Moist Chocolate Muffins

Rainy Saturdays definitely bring out the culinary in me. That and hunger. I'm not much of a baker, I prefer to cook because cooking makes sense to me. Baking has steps and an invisible equation to it and the most infuriating about baking for me is that I don't know if I have gotten it right until it's out of the oven! And when it's out of the oven, it's almost too late! Cooking makes more sense to me. I taste as I cook and immediately know if I want to add some sugar or some spice. I can explore, create, be daring and adventurous all at once.

I will say this month has been kind to me. I have stretched out my baking muscles and if I have ever found a friend in the baking world, I would have to say it would be muffins. Muffins are quite simple and I love the fact that I can play around with the fruit choice or mixture and it'll still come out delicious! It's almost like cooking! (Almost.)

Always a good time for CHOCOLATE TIME!

I got this recipe (tweaked based on users' comments) from Allrecipes.com - a really great site that I use consistently and which also allows you to modify serving sizes and will recalculate portions for you.http://allrecipes.com/recipe/moist-chocolate-muffins/

Recipe makes 12 muffins


Ingredients


Chocolate Mixture

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup of mini chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Mixture

• 1 egg
• 1 cup vanilla greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup milk or chocolate milk*
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips

Banana Crumb Muffin

What does a rainy Saturday, overly ripe bananas and a cabin-fevered girl bring together? Banana muffins of course!

I based this recipe (with tweaks from other users' input) on the "Banana Crumb Muffins" on Allrecipes.com: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/banana-crumb-muffins/

Recipe makes 12 muffins

Batter

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 canola oil
• 1 egg

Crumb Mixture 

• 2 tbs all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbs butter

A New Year of New Beginnings

Hello 2014!

It's amazing how quickly 2014 has snuck up on me and how quickly things have, and can, change in a year. From making my first batch of rice to overcoming my fear of baking, I am so excited for all the fun experiences that 2014 has in store for me. 

I hope you enjoy the new look to my blog and check in regularly on my kitchen adventures as I experiment on what worked and what didn't. 

Happy Tastings!


Much love,
Nina

Girls' Night at a Tom Douglas' restaurant called Lola, which had these amazing sugared-cinnamon donuts with a side of vanilla mascapone and raspberry sauce. I also had my first taste of a Shirley Temple Black or also known as a "Dirty Shirley" - delicious!