UGLY MUFFINS RECIPE

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but let’s face it, sometimes food just doesn’t turn out pretty.

Bland colors on a bland plate? Sick. [Why don’t hospitals get this?]

Pasta with a white cream sauce served with white cauliflower as the vegetable? Ick.

White soup with white saltine crackers? Blech.

[And yet vanilla ice cream in a white bowl? Yum!  Beholder, remember? Beholder!]

Let’s face it, sometimes we simply have to close our eyes to eat. 

Today’s post is about inner beauty. [How I love to rationalize.]

I’ll admit I’m no cupcake maker. I think I’m starting to realize that cupcake batter should only fill half the cup (see my post for Halloween).

HALLOWEEN "GH0ST" CUPCAKES

But it’s taken me years to get this basic point. And it only took me a couple of weeks to forget it. Perhaps I’ll write in on a Post-it note and put it on my baking cabinet…or better yet, stow it in the cupcake tin itself!  {Lightbulb!!}

Anyway, I made some gluten-free muffins and I forgot the tenet above and over-poured the batter. Minutes later, out came these muffins. They’re flat-out ugly with elephantine bumps. Frosting can cover a lot of ugliness, but I wasn’t adding frosting this time. {Though a cream cheese frosting might be tasty.}

Given time constraints of travel and not having time to make a whole new batch, I closed my eyes and took a bite. It turns out they’re yummy, moist, and full of flavor.

Just don’t look at them.

What do you like to eat that’s flat-out ugly?

APPLE CHEDDAR MUFFINS

Ingredients:

(makes 8)

1 ¼ cup gluten-free baking mix (I used Pamela's see note below)

¼ cup water

¼ cup brown sugar

¼ cup chopped cheese (Dry Jack & Cheddar)

½ cup parboiled apple slices (recipe below)

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In medium bowl, mix all ingredients. [Note, you can use any GF baking mix. Pamela’s, GF Bisquick, Bob’s Red Mill…] 

Using a ladle, spoon mixture into 8 greased muffin pans or paper muffin cups (to ½ to 2/3 full).  Bake approximately 18-20 minutes.

Parboiled Apples

 

*To make parboiled apples: Peel 2 apples, your choice. Dice into small bites. Heat ½ cup water to boil. Add apple slices. Boil 10 minutes. Drain.

** When adding apple slices to the recipe above, do not include the “sweet apple” water left over.

Extra recipe:


Parboiled "Applesauce"

Make as above. DO NOT DRAIN. Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Eat just like it is or... * I added the "applesauce" to my latest banana bread in place of one of the bananas. PERFECT.  [Forgot to take pictures of this. Think chunky applesauce.]

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