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I’m so super-excited — I finally bought a copy of Country Wisdom & Know-How! In case you don’t know, it’s a collection of small booklets that were published during the 1970s, “during the ‘back to the land era’ when hippies were homesteading and gas and energy prices were sky-high.” (Sound familiar?) Each booklet addressed some simple skill or piece of country know-how — this book covers everything from how to attract hummingbirds to making your own beer and wine, from drawing maple syrup to making milk soap, and everything in between. I seriously want to try to do everything in this book. Okay, maybe not killing and skinning a rabbit….And I don’t I don’t foresee myself breeding livestock anytime soon…but pretty much everything else I definitely want to do! There are also a ton of wonderful-sounding recipes in here, one of which inspired today’s blog entry.
When berries are in season I go through quarts of them every week. At this point in the summer I’m sure my husband’s starting to get sick of berry-somethings for breakfast every morning….Anyway, I had about three pints of blueberries in my refrigerator when I came across the recipe for Classic Blueberry Muffins in the book. I always like to modify things and make them my own so I first decided to add some nutmeg and shaved almonds to the recipe. Then I started thinking about how nothing enhances the flavor of blueberries more than cinnamon and orange. Berries and citrus are pretty much always outstanding together. Some pairings (Strawberry + Lime, Blackberry + Lemon, Grapefruit + Raspberry) go especially well together, but my favorite combination has to be blueberry and orange. The orange adds an edge and a brightness to the blueberry that is sublime. Yes, sublime…So by the time the muffins were done they had gone from Classic Blueberry to Orange-Almond…typical. I have included vegan alternatives in the recipe if you’d like to make an eggless, non-dairy version of these muffins. Either way, they’re delish!
Ingredients:
– 1 3/4 c. flour
– 1/2 c. sugar
– 1 Tbsp. baking powder
– 1/2 tsp. salt
– 1 tsp. cinnamon
– 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
– 4 Tbsp. butter or butter substitute like Earth Balance
– 1 egg, beaten, or 1/3 c. unsweetened applesauce
– 2/3 c. milk, or almond milk
– 1 tsp. vanilla extract
– 1 c. blueberries
– 1/4 c. shaved almonds
– 1 Tbsp. orange zest
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375F
2. In a large bowl, mix your dry ingredients together — flour through nutmeg
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3. Cut in the butter (substitute)
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4. In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, egg, and vanilla (or almond milk, applesauce and vanilla)
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir until just moistened
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6. Gently fold in the blueberries, almonds, and orange zest
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7. Fill greased muffin tins (recipe makes 12 medium-sized muffins)
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8. Bake for 20 minutes at 375F, or until a toothpick or a knife inserted into the center comes out clean
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9. Cool and remove from muffin tin. Enjoy!
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