Wednesday, October 16, 2013

apples apples and whole wheat apple muffins

There is a great children's book by Linda White called Too Many Pumpkins where a gardener named Rebecca Estelle has an enormous crop of pumpkins and no idea what to do with them all.  She decides to make the pumpkins into sweet treats for her neighbors and by the end of it, her kitchen is filled to the ceiling with pumpkin seeds.


This is pretty much how I'm feeling about the apples we picked from the orchard in Michigan.  I have no idea what comes over my ability to restrain myself while picking.  Sort of like when we hunt for our Christmas tree and come home with one that is ridiculously too large for our space!

So the baking has begun! This is one of my favorite go to apple muffin recipes around.  
adapted from Here

I double this recipe and come out with 12 giant muffins

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1 stick butter (I use salted)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar divided
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup milk (recipe calls for yogurt or buttermilk but I use milk and they come out great)
  • 2 large apples peeled and chopped

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees
Mix the wet ingredients in a stand up mixer
Slowly add dry ingredients and fold in apples by hand
Grease your pan and spoon them in 
Sprinkle their tops with the remaining brown sugar (you will be glad you did!)
Pop these babies in for 10 minutes
After 10 minutes turn the heat down to 400 degrees and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes
When the toothpick comes out clean you're good
Remove and place them on a cooling rack









Some apple inspiration for my remaining 100...

via-sugarpiefarmhouse.com


via-tinywhitedaisies

via-abounding-happiness

via-workmanfamily.typepad.com

apple cheesecake bars via-The Girl Who Ate Everything


Here is to a rocking Thursday!
Happy Baking, Making, and Growing!!!

31 comments:

  1. It sounds like you are the Clark Griswold of apple picking, my friend!! Your recipe looks both delicious and nourishing - the little guy and I might try this one out in the near future. The apple inspiration is delightful - love the apple and cinnamon sticks photo!

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  2. Yum! I will try tomorrow and let you know how it goes. :)

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  3. Your muffins look great! I love cooked apples, I made apple crumble this week. Hope that you have fun deciding what to do with the rest of your fruit, and trying not to get too big a Christmas tree this year!! xx

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  4. Those muffins look delicious - I have a new oven to road test and a whole load of apples. Might try drying some this year. What is the weight of a stick of butter? We don't have that as a unit here. Happy apples!

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  5. I love apple picking time. Sounds like you have lots more baking ahead of you. Your apple muffins sounds and look great.

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  6. I have not read that children's book. I will have to see if I can find it for the kids. Those muffins look great. Are you using a GIANT muffin tin or are these just big muffins in a regular tin? I have a couple of those giant muffin pans that I am always looking to use.

    LOL- 100 apples left, huh? Good luck!!! xo Diana

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  7. Hi Nicole, Thanks for sharing! I am drooling all over all of this yummy goodness!!

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  8. Looks like a great recipe and the muffins look good. Will have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. I LOVE apples!! I love apple-picking and eating them raw and baking them into something sweet. So versatile. Your muffins look delicious! Here's another very simple snack to try: Take one soft tortilla (I use the 6" rounds;, thinly slice apples and cover the tortilla; drizzle honey over the apples; sprinkle cinnamon over the honey; sprinkle grated cheese over all of that; lay another soft tortilla on top and put the whole thing under the broiler of your oven and let it broil until golden brown on the edges. This is really good, and almost tastes like apple pie. Softer 'eating' apples work best since they soften a bit under the broiler. Enjoy the rest of the week Nicole! Wendy x

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  10. So you can go on with your apples you have many ideas, which are looking great. I am in for the apple chees cake, yummie.

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  11. Hi Nicole,
    Your apple muffins look yummy! I'll have to give it a try.
    I'm chuckling over your inability to restrain yourself in an apple orchard......it's the smell and the next perfect apple you see hanging on the tree!
    Happy Baking to you.
    Sally

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  12. That pumpkin lady looks SO familiar, but I don't think I've read that book....I just spend awhile searching for other books with the same illustrator, and I still can't place it! oh well. Anyway, your muffins looks wonderful! In years past we've bought bushels of apples and done tons and tons of applesauce, but I don't know if we'll get it done this year. Our window of opportunity is closing very rapidly!

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  13. Oh dear, those treats looks so darn yummy, caramel apples are a weak point for me, oh hell, who am I kidding if it's sweet I'm there! LOL!
    Hugs,
    Beth P

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  14. Wow, you have been busy!! Loved the birthday party pics!! And The cabin looked like a great place to have hot cocoa, so beautiful! I love apple pie, my secret to a great apple pie...I learned this from a country fair, half granny smith, half red delicious, the best pie ever!!! Ps, I think you should dress your son up as charlie from the willy wonka movie, the old version, he looks like the original actor, for halloween of course!

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  15. apple treats are my favourite! I love me some apple crisp...oh my, a craving... I have to check out that book!

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  16. You apple muffins look yummy, but I am changing my eating habits back to no flour/ no sugar so the only one of your ideas I can do is to tie some cinnamon on an apple.

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  17. your muffins look so good! and caramel apples are my favorite!!! Extras probably would just look good in a bowl as a centerpiece or base of a big flower arrangement... - ooh also good for breakfast, some cinnamon and cardamon sprinkled on sauteed apples to add to pancakes or oatmeal

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  18. Yummy! I can't wait to start baking muffins again!!!
    When I have apples coming out my years, I make big batches of apple sauce and freeze it in jars. It's an easy way to make them last without having to have the oven on for ten days straight. :)

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  19. Yum, Yum and More Yum!!! I made the best apple crisp this weekend...with walnuts on half, my half, because not everyone wanted walnuts. Their loss! And yes, I can eat a whole half! Enjoy the rest of this bountiful autumn! Aloha

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  20. Those apple cheesecake bars look incredible. But we've experienced that problem with picking apples. After 15 minutes you've got more than you can use, but you're having too much fun to stop. Blueberries are much safer because they are so small.

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  21. They look delicious! When we went apple picking husband had to stop me because it was so hard not to want to pick ever single apple. I have a bowl of crab apples now waiting to be turned into something tasty.The picture of the apples and the marshmallow teeth is so funny!

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  22. YUM! We make apple muffins sometimes too but yours look so much better. And that apple cheesecake at the end just looks incredible. I hope you make it because I want to hear all about it. :)

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  23. Some good ideas there the toothy apples slices look interesting, bet they are a hit with kids and the apple cheesecake slice looks great.
    Merle...........

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  24. Your muffins look so yummy. I may have to make some cause I went apple picking too. Some of the other pictures look tempting too. Now that it's finally cool, I may have to stoke up the oven and fill the house with the smell of apples.
    Cindy

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  25. That book sounds SO darling! And I'm totally craving apple muffins now...looks so good.

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  26. O my, those muffins look amazing -- I can almost smell them! I love apple pie with tons of cinnamon, and I'd really like to try making those caramel apples on sticks. So glad to have discovered your lovely blog :)

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  27. Too many apples, and this is a problem???? (LOL) Thanks for the muffin recipe!!

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  28. The apple muffins and that cheesecake at the end of the post look so yummy. I just may have to pop back and make use of the muffin recipe. My hubby likes the apple teeth and thinks it would be a great snack for his Cub Scout Halloween party.

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  29. Oooh! They look tasty! I will definitely give these a try. :o)

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  30. Yum these look amazing! And I love your appley inspiration! xo

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  31. What a beautiful post-I love apples for baking-that cheesecake one looks really yummy as does your muffins.

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