muffins

lately, gabe has been eating a lot of muffins.  when i decided that it was time to move on from baby cereal and applesauce for breakfast, i was not sure what i wanted to try in its place.  i gave oatmeal a go, but soon realized that it increased the amount of fiber in gabe's diet by way too much.  

one morning, i made a batch of muffins for me, and gabe expressed an incredible amount of interest in them.  i gave him one and from then on, he was hooked.  just the sight of a muffin makes him squeal, and i don't mind, because i can sneak as much nutritious stuff into it as i want, and he will still eat it.  

the next obstacle i faced was figuring out the best way to store fresh muffins to ensure that they stayed moist (but not mushy) for as many days as it takes the two of us to eat the whole batch.  this is what i came up with.  the cloth napkins soak up any excess moisture, and the muffins are covered, so they don't get stale.  plus, i really don't mind having this on my counter all week.

for those who may be interested, i will share my recipe.  i use a basic muffin recipe, and then i add about a cup of any fruit (strawberries, apples, bananas...) or veggie (carrots, zucchini...) that i want.  no matter what i put in, gabe gobbles them up.  

ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

3/4 cup of milk (or soy milk)

3/8 cup vegetable oil (or applesauce)

approx. 1 cup add-ins 

i also add vanilla and usually cinnamon to taste

directions:

-mix wet ingredients in a bowl.

-in another bowl, sift dry ingredients together.

-add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, stirring until just moistened.

-stir in the add-in ingredients.

-scoop into greased muffin tins (or line with cupcake liners)

-bake in a 400 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes

:: day 143 ::