & Cookbooks http://www.bbonline.com/recipe/index.html

Master Search at CookBooks Online http://www.cook-books.com/dblogin.asp

IChef recipes http://www.ichef.com


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## judy (Jul 6, 1999)

Lynne, my favourite muffin at the moment is marmalade and white chocolate. Rhubarb with raisins to counteract the rhubarb is a bit of a hit too. Love the great taste and clour that passionfruit makes as well.


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## m brown (May 29, 1999)

Run your banana choco chip ( call it something else containing the name of the owner or B&B)! 
With that idea as a starting point you can use any cake flavor and fruit, chip, herb, spice, meat(?), multi-grain, marble (two flavors, colours), candy mix-ins, cookie mix-ins. The muffin is your palate.

I am having a coconut craving, how about a coconut macaroon angelfood muffin? basic muffin with macaroons broken into the batter. Or toffee bar in a molasses sweetend batter.

Good luck!


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bake first, ask questions later


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Prunes with triple sec and pecans muffins
Biscuit muffins....don't remember now where I saw the recipe but they are wonderful...maybe Silver palate cookbook..now which one (they are a wonderful resource for this)
Chocolate cherry tea bread freezes and apparently just the name is a draw
roulades are fun and can be made ahead.
Pumpkin bread with a cheese cake layer...had it years ago I think on a cream cheese box
(those recipes are usually pretty darn good think fantasy fudge)
Scotch eggs....vary the sausage
fruit scones....easy fast yummy
puff pastry with orange macerated apricots and almond paste
People love palmiers go figure
Baby muffins
Calas...fried rice balls (rice batter cinnamon floured deep fried sprinkled with p.sugar)
Beignets...my personal favorite
Pain au chocolat....YES they are on my market and yummy!!!!!! croissant with a chocolate strip running throughout.Sorry got to running on and forgot this was a muffin topic.....I love brunch

[This message has been edited by shroomgirl (edited September 24, 2000).]


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## cookm (Aug 8, 2000)

Yeah Lynne, what are the tired 'ole faves? I had run into the same predicament. These people kept making corn muffins. I like them, but all the time? I made lemon blueberry, carrot raisin, and lemon ginger. (I'm a citrus freak, can you tell? BTW, Bradley Ogden has a really good recipe for bran muffins.


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## bakerbebe (Sep 13, 2000)

I have some fabulous recipes for Poppyseed bread with Almond/Orange Glaze and a Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread -- I'm sure you can bake them in the jumbo muffin tins (or regular tins) and just alter the baking times. Anyways, if you want them, just let me know and I'll post them.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

The tired faves are 

white chocolate raspberry, yummy but 
almond lemon
lemon poppyseed
zucchini carrot
the standards
raspberry blueberry
blueberry creamcheese

Thanks for the inspiration y'all!

'Shrrom girl, some of the breakfast standards--

Basil Frittata with a bell pepper & italian sausage sauce with cheddar and herb biscuits

Mushroom and Sausage upside cornbread with roasted tomatoes


Parmesan roulade with smoked salmon and a grape tomato and basil salad (so cool and refreshing! one of my favourites --even if I do have to get up early to make it!

My signature dishes are an apricot, pecan and cream cheese stuffed croissant cooked french toast style topped with apricot sauce and served with smoked sausage

Signature breakfast desert: raspberry creamcheese coffee cake served with fresh raspberries and blueberries

the list goes on...

lynne


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## momoreg (Mar 4, 2000)

I do 2 kinds of savory muffins that go over very well: One is a red bell pepper muffin topped with chevre, and the other is oatmeal cheddar.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

sounds pretty good to me...just bored huh?
That apricot croissant french toast is serious!!!!

Brioche french toast with pear or apple butters or carmelized fruits

Strudels....pastry cream with macerated winter fruits

Nancy Silverton has some wonderful pastry ideas.


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

I love muffins, I have lots of recipes but always goes back to one basic recipe I can use for any muffins. From there you can improvise on flavour, depending on what fruits are in season. Lately I've done lots of pear muffins with variations. Pear & almond, pear & ginger, pear & blueberry. I am sure you get the idea. Just try mix that appeal to you. As long as you have a good basic recipe you can pretty much do everything.


