"Benedict Muffinbach"

Friend T has christened this -

Benedict Muffinbach.  I suppose the inspiration came from it being similar to Eggs Benedict, but that it is radically not... combined with a wonderful play on the name of a favorite British actor playing the character of Sherlock Holmes.

But, yes, it is a variation on the same theme... something on top of an English muffin!

This time, I got inspiration from one of the breakfast items of my favorite coffee and tea cafe... Salmon Scramble... although their version is on a rosemary focaccia.

Toast an English muffin and spread lots of cream cheese over the top.  Layer on 2 to 3 pieces of smoked salmon (or as many as you like!) then top with scrambled eggs.  Drizzle dill sauce over and sprinkle cayenne pepper on top.

Enjoy!  Hubby sure did!

Eggs Benedict... Not!

I had it all planned. I was going to make Eggs Benedict for breakfast. According to Wikipedia, Eggs Benedict "is an American brunch or breakfast dish that consists of two halves of an English muffin each of which is topped with Canadian bacon – or sometimes ham or bacon – a poached egg; and hollandaise sauce".  My first try to make poached egg was dismal... worse, I forgot to buy ham, I only had chicken ham.  Long story short, I gave up the original plan.  But I already had the muffins, the chicken ham and egg... I did the next best thing.  I made a look-alike...

I toasted the muffins and spread some cream cheese on them.  The chicken slices were next then a slice of sandwich cheese.  A fried egg with a runny yolk and another one over easy went over the cheese.  And a sprinkling of cayenne pepper on the eggs.

The dish looked naked and not quite a look-alike but I did not particularly want to make Hollandaise sauce!  In the end I mixed some mayonnaise with a little mustard, some lemon juice, a pinch of dried dill and some salt to make a sauce.  And for good measure, I added coleslaw too!  Here's what my look-alike looks like...

Delicious!

Up and Down Lemon Blueberry Muffins

I was a bit stressed the other day and decided that I wanted to bake.  I was at a loss for what though, since I did not have much time.  For some reason, I thought of muffins... but then I wanted a bit of pizzazz so off I went to look in the library. 

I found Lemon Slice Muffins.  They were cute and intriguing, so that was it... but since I still had some blueberry filling left over, I decided to add it and make the kind of muffin that could be served right side up or upside down!

Right side up after removing the pan from the oven...

Upside down, after the muffins were removed from the muffin pan...

A peek at the inside of the muffin...

I found the recipe in this book...

and later found it online here.

As usual, I made some changes.  For one thing, I did not cook the lemon zest with sugar and butter, I just added everything together.  I used vanilla sugar and added about 1/4 teaspoon of lemon extract to the mix.  After spooning the batter into the muffin tin, I swirled in a teaspoon of blueberry filling.

Hubby found the muffins a bit tart, but that is to be expected.  I like it and so did some impromptu guests!

Calamansi Pistachio Muffins

I grew up with calamansi, or calamondin, which is, according to Wikipedia, a hybrid of citrus and kumquat.  We always had calamansi in the kitchen, whether for drinking (juice), or for cooking, or for seasoning on the table.  It has a different taste from lemon or lime, but it is definitely sour.

Anyway, just recently the food garden turned out a bumper crop of calamansi (both regular and variegated) and they were turning yellow fast so I had to figure out a way to use them!  I'd been eying a recipe for calamansi muffins in the book "Bake Me a Cake" and I thought a bumper crop of calamansi that was ripening very fast was a good reason to finally bake a batch! 

Of course, I couldn't help but make a few changes... first of which was to add chopped pistachio nuts!

An accidental "change" is the number of eggs... since I only had 2 pieces of super jumbo eggs, that's what I used, even if the original recipe specified 3 eggs.  I also added some calamansi zest... and I followed my usual method for mixing muffin batter...

How I made these muffins...

1-1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
zest from 2 large calamansi
2 pieces super jumbo eggs (original recipe called for 3 whole large)
1/3 cup fresh calamansi juice
3/8 cups low fat milk
1/2 cup chopped pistachios

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together; set aside.  Rub calamansi zest with sugar; let stand a few minutes.

Cream butter with sugar; add eggs, calamansi juice and milk.  Add the flour mixture in 3 parts; mix only until just combined.

Spoon into prepared muffin tins (about 22 midi-muffins) and sprinkle chopped pistachios on top (lightly press down so nuts will adhere).  Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

(Note:  a friend of mine suggested that a glaze would take the muffins over the top...)

Basic Whole Wheat Muffins

This is my go-to, basic muffin recipe.  For muffins, I always use half all purpose flour and half whole wheat flour.  It makes the muffin just a bit heftier but the texture is still good, not rock hard or dry.  And it's easy to mix-and-match.

Here's a batch that's been stuffed with chocolate fudge -

Here they are with blueberries and streusel topping -

The recipe:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour, sift after measuring
1/2 to 3/4  cup muscovado sugar **
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 super jumbo egg (or 2 medium eggs)
1/3 cup canola oil or melted butter
1 cup whole milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375*F.  Line 8 to 9 large muffin cups or 12 regular muffin cups with paper cups.

Combine the dry ingredients; set aside.  Mix together egg, oil/butter, milk and vanilla until well combined.  Add the dry ingredients and mix until only just combined (do not over-mix).

For variations, add in about 1 cup of - blueberries, raisins, nuts, chocolate chips, chopped dates, shredded cheese, chopped mangoes, etc.

Scoop batter into muffin cups and bake for 18 to 24 minutes; rotating tins halfway through baking time.

** I use 1/2 cup sugar when I add in sweet mix-ins; otherwise I use 3/4 cup.