Orange Craisin Muffins

The inspiration for these came from Paula Deen's "Best Damn Blueberry Muffins." I used her technique, substituted in orange juice for the liquid and shazam! Orange Craisin Muffins. They're really quite delicious. This season I'm making them for all the neighbors. We'll see how that works out.

Orange Craisin Muffins

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
2 large oranges
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 egg slightly beaten
3/4 cup Craisins
1/2 cup pecan pieces.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Prepare muffin pan by lightly spraying the top with non-stick cooking spray and lining with foil baking cups. In a medium to large bowl combine flour, baking powder and sugar.In a blender or food processor, place 1 peeled and sectioned orange plus the zest and juice of the second orange.Pulse until the orange is liquefied. Add the egg and melted butter, pulse just until combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Fold in the Craisins and pecans.

 

This batter is pretty thick and when everything works right you should see a nice, airy texture and a batter that doesn't run. Don't worry, if the batter is a little runny, the muffins will still taste fine.

 

Spoon batter into muffin cups (I like to use an ice cream scoop coated with cooking spray), filling to about 2/3 full.Bake for 18 - 20 minutes or until tops are golden. If desired, remove half way through baking and sprinkle with white or brown sugar and return to oven.

Handy Tip: Fill a clean salt shaker with sugar and use that to sprinkle your muffins.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

5 oz baby spinach
8 med strawberries, sliced
Candied Pecans (recipe follows)

Rinse spinach well and place in serving bowl
Top with sliced strawberries and candied pecans.

Candied Pecans

My father-in-law showed me how to make these years ago. I love them as a salad topping. They're also fabulous on ice cream or just as a snack. The niece thinks I should just keep them around the house on principle.

1/2 cup pecan halves or chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar (now, my f-i-l likes his with considerably more sugar, which is certainly an option. Play with it and see what you like)

Cover a cookie sheet or a plate with foil and spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Place pecans and sugar in a non-stick skillet over medium heat.
You want enough sugar to cover the bottom of your skillet, but not so much that it buries the pecans.

Over med-low, heat the sugar until it begins to caramelize.
Stir frequently to avoid burning the pecans.

Once the sugar is completely caramelized it will be a gorgeous brown color that smells just amazing. Carefully scrape the pecans from the pan onto the foil and let cool.

When cool to the touch, break apart and sprinkle over salad.

Enjoy! And please don't be too hard on me for waiting so long between posts. :)