At the bookstore last week on sale there was a book with breakfast recipes from bed & breakfast from all over the country, Canada. Lots of very interesting recipes. I would never have bought it at 21.95$ but for 6.99$ it was a good buy.


Sisi


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Looks like I'll be making sweet potato, butternut and pumpkin breads, muffins, biscuits....with raisins, pecans, apples, cinnamon....etc....Sat the 14 we have a Brunch (no gross leftovers) at the Crossing
Sooooo now to see what I can do before the Sat. because I'm real busy that AM with the market and Ann Cooper
Any ideas????


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

OK, this week pecan pie muffins, pineapple-mint, pumpkin praline and zucchini-carrot & orange.

My frind just made pumpkin-zucchini with parmesan cheese--haven't heard the reviews yet...


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Would you elaborate on Pecan pie muffin please?


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## m brown (May 29, 1999)

Buttery caramel and pecans in the pan first, a lush butter muffin batter dotted with pralines on top. Double Trouble!!!!


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Actually I mix them all up(easier to store and easier for my crack of dawn breakfast-on-the-go) , and oh they are sinful! Did them today for 3rd course instead of with coffee pre-breakfast. Plated a couple mini muffins with fresh whipped cream sprinkled with cinnamon and gorgeous burgundy pansies! They were beautiful!

Easy to make too: 1/3 cup melted butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup chopped pecans, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 eggs and 1/2 cup flour.
Mini muffins take 13-15 min to bake at 350. 

Maybe someone can help me with these-- no matter what I do, they stick to the pans and are impossible to get out! I have to use baking cups with these. I have tried: butter, pam, butter or pam with flour, butter and cake crumbs...nothing works! Any ideas? I have to say that the foil cups work better than the paper ones.

Tomorrow, pineapple macadamia with coconut streusel.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

3rd course breakfast??????How many courses do you serve and what do they consist of?
Boy tomorrow sounds wonderful! Much better than the black bean burritos I'm making for the Farmer~chef class.

Have you tried the new plastic type muffin cup? (they are exspensive) 

Some of the goopy ones just need a liner or you're scrubbing out mini tins....like caramel rolls


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## momoreg (Mar 4, 2000)

I have a cake batter that's very stubborn like that. The only way I can get it out of a muffin pan is by freezing the baked cakes, then torching them out! Pretty time consuming, and probably not worth it for a breakfast muffin. The odd thing about that cake mix is that when I bake it in cake pans, the pop out fine, as long as they've cooled for an hour.


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

I too love muffins and make a lot of them. I usually bake them in paper cups and have no problem with regular recipes. 


I do have problems when using low fat recipes. Always trying to find ways to cut fat I often replace oil by applesauce. With those muffins papercup are useless, Half the muffin will remain in the papercup. Instead I now grease and flour the pan and have no problems.


Sisi


P.S. If you muffins rise high and spillover the rim of the cup, it might explain the problem you are having. In that case, greasing the top of the pan should help.


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## m brown (May 29, 1999)

Helpful hints:

Spray Muffin tins with pam, freeze 15 min, fill and bake right away.
Or Keep clean tins in the freezer, when ready to bake, remove from freezer, spray, fill and bake. 
Freezing the spray creates a grease shield and batter doesn't rip through to the metal. 


Thank you for sharing.



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bake first, ask questions later


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Thanks for the suggestions--I tried them out using the frozen Pam trick--they still stuck like crazy; so I guess I'm stuck with liners for the pecan pie muffins. The trick worked wonderfully for blueberry gingerbread which have always been a little tricky in the past.

Going to do smoked tomato and goat cheese savory muffins to go with an avocado soup; so here goes-


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## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Smoked tomato and goat cheese muffin, sounds intense and with avocado soup,,Yum recipe for the muffins please?
Thanks


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## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Lynne,

Maybe try some warm goat cheese and sundried tomato pyllo bundles in the soup. The warm and cold will play off each other, I'm assuming the soup is chilled. Also the crispyness of the pastry with work well with the satiney texture of the soup.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Instead of muffins maybe a biscuit or scone with goat cheese and spicy tomato jam with mustard seeds and cinnamon.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Thanks Cape Chef,

The muffins weren't all that I wanted them to be; once I'm satisfied with a recipe, I'll share. The avocado soup was incredible though!


