Picnic Perfect

The best way to keep the memory of an all too brief vacation alive, is to picnic on the very same beach the following weekend. And to encourage your friends to eat your experiments, stored safely in your picnic hamper.

Since my friends are mostly vegetarian, and the beach is home to more than one case of sun induced food poisoning every summer; I decided to make everything veggie friendly, and although the picnic basket is insulated, I steered away from anything that might spoil, and therefore spoil our day. 

A muffaletta traditionally features various deli meats and cheeses layered in an entire loaf of bread with a tapenade mix that balances out all the richness. To Vegetarian-ize (yes, I'm making up my own words now) I grilled super thin slices of zucchini, and summer squash,(tossed lightly in coconut oil) and layered them with grilled onions, baby spinach, tapenade, and hummus. Simply pull out some of the inside of you loaf of bread, smear one side with hummus, the other with tapenade, and fill. Then wrap it up and stow it at the bottom of the picnic basket: it gets better if you give it a bit of a press.

The barley salad was inspired by one of my picnic companions. She once made a dip for freshly baked bread out of olive oil, garlic, and copious amounts of cilantro and I couldn't get enough of it. I’ve made it several times since, and when I was trying to think of a side dish that would be sun-safe and also refreshing it occurred to me that the dip would make a delicious dressing, I cut the olive oil way down and added a splash of white wine vinegar, for good measure a chopped cucumber from our garden went in.


For dessert we had Allison Attenborough’s lemon lavender shortbread. I made it in a small cake pan, so we could bread pieces off as desired. Its delicate enough that you taste the lavender but not so potent that you feel as though you ate a potpourri cookie, or licked your grandmothers drawer liner.

NOTE: There is nothing wrong with using fancy picnic fare to bribe friends to come to the beach with you, even though you know they have to work that afternoon.

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Long Time, No See

I haven't been writing here much at all have I? Things in my life have been swirling along at a ridiculous clip and I find that this is the first evening where my errands (the really important ones that involve mechanics and buying tires,) are done. Even though my house is an absolute mess, I'm on the couch with the laptop and I'm typing away. How refreshing. The kitchen here got a little makeover in the time I've been away. Some lights and some paint on the cabinets, also a pot rack. Nothing glamorous, and yet it was just what I needed to get me back in the game. The kitchen isn't the only thing undergoing a makeover, as my diet is not so slowly leaving meat behind

Along with reducing meat in our diet we've also been trying to cut down on the extras but that doesnt mean we're leaving meat totally behind... Just tonight we sat down to roasted grape tomatoes with sicilian green and kalamata olives, topped with a roasted peice of steelhead trout. Cooking here is happening fairly frequently, but its taking alot of effort to find something that feels worth writing about. Dont ask me why, I'm sure it has nothing to do with anything...just a phase or whatever it is that they call it.

We did get a teaser or warm weather the other day and it inspired me to start our seedlings (lemon cucumbers! heirloom tomatoes! you will be mine!!) and plan out a summer garden. Hopefully as the light extends into the evenings, and the temperatures rise, I'll feel a bit more inspired to share whats been going on around here. In the meantime, since were trying to eat a little...lower fat, without turning to processed 'fat free' foods, I've been reformatting some of the favorites Ive shared here before.

Remember the banana bread? Well its gotten of makeover as whole wheat banana muffins. We can't even taste the difference between the old and the new, since instead of all that butter we're using greek yogurt, the muffins stay incredibly moist. If you're feeling decadent, a handful of chocolate chips takes these from breakfast to dessert...and thats made them quite popular around here.

Whole Wheat Bana Muffins

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 large bananas)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup low-fat greek yogurt
1/4 cup rapeseed oil
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper cups or parchment.

In a large bowl, mix the mashed bananas with the baking soda and yogurt. Meanwhile, whisk in the oil, egg whites, vanilla and sugar.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, ground cinnamon and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the flour mixture. Stir until just combined, careful; not to over mix, because the wheat flour can get tough if you overdo it. Pour into the prepared pan and Bake for about 45 - 55 minutes,
Remove from oven and pan then place on a wire rack to cool.

Makes about 12 muffins
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12 Cookies of Christmas

In my house, we celebrate Christmas.

