LUCY BURDETTE: Seeing a bowl of blueberries in the fridge that were just about to get soft, I had a powerful urge to make blueberry muffins. As far as I’ve experienced, there are none better than the recipe in Once Upon a Chef. As I was gathering the ingredients together, I remembered taking home economics in junior high school. We learned some sewing skills (made an apron!) and also did some cooking. That teacher was strict! We were afraid of her, and afraid to make mistakes. I remembered making muffins—she cut into them at the end and if they had air tunnels inside, our grade was lowered.
For one class, she had us all take part in a baking process exhibition. My assignment was to research and present the water displacement method which I was to explain to the class the next day. I had no idea what this was and there was no Google to look it up. I asked my mother, who was not a big baker except for Christmas cookies and birthday cakes, she didn’t know either. She showed me the way she measured shortening (usually Crisco), and that was to measure a half cup of water and drop Crisco in to bring the liquid up to a one cup line. (That is if you wanted a half cup of shortening.) So I brought that to the class next day.
“I don’t know what water displacement method is, but this is how my mother measures shortening,” I said.
“That is the water displacement method,” the stern teacher said.
Anyway, that’s neither here nor there, but it got me thinking about home economics and how it’s too bad today’s kids don’t have that class. A little instruction in cooking and sewing could only be a good thing!
And here are Once Upon a Chef's blueberry muffins.
Ingredients
One stick (8 ounces) butter, softened
One cup sugar
Two large eggs at room temp
One and a half teaspoons vanilla
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup of milk
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cups fresh blueberries
Beat the butter with the sugar until light and pale yellow. Beat the eggs in one at a time, spending a couple minutes on each one.
Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Alternate mixing some of the dry ingredients with milk into the rest of the batter. Until everything is gone. Don’t overbeat!
Stir in the blueberries.
Grease a muffin tin, and add paper muffin cups. Distribute the batter between the 12 of them. Bake at 375 for half an hour-ish. Mine were browning at 28 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the pan. Here’s one broken open. No air tunnels there!
Did you take home economics as a young person? Do your kids or grandkids study the art of home making? Is this a lost art or are we just as glad to see it gone out of the schools? And what should I do with all those amazing peaches?
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A Delicious Deception has a slightly different tone than some of the earlier books, with more emphasis on family, but I loved it just as much as the rest of the series. Ms. Burdette has created characters who have grown in such natural, believable ways. She delivers an excellent mystery while also weaving in a major, emotional turning point in their lives. There is drama, murder, secrets, late-pregnancy feelings and hormones, a sick father-in-law, home renovations, a fun baby shower, and friends and family ready to tackle whatever comes their way. And in the end, a beautiful baby! Escape with Dollycas
This cozy mystery expertly balances personal stakes with a fast-paced plot in a consistent Burdette fashion. It’s a suspenseful, heart-filled addition to the series that proves Hayley is just as effective at solving crimes as she is at critiquing menus. Netgalley reviewer
USA Today bestselling author Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mystery series including A POISONOUS PALATE and A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS. Join her mailing list right here.
