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Saturday, March 31, 2012

Cornmeal Cranberry Muffins

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I'm slowly but surely trying to clear out the random ingredients that have accumulated in my freezer. I have a bad habit of "stocking up" on things and sticking them in the freezer. It's a good idea, in theory, until suddenly I'm having trouble opening the freezer door and I don't have room for my ice cream maker...which is obviously a problem (Yes I make ice cream all winter long!).
What's in my freezer? Half a dozen bags of chocolate chips in every variation you can imagine (chips, chunks, white chocolate, mini, you name it!), leftover homemade English muffins, giant ice cubes (you'll have to ask my cocktail connoisseur of a husband about that one!), and a few packages of cranberries. I've slowly been using them, in bundt cake, a healthy barley dish, and now these muffins.
We loved these unique muffins. They were only mildly sweet, and the pops of sour cranberries contrasted nicely with the cornmeal base. With cranberries as the only mix-in, these were pretty basic muffins. You could easily add some chopped and toasted nuts or some orange zest, but I really thought they were great as is. These would be perfect served at a brunch, grabbed for an afternoon snack, or eaten at dinner next to a big salad!

What's in YOUR freezer?! Anything you tend to stock up on?

One Year Ago: Sweet Onion Salad with Orange Vinaigrette
Two Years Ago: Mixed Citrus Green Salad

Cornmeal Cranberry Muffins
from MyRecipes
*Makes 1 dozen muffins

Ingredients:
-1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1 tbsp baking powder
-1/2 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
-1/2 cup sugar
-1 large egg, at room temperature
-1 cup milk, at room temperature
-1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a muffin pan and set aside.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, sift together flour and baking powder. Mix in cornmeal.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture, alternately with the milk, until well blended. Fold in the cranberries.
4. Spoon batter evenly into prepare muffin pan. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until muffins turn light golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out mostly clean.
5. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before removing muffins and allowing to cool completely on a wire rack.