This is not because its what the man and I decided that together or because the man has ever had a Christmas tree - or a menorah - in his home. I have lived and breathed for Christmas since I was a child. Its my mother's fault, really. She loved Christmas (even though she worked in retail!) and she would put on holiday records and wrap everything - even the stocking gifts until well after midnight every Christmas Eve, while the sounds of The Carpenters Sing Christmas lulled me to sleep from down the hall.

Somehow, even in the darkest, scariest of financial situations my parents managed to fill the house with food, music, love, and an awfully large load of presents under the tree. I still don't know how they pulled it off, (but I imagine they must have impeccable credit). Growing up in this environment (I have a friend who loves to remind me that I was blessed with the white whale of childhoods, and while it wasn't all rosy, it was damn fine) I carry a militant amount of Christmas cheer with me. At this time of year people are more pleasant, snow is beautiful (rather than 'godforsaken white $#@%, which is what I will call it after January fifth), and food - I swear - tastes better.

Christmas has undergone a makeover since the 'Great Recession' hit.  At least in my corner of the world, it has gone to a more traditional place, where the material (and, ahem, expensive) has given up center stage and turned it back over to the holiday heavy hitters: family, homemade treats and gifts, and perhaps most special - the gift of time. This year friends and I are planning days after Christmas to spend together, rather than exchanging gifts, because the most valuable thing that I think you can give someone, is your time, your attention, and (geez its getting corny - stick with me here, I'm about to come around to my point) your love. Cooking is one of my loves, and cookies are just about everyone's love, at one time or another. (whew! I knew I'd get there)

So this year, for my neighbors, my coworkers, my extended family, and for our friends, I will be making cookies. and in (yet another) Christmas tradition I have decided on not one, but twelve different varieties. You might think I'm crazy, and I think I already admitted to that in the first paragraph,  but with the modern convenience that is your freezer, you too could pull this off without too much sweat. Plus its always nice to bring over a tin of this and that, I think. So that the people that you care for can have a cookie suited to their mood, their taste, or you know...what they happen to be drinking.

Cookies making the roster this year are not the most traditional, but hey, even if I am cracked out on Christmas from the day after Thanksgiving until New Years Eve, I still hate those tasteless, rock hard sugar cookies with the too sweet icing. I'm not handing those foul things to the people I love.

The Twelve Cookies of Christmas (in no particular order)
1. Sesame Ginger Shortbread
2. Lime Melt-aways
3. Coconut Macaroons
4. Oatmeal with Chocolate Covered Raisins
5. Chocolate Coffee Crinkles
6. Cassis Crisps
7. Spicy Molasses Cookies with Orange Sugar
8. Rum Balls (not really a cookie, but a holiday staple!)
9. Nutella Thumbprints
10. Italian Anise Drops
11. Cherry Cornmeal Cookies
12. Pistachio Cardamom Drops

I'll be pre - mixing the dough and freezing up until a week before Christmas, so I'll post the recipes here as I make them and then devote a post to the finished product. Here's hoping I don't weigh in at 900 pounds by the time this is over....

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Sweet Potato Pecan Muffins

Muffins to make the (rainy, Fall) morning bright.

Last weekend I bought 5 sweet potatoes. I bought them with every intention of serving them as oven fries when I made pulled pork in my slow cooker for a group of friends that came over to visit. Since we ended up eating the sandwiches while we played cards, I never got the chance to make the fries. and so I am left in a sweet potato debacle. What do 2 people do with almost a half dozen sweet potatoes??

Well before I went out to visit a friend for a couple of hours on Sunday, I wrapped three in little foil jackets and popped them in the oven. The man turned off the oven when the timer dinged, and when I got home I had 2 cups worth of soft roasted sweet potato to work with. If we are home over the weekend, (an increasingly rare occurrence lately) I love to take the time to bake something that we can eat for breakfast through the week. It guarantees I will eat breakfast, and helps me turn a deaf ear to the siren song that is the coffee shop (and their gingerbread donuts) two doors down from my office. and so sweet potato muffins were born.

These muffins are great for Sunday baking and then munching all week long. While not a close cousin to the gingerbread donuts, they do pack a lovely amount of -natural- sweetness and spice. They are made hearty with oats and whole wheat flour while pecans give some nice crunch. The sweet potato puree helps to keep them moist through the week...I daresay that they would keep well longer, but I wouldn't be able to tell you. They don't last that long in my house.

