Stephanies Kitchen

Apple Banana Muffins

November 10, 2008 By Steph 12 Comments

So, obviously I have been obsessed with muffins this year. I am a muffin freak. I will admit it, I’m not too proud. There is just something about that warm, delicious smell that peaks from the oven and fills your home with sweetness. It just makes you feel warm and cozy. I love that feeling, so I make muffins a lot. There is nothing wrong with that, right? So this recipe is similar to my Pumpkin Spice Muffin recipe. Very similar in fact. That is the great thing about this recipe. I have tweaked it and messed with it and now it is perfect. You can add any seasonings you like, switch out the fruit and make it to your own liking. Instead of the pumpkin puree, I used bananas and I added sauted cinnamon apples. These muffins cook up high and are very moist. You can add streusels to the top, but this particular recipe I just sprinkled some sugar on top. Delicious!!! I hope you like them!

In other news, check out my magazine debut. I had a recipe featured and it was so exciting! Check out Deborah from Taste and Tell’s recipe here too! Utah Valley Magazine is a local magazine here in Utah Valley, but you can check it out here online. Have a great week everyone!

Apple Banana Muffins

makes 12

3 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

dash nutmeg

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

3 cups apples, chopped and sauteed in 2 tablespoons butter and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon until soft

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugars until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time until well incorporated. Add vanilla.

3. Mix the milk and cream together. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk and cream to the mixer. Do not over mix. Add the bananas and apples and combine using a wooden spoon.

4. Divide batter evenly between the muffin tins, filling to the very top and a little over. Sprinkle tops of muffins with sugar. Â Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until cooked through and lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly.

Filed Under: apples, bread, muffins

Pumpkin Spice Muffins and a Giveaway!!!

October 23, 2008 By Steph 121 Comments

*Also seen on Cafe Zupas Blog

Happy Thursday everyone! And a happy 100th post to me! I can’t believe it myself, but I am officially not a newbie foodie anymore. I’ve made it past the hump and now I’m an experienced blogger(chuckle). I don’t know how experienced I feel quite yet, but maybe eventually it will come to that. I’m still feeling a little out of sorts here lately but I hope to be getting back into the swing of things soon. In honor of my 100th post I am doing a giveaway! Yay! The only thing you have to do is leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite fall food is. Anything you can think of will do. I would love some good ideas! You have until Tuesday, October 28th at 12:00 noon. I will announce the winners shortly after that. Would you like to know what the giveaways are? Here it goes…

My beautiful mother has kindly donated one of her gorgeous hand made French Linen Aprons. Make sure you check out her site, My French Table. ÂShe sells handmade French Tablecloths and Linens. They are gorgeous and affordable. So to one lucky winner, this apron will be all yours!

And for the last item, I received this wonderful cookbook in the mail, The Gathering of Friends. It is a great cookbook with some great ideas for entertaining and beautiful recipes. So, make sure you post your comment on this post before Tuesday so that you can have a chance at winning one of two fabulous prizes!!

Now onto the recipe!! These muffins are so delicious and moist and tasty that you can’t eat just one. They are filled with fall spices and topped with a brown sugar cinnamon crumble and drizzled with a cinnamon cream cheese glaze. You just can’t beat that combination my friends. And I can only tell you that the aroma of your home while these are baking should be bottled up and made into a candle because it is delightful. I hope you enjoy them and have a great weekend! Don’t forget to enter the giveaway and tell all your friends to enter too!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins
recipe by Steph
makes 12 muffins

For the muffins:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup pureed pumpkin
For the Crumble:
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoons melted butter
For the glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 ounces softened cream cheese
dash of ground cinnamon
dash of milk, if needed
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray regular muffin in with non stick spray.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
3. Using a mixer, mix the butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk and cream. Add pumpkin puree. Do not overmix.
4. Divide batter evenly between the muffin tins, filling to the very top and a little over.
5. In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the crumble. Crumble on top of each muffin batter. Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until cooked through and lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly.
6. In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the glaze. Drizzle over the tops of the muffins.

Filed Under: giveaway, muffins

Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Muffins

August 6, 2008 By Steph 12 Comments

Dear lovely readers,

I am still here in the big city of D.C. Enjoying myself a little too much now.

