Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Yogurt Honey Muffins

BAKING! I realized that I have been baking since I was 15 years old! Judging by the recipes that I have in my parents house and the loads of baking materials that are kept in the cabinets... unused of course, I've been baking inedible cookies and breads half of my life already. :-)

I've been experimenting with different cookies and muffins lately. Some successful, some of them met my trash can early enough. One of my favorites is the Yogurt Honey Muffins I made a couple of weeks ago. They are soft inside and healthy. You can make them into big muffins or make loads of mini muffins. Plus, you can put cream cheese (not the healthiest but completely yummy!) and some marmalade to make it the perfect breakfast or snack.

Got this recipe from an old recipe book I have given by my friend Yannie.

Makes 12 muffins
Ingredients:
4 tbsps butter
5 tbsps thin honey
1 cup plain yogurt
1 large egg, at room temperature
grated rind of 1 lemon
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsps. baking soda
1/8 tsp grated nutmeg

Procedure:
1. Pre-heat oven to 375F. Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or use paper liners. (I used paper liners but when I bake these again, I will just grease the pan and flour it a bit.)
2. In a saucepan, melt the butter and honey. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
3. In a bowl, whisk together the yogurt, egg, lemon rind and juice. Add the butter and honey mixture. Set aside.
4. In another bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. (Whole wheat flour can't be sifted well, I just make sure that other than the wheat, all lumps are crushed).
5. Fold the dry ingredients into the yogurt mixture just to blend. Don't overmix.
6. Fill the prepared cups 2/3 full. Bake until the tops spring back when touched lightly, 20-25 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes before unmolding. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: if you are using a 6 muffin pan, bake for 10 to 15 minutes. For mini muffin pans, 5 to 8 minutes.


Mushroom Patties

Since I have not eaten a burger for a year now, I've been wanting to make my own mushroom patty so I have searched the web for a recipe that will suit my liking. Unfortunately, nothing came close. So, I've decided to make my own and I'm loving it... of course Edgar loved it too. :-) It's healthy and yummy! What more can you ask for?

Ingredients:
3 cups of different kinds of mushrooms (shitake, oysters and button mushrooms) chopped
1/4 cup butter
3 tsps mushroom seasoning
1 medium sized carrots diced to small pieces
3 tbsps spring onions chopped
1 medium sized onions chopped
8 cloves of garlic diced
1 cup of spinach leaves
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
3 tsps of soy sauce
2 large eggs
1 cup of breadcrumbs
salt and pepper


Procedure:
1. Saute the chopped mushrooms in melted butter until tender. Add mushroom seasoning for flavor.
2. Remove from fire and let cool.
3. Combine carrots, onions, spring onions, garlic, spinach and parmesan cheese in one bowl. Mix well.
4. Pour in the mushrooms to your carrots mixture.
4. Add in the soy sauce, eggs and bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper. Mix until the mixture is thick enough to be made into a patty.
5. Form into burger patties. Fry or grill and enjoy with your favorite hamburger buns. :-)

I made a lot already so I can just put them in the freezer and grill or fry as I want them