Sweet Potato Pecan Muffins
 Adapted from The Louisiana Sweet Potato Comission
1 c. old fashioned rolled oats
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1 c. roasted and mashed sweet potato
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. canola oil
1/4 c. skim milk (I used soy milk)
1 large egg
1 t. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400°. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk oatmeal, flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In another small bowl, combine the sweet potato, brown sugar, oil, egg, milk and vanilla, whisking to blend well. Pour over dry ingredients and stir to combine. Mix until just moistened. Scoop into muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes. Check at the 15 minute mark- the batter is fairly dense and will bake quickly. More...

Mark Bittman's Molasses Wheat Bread

Truth Time: I dont bake bread. (banana bread doesn't count, its basically cake,) Want a cake? Want a tart? A pie?  sure thing, I'll be over with baked goods in an hour. Want a loaf of bread for morning toast? ....Well then go to the bakery. UNLESS youwant me to make this wheat and molasses flavored loaf. Its easy, and yeast free.

I've been enjoying this sucker toasted, smeared with currant preserves, and dunked in tea. If your inner old woman isnt as active as mine, I think that thick slices of this would work great as the foundation to turkey sandwiches,  because the molasses is just a little bit sweet. This bread is dense, so not too many toppings would be needed. You can make like my dearest friend Samantha and spread the bread with apple jelly and top it with leftover roasted onions, I think it would be delicious.

I would remove the bread from the pan as soon as your fingers can stand it to avoid getting that slimy skin on top (sort of like the banana bread) if you line your pan with parchment paper, leave the sides a bit long and then hoist it right out of the pan and onto a wire rack. then get out of your kitchen so you aren't tempted to pick at it. Or don't, and eat a slice still alarmingly warm with butter.

I won't post the recipe here, because I didnt adapt it, at all. Its the fear of baking thing...Gets me everytime. Next time I might top the loaf wiuth some oats, because Im fixated on starch. Other than that, its pretty delicious for the yeast-phobic, and it might delay my learning to bake a yeast based sandwich  or toasting bread just a little longer.

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Plum Ginger Cake

I have been trying to post this recipe for 2 days, I've lost the three (slightly) different posts, and Im feeling a leeetle burnt out on blogger. Its raining. Thats what I'm using as my excuse. Apparently I'm a delicate flower, and when it rains for more than three days, I get cranky.

The silver lining? I have cake. Ive been eating it for breakfast (using the same excuse of 'its raining') and its been delicious. Click the link below to get the recipe, without any of the adorable stories about the man eating bites off my plate even though he hates sweets, no ponderings on ginger's restorative powers. Just delicious cake. Why? Because, its raining.


Ginger Plum Cake
Adapted from Bon Appetit

I highly reccomend eating this warm, because the smell of the warm ginger cake is enough to put you through the roof. I also find that because it has way less sugar than half the cereal I eat, that this cake in a small wedge with a great big cup of tea is lovely not only in the afternoon, but also on your way out the door in the morning.

1 1/4 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed golden brown sugar
10 small 'prune plums' halved, pitted


1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup crystallized ginger, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk


Preheat oven to 350°F. Stir 3 tablespoons butter, brown sugar  and a pinch of the crystallized ginger in a saucepan over low heat until butter melts and sugar creates a sludge-y syrup. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter cake pan greased, lined with parchment and greased again. Arrange plums in to cover the surface
Combine the dry ingredients, including ginger in a medium bowl. Cream the remaining butter, adding the sugar and vanilla and beat until creamy. Add eggs one at a time. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, mixing just until blended. Spoon batter evenly over plums, it will be thick, but don't worry about it, it spreads and rises really well. Bake cake until a tester inserted into center comes out clean, I started testing at 45 minutes. Cool 30 minutes.
Place platter atop the pan. Invert cake. Gently lift off pan, and peel away parchment. Serve cake warm with powder sugar (or at room temperature for breakfast!).
Click Here For A Printable Recipe
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French Friday: Gougeres

I'm participating in French Fridays With Dorie, so for the next little while, I'll be 'cooking the book' along with many other bloggers, one recipe a week.