We are visiting the White House today. We have so much to do in so little time. Hopefully we’ll be able to see everything we hoped to see.

But onto another amazing recipe. I was craving chocolate the other day and thought, what better way to get over that craving than to suffocate myself in chocolate. Maybe I won’t need or want another bite for a good month. We’ll see how much that works. These muffins are sooo moist and sweet and delicious. Hope you enjoy. I’ll be back home tomorrow from our trip, so I’ll be back with an amazing post next week and I’ll be sure to let you know how my trip went! Have a good weekend!

Love,

Steph
Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Muffins
recipe by Stephanie
makes 12 muffins

1 stick butter
2 ounces bitter sweet chocolate, chopped
2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3- 1.55 oz Hershey Milk Chocolate Bars, coarsely chopped

1. Melt butter and bittersweet chocolate in the microwave until melted and smooth. Cool.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs and vanilla. Pour buttermilk mixture over dry ingredients.
4. Pour melted butter and chocolate mixture over dry ingredients. Mix all together until just combined. Do not overmix.
5. Stir in milk chocolate chunks.
6. Grease 12 regular size muffin tins. Divide batter evenly among muffin tins. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes and remove onto wire racks.

Filed Under: chocolate, desserts, muffins

Lemony Lemon Muffins

July 14, 2008 By Steph 16 Comments

I apologize for the lack of posts recently. I think cookie week really tuckered me out and I haven’t been cooking or baking much since. I’m finally over that and ready to get back in the kitchen!

If you are a frequent reader of my blog, than you know how much I love lemon. Anything lemon really. But put it in cake or muffins and I’m in. I’m all in. So yet another muffin recipe from Stephanie’s Kitchen. If you love lemon bundt cake, than you will simply adore these little beauties. They are topped with a sugary streusel, and if that wasn’t enough, top that with a lemon glaze and you have yourself one tasty little muffin. Please..try it. You’ll love it. I promise.

Lemony Lemon Muffins

makes 24 muffins

For the muffins:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup butter, melted

1 1/2 tablespoons grated lemon peel

1 tablespoon lemon juice

For the streusel:

1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cold butter

For the glaze:

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, butter, lemon peel and lemon juice. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix, just until moistened. Grease or paper line muffin cups and fill the batter 3/4 full.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, sugar and butter. Using your hands or a pastry blender, mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the streusel over the batter.

3. Bake muffins at 350 degrees for about 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes and remove onto a wire rack.

4. Mix together the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and drizzle over muffins.

Filed Under: lemon, muffins

Doughnut Muffins

June 23, 2008 By Steph 7 Comments

I like to try recipes from other food blogs once in a while, and while I was glancing at Genesis of a Cook a couple of weeks ago, she had posted about Doughnut Muffins. If you use the words “doughnut” and “muffin” in a sentence and make a recipe out of it, I’m all in! I knew I had to try them out. These muffins were really delicious. They could have been a little bit moister, but the flavor was phenomenal! My husband loved them, and he is pretty picky! My daughter loved them, mostly because the tops are dipped in cinnamon and sugar, one of her favorite combinations! Every drop was eaten, and that is pretty rare in my house. So, if they sound irresistible to you too, give them a try!

Doughnut Muffins

For Muffins:

3 cups flour

3/4 cups sugar, plus 1/8 cup of sugar

1/2 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

For Topping

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 cups sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard muffin pan with muffin cups.

2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and the sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until just mixed in. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Combine the vanilla, milk and heavy cream.

3. With a spoon, mix a quarter of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Then mix in a third of the milk mixture. Continue mixing in the remaining dry and wet ingredients alternately, ending with the dry. Mix until well combined and smooth, but don’t over mix.

4. Scoop enough batter into each tin so that the top of the batter is even with the rim of the cup, about 1/2 cup. Bake the muffins until firm to the touch, about 25-30 minutes.

5. To finish, melt the butter for the dipping mixture in a small bowl. Combine the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl. When the muffins are just cool enough to handle, remove them from the tin, dip them into or brush them all over with the melted butter, and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.

Starting next Monday the 30th of June, it will be Cookie Week in Stephanie’s Kitchen! There will be an awesome giveaway that you don’t want to miss, so stay tuned!

Filed Under: breakfast, muffins