Muffin Mania

Dear reader,

I've been making lots of muffins lately for my daughter, as a fun and delicious snack that sneaks in extra vegetables in her diet. Not that the Babe really needs extra greens, mind you... she loves vegetables and highly dislikes meat. Even cheese-covered pasta is not that popular. Gee! Meat, pasta and cheese: what's not to love?!?

To try something new, yesterday I made parsnip muffins, the recipe for which I discovered while watching Good Eats with Alton Brown. Now, I have to admit I had never even tried parsnips before since they remind me of turnips. Ew. But this recipe was intriguing, so I gave it a go, and I quite enjoyed them fresh outta the oven. I did make a few changes to the recipe, which I noted in brackets in the list of ingredients, so try it and let's tawk (especially you, Kerri, my parsnip-loathing friend)!

8 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (I suggest using a bit less, otherwise it’s all about the nutmeg)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 whole eggs (I used 1 jar baby prunes and ¼ cup apple sauce since Louisa is allergic to eggs)
3/4 cup plain whole milk yogurt (I used whole milk)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
8 ounces sugar (I used 3 oz. brown sugar, 2 oz. white sugar and 2 oz. old-fashioned oatmeal)
10 ounces grated parsnips (yeah, that’s a lot of parsnip)

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a standard 12-cup muffin tin with the nonstick spray and set aside.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt (+ oatmeal) in a bowl and mix well.
Whisk the eggs (or prunes + applesauce), yogurt (or milk), vegetable oil, and sugar in a large mixing bowl until combined. Add the flour mixture and parsnips, and fold with a spatula until all of the flour is moistened; there will be some lumps. Divide the mixture evenly among the muffin cups and bake for 25 minutes. Store completely cooled muffins in an airtight container for up to 3 days.