It all started with Mr. C.
On one of Mr. C’s recent trips to Costco, he came home with a 12-pack of almond poppy seed muffins. And right then and there I decided I had been remiss in not making almond poppy seed muffins a part of our everyday life! And even though the cost for these amazing muffins was not high, I decided I should be making them from scratch at home. And even if it was not a cost saving decision, it was a chance for me to once again cut unnecessary and possibly unhealthy preservative chemicals and fake ingredients from our diet. So, I found this recipe on the brokenovenbaking.com site. And boy am I glad I did. Because I had forgotten how much I love the combination of almond flavoring and poppy seeds.
Kayla’s recipe on her site came with an almond glaze. But I decided, since I would be freezing most of the muffins, a glaze was not a good idea. (Glazes tend to break down into sticky messes when frozen or even refrigerated. Plus, we didn’t really need any additional calories.) And sure enough, the muffins were just delicious without a topping of any kind. And as you might already know, I often add toppings to muffins. But with these babies, there was really no need at all for any type of embellishment.
So, if you too love muffins that are quick and easy to build, contain simple ingredients, and don’t even require a mixer, this is the recipe for you.
Well, that’s it for today. Mr. C. has a gig tonight at the Rockfish Grill in Anacortes. And you might find this interesting. The Rockfish Grill is celebrating 25 years of serving Anacortes and Skagit County. They pour 30 different styles of beer year-round from the Anacortes Brewery right next door. Which BTW, is the 8th oldest brewery in the great state of Washington! But what impresses me the most about this restaurant is that The Rockfish is one of the longest continuously running music venues in Western Washington. And Mr. C. is lucky enough to be a part of 5 of the musical groups that provide entertainment while diners enjoy not only the food, but the welcoming atmosphere provided by the owners Allen Rhoades and Rick Star and their staff at the “fish”. So, am I looking forward to this evening? You bet I am. I will be dining with friends and listening to one of the greatest upscale classic rock bands around – The Fat Fridays. Life is good!
May your life also be filled with good food, good friends, and good music. This trio may seem a bit simplistic, but I assure you, good music, good friends, and good food help keep me from sinking into despair over what is happening to our country.
Peace and love to all.
2¼ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed
¾ c. granulated sugar
½ tsp. kosher salt
1 T. baking powder
2 T. poppy seeds
1 c. real buttermilk, room temp.
½ c. veggie or canola oil
2 lg. eggs, room temp.
¾ tsp. good quality almond extract
Place muffin liners* (I needed 15 muffin liners) in your standard size muffin tin or tins. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and poppy seeds together.
In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and almond extract together.
Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until the flour streaks disappear.
Using a medium sized #20 (around 2¼-inches in diameter) ice cream scoop, plop balls of dough into the muffin liners.
Bake in a pre-heated 375-degree oven for about 15 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 200-205 degrees.
Remove from oven and allow the muffins to cool completely on a wire rack before eating or storing them in an airtight container.
*I use parchment muffin/cupcake liners. Using parchment liners rather than regular paper liners ensures that my muffins or cupcakes don’t stick to the liners. And OK, parchment paper isn’t as pretty and colorful as decorative paper liners. But you don’t lose any of the muffin or cupcake to a parchment liner the way you do with a paper liner. Pick your battles!