This past week I was blessed with visitors from what feels like another lifetime ago. Years ago, before the man, the kitchen, and the blog; before I really actually knew how to cook, or cared to know, I made friends with some really wonderful people. The kind of people who don't care that its been a year since you saw each other, and that you don't call frequently, but as soon as they see you, you're hugging and laughing and gushing about what they are doing, what you are doing, and everything in between. These are people I like to think of as 'lifers'. They may not be with you day to day, but when your chips are down, they are always there. My chips have been down a few times when these particular visitors were there to rescue me (or just keep me from losing my mind) They, at the very least, deserve a decent spread. 

The first recipe in our selection happens to be the first in Dorie's book, Around My French Table. A recipe for gougeres, cheesy baked goods that rise up to almost hollow puffs (flavored in my case with sharp cheddar, although I think smoked Gouda would be delicious in these as well) I knew these would be perfect for the entertaining. They seemed fairly straight forward, and who doesn't love cheese?

 

My gougeres puffed up beautifully and I pulled them out with alot of surprise that I had done them right...then they fell. Not baked long enough and not stirred over the heat long enough, I learned when I googled it later.  Yes, I google my failures. Really, it wasn't such a bad 'failure' at all... little cheese biscuits with an almost hollow center, thats what they looked like. Noone really seemed too put off by them,apparently it didn't matter. It was a night for catching up and thats exactly what we did. We also went through nearly a whole batch of gougeres, quite a few almonds de provence and a sizable wedge of brie. Obviously, we don't mess around.

I will be making these again, despite my lack of crisp, perfect gougeres on the first try (I never get anything right on the first try anyway) and hopefully it won't be another year before I get to share them with truly good friends.

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Squash & Honey Pie

Yesterday in Boston, the air was steamy. Summer, it would seem was not quite ready to unclench its muggy grip from us. I love summer, barbecues and sunshine that lasts until 9pm? Who doesn't like it? But there is a romance, and a wistful quality to Autumn that I find irresistible. I was determined to make this Autumn, the first in our new home, not just my favorite season because of the impossibly blue sky and the chilly nights, but because of the warm home and - yes the delicious, seasonal food (this is a food blog, after all) With maybe the exception of spring asparagus, I think Autumn has the strongest, most wide reaching grip on seasonal food. When the nights dip low into the fifties, and the maples burn red, you'll be hard pressed to find anyone not thinking of apple cider, roast pork, and pumpkin...well, pumpkin anything, really...

To usher in the my favorite season, I decided I needed a pie. The quintessential sweet of fall, is of course, the pumpkin pie. But I wasn't quite ready for pumpkin. I had received some honey from my Aunt, direct from her hive of bees, that I wanted to incorporate it in to the filling as a sweetener. I wanted something a little different...something not so spicy, and more fresh tasting. (this is the beginning of the season, after all) Acorn squash was the answer I came to. Martha had even written a recipe I could use as a guideline. I was in business.

The recipe that you can find here, gave me a great jumping off point, (corn meal crust??? Yes!) but I didn't follow it. I wasn't about to make mini pies, lest I eat a whole one. Roasting these squash (which I did the night before, while roasting vegetables and fish for our dinner) gave them plenty of softness, and a depth of flavor I appreciate. The filling gets a kick from cinnamon and orange zest, as does the sweetened cornmeal crust. Pie crust is one of the rare moments in baking when I feel comfortable winging it. So I do. My squash were enormous, so I used two beastly sized specimens, If you don't have such prolific squash, use three smaller ones.

Acorn Squash & Honey Pie


For the Crust:

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 cup stoneground cornmeal

1/2 cup sugar

1 stick of unsalted butter, dice into cubes and chill

1 egg yolk, mixed with about 1 tablespoon of ice water

1/2 teaspoon orange zest

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

more ice water as needed, added by the tablespoon.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl with the butter, using a fork (or your fingers!) until none of the lumps are larger than a pea. combine the egg and water with the zest and stir into the crumb mixture. Knead in the bowl until the dough is well incorporated and forms a ball. Wrap in plastic and chill until its time to roll out the dough.

For the Filling:

2 large acorn squash, (or three small ones)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspon fresh grated ginger

1 teaspoon orange zest

4 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup honey

egg wash

To Create the Pie:


Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the insides (set some seds aside to dry on a paper towel, if you are anything like the man). In a 375 degree oven, roast the squash until its fork tender, (my large squash took almost one hour, but smaller ones should take about 40 minutes.) Let the squash cool to the touch, then scrape the orange fruit from the skin (an ice cream spade worked especially well for me) and whip in the large bowl of a mixer until smooth. Add spices and zest. whip some more. Add eggs, milk, and honey. mixing to thoroughly combined. 

