Dorie’s great grain muffins…a taste of yellow

You know how much I love strawberry scones, right? Well, even though I haven’t made them as often as I did last year, I still make them…or at least I intend to. On Sunday I fully intended to make scones using Dorie Greenspan’s recipe…but then I remembered all the pain au chocolat that I’ve been eating because Cameron has been turning out such perfect delights lately, and then I thought about the baquette and butter splurge I went on the other evening, and I said to myself “hmmm, you need more whole grains”. Of course Dorie had the answer in the form of her great grain muffins.

A good muffin can be really good, but a bad muffin is often no better than a doorstop. Back in the 80’s I bought Jane Brody’s Good Food Book and learned a lot about whole grain cooking but as usual for me I went overboard…the details are unclear now but what I do remember is that the muffins I made were really dense (like a hockey puck) and heavy and I’m sure they had no resemblance to anything in Jane Brody’s book. The worst part is that I actually gave them to people to eat…I had no frame of reference on what a good muffin should be since I’d never made muffins before and honestly there were no muffins in my background…it wasn’t something my mom ever made.

These muffins are the good kind. They rise up with a nice perky little domes, their texture is good, they’re not heavy or dense…but they are satisfying. I chose to add dried cranberries and pistachios and I think it was a good choice. The colors add some interest and the flavors are well matched. Speaking of color…this post is my entry into the Taste of Yellow blogging event hosted by Barbara over at Winos and Foodies. I doubt that there is anyone who hasn’t been touched by cancer in some way and LIVESTRONG Day is the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s one-day initiative to raise awareness and funds for the cancer fight. LIVESTRONG Day 2008 will occur on Tuesday, May 13.

Great Grains Muffins
adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan
printer-friendly recipe

1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons plain yogurt
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup pistachios

Preheat the oven to 400° and butter a 12 count muffin tin or line the cups with paper muffin cups.

Combine the flours, cornmeal, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Stir to combine. In another bowl combine the milk, yogurt, syrup, sugar, eggs, and butter. Whisk to combine. Add the cranberries and pistachios to the dry mixture. Fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture making sure to only stir enough to combine…don’t over-stir. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the tops are golden and a thin knife inserted into a muffin comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let it rest for 5 minutes. Gently remove the muffins and allow them to cool, or eat them right away…that’s what we do!

23 April 2008 | baking, blog event, breakfast, cookbook, food, fruit and nuts, recipe, sweets | Comments