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## katherine (Aug 12, 2000)

My favorite scones are made with the addition of grated orange rind, chopped candied ginger, dried cranberries, and whole almonds. Another popular one you see a lot has grated lemon rind and poppyseeds in the scones. After baking them, brush with a glaze made from lemon juice and powdered sugar.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Thanks for all the wonderful ideas--I need to get back into Scones. So wonderful with clotted cream...


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

For a change how about coffe cake, danish or some kind of brioches? And waflles, pancakes and crepes.


So many food so little time...


Sisi


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

oh yeah scones with lemon curd, raspberry jam and clotted cream....TEA PLEASE


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## m brown (May 29, 1999)

Tarts, Crisps, Cobbler...........
it's all fair game!
We used to have Brekfast Cookies with raisin bran, eggs, bacon, flour, sugar, baking powder. 
They were great with dunked in coffee or beer! Even good stale.
Don't ask, it was college.
remember raisin flat cookie wafer thingies? 
How about rugela? croissants with almonds and roasted fruits? 
enjoy brunch all!


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

It's all fair game is right! People are so thrilled when you place a freshly made individual cobbler or tart in front of them (a favourite 3rd course...). 

Croissants, rugela, muffins, etc are standard out with coffee about an hour before breakfast.

People are iffy about scones, but when I've tried to do a fruit and cheese course as third course, people don't do brie or camambert or some of the other non-day-to-day cheeses. They just don't know what they are missing!


Thanks for the wonderful feedback--I obviously love brunch too! It's those 7am breakfasts I'm not too thrilled about...


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

So Lynne if my math is right your serving bread products at 6am.....wooooo

There are B and B's in Southern Louisiana that make sweet potato biscuits pre breakfast. There were some nice B and B's in St. Francisville....the old plantations were fun too....even the haunted ones.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Actually most of my guests are honeymooners, anniversarys, promotions and proposals (we had such a cool one last weekend) -- and they aren't in to getting up too early -- breakfast is usually 9 ish so baked goods out 7:30-8ish. I'm lucky when that happens and dread the way early corporate breakfast...

Sweet potato biscuits are awesome (especially with a good Virginia baked ham).

This weekend I was inspired by napoleans; did a banana napolean this morning that everyone loved and was wowed by and it was so easy!! Never thought about baking wonton wrappers with butter and cinnamon sugar before-such a no-brainer. But everyone wanted the recipe (and wasn't it hard to roll the dough so thin? as one person asked)


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

That's always floored me....the easy stuff everyone goes bonkers over and wants the recipe the 3 day daube or multi~houred multi~prep they go "it's nice".....the easy recipes are "Family secrets"....I give out the hard ones.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Me too!!


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

MaryeO did you cook this over an open fireplace in a big cast iron pot?
Sounds OK to Me love the name sounds like the names I give....I hate naming food.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Do it all the time...just sounded like it fit.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

No kidding it also hones your organizational skills......I have 1 son who came close to Eagle scout so I did ALOT of outdoor cooking with them.....now it's with my wild mushroom guys.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

What went wrong with your muffins ?Jesse...alot of the time we talk ingrediants knowing what the "muffin technique" is....
Joy of Cooking is a great resource, just take one of the basic recipes and adapt...throw in dried cherries that have soaked in a poaching liquid (Orange comes to mind with cinnamon stick) drain throughly throw in the rich muffin batter maybo top with a streusel (butter, sugar, flour crumb mix) and bake...just do not over mix...that is basic muffin NONO>


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## mudbug (Dec 30, 1999)

Hi everyone, there is a very interesting article by baker Marcy Goldman on muffins here:
http://www.cheftalkcafe.com/ubb/Foru...ML/000011.html

with recipes!


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## katherine (Aug 12, 2000)

A lot of muffin recipes you find in older cookbooks are not as sweet and rich (and dessert-like) as people expect nowadays. You'll probably need to double the sugar and increase the butter by a half. Also, old-fashioned muffin pans were pretty small. If you're using a large muffin pan, expect to get only one-third the number of muffins out of a recipe.


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