On a lightly floured surface, roll out your chilled dough to about 1/8" thick. I like to do mine on a flexible cutting board, then flip it over into the pie pan. Brush the inside of the pie dough with egg wash.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. pour the filling into the crust and bake for 35 minutes, or until the middle of your pie is just barely set, The heat it carries over will finish it for you.

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Radish & Goat Cheese Galette

At 8:30 last night, the man and I were siting down to dinner. 8:30 is a little late for dinner in my world (considering I rise at 6am, eat lunch at 1, and didn't eat between meals yesterday...for once) I was tired, I was busy, I was worn out from the first day back after my ridiculously indulgent longer long weekend...I was so tired in fact, that I didnt want to eat, (this basically never happens) I wanted to sit in the living room and zone out in front of TopChef until my eyes closed...until I took this pretty thing out of the oven.

Topped with super thin, vinegar dressed radishes, the sour cream crust (apparently I'm turning into Paula Dean) is first baked with a slather of dijon mustard and a layer of black pepper laced goat cheese. the richness plays off the fresh radishes, and made it a terrific light dinner. If you were to cut it into thin wedges, it probably would make excellent fodder for cocktail hour, since its almost as good cold as it was when the dough and cheese were still slightly warm, and the radishes were a cold, crispy contrast. Get the recipe on Food52,  If you feel like throwing some love my way, give it a vote!

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Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread

My brother, (he of the Doritos, and beans cooked in their can) recently got a job in Massachusetts that requires him to be on-site at 6am. He's been staying with us during the week to cut down his commute time, and when he can't sneak down the road to our grandmother's house he's been sharing meals with us. In the last week he has subsisted on peanut butter and jelly (on white), s'mores poptarts, lemonade, and a box of rice-a-roni that he brought with him because things like rice-a-roni just don't live in our kitchen. This week when I did my Saturday tour of the markets, along with the local vegetables, and the peanut butter ice cream (we all have vices) I picked up some things that I thought would be appealing to his, shall we say, discerning palate. Later while mulling over the contents of our freezer and pantry, I thought I should make another treat to keep him sated during his long day. Banana bread, specifically the kind made by our grandmother, is one of the only 'whole' foods I have seen him eat with a fervor usually reserved for Doritos ('pizza cravers', if you have them). In an effort to put something other than a sandwich in his lunch box I thought I'd make some banana bread of my own.

Whenever a banana goes past its prime on me, I pop it in the freezer. This Sunday four, brown, speckled fellows were waiting for me. Since I hadn't planned to make this bread when I was out buying more poptarts and doritos, I wanted to use what was on-hand. Brother doesn't like nuts, and he wasn't crazy about the ginger in my zucchini bread (no accounting for taste there) but I can't eat plain banana bread all week long without something in it to give it a kick. Chocolate, was my answer (and it so often is). I also keep a large bar of dark chocolate in the freezer...in case of emergencies... Cut up into chunks and shards it gives a delicious depth to banana bread that makes it interchangeable for breakfast or dessert.

Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread
(Makes one loaf)
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 ripe medium bananas, mashed well (about 1-1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4.25 oz dark chocolate, chopped

Butter the loaf pan, and line with parchment paper.
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
In a medium bowl mash bananas and combine with beaten eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract, make sure your butter is cooled, you dont want to start cooking the eggs.
Add the wet ingrdients to the dry and fold gently - you don't want to make the bread tough- until combined.
Transfer dough to parchment paper lined  loaf pan and bake 45- 55 minutes, a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. More...

Zucchini Muffins

Let me tell you about my mornings, circa one week ago: I would drag myself out of bed 15 minutes too late, shower, makeup, water and a vitamin, and then out the door to the train. By the time I get to work I'm ravenous, and runnng on fumes. I succumb to the siren song of the coffee shop (literally three doors down from my office, I can smell donuts and muffins all day) and I indulge - daily- in a crummy (not crumbly) muffin, an oily croissant, or a nine-thousand calorie bagel. Not anymore my friends. Today I was up on time, ate a banana, my vitamin, drank my water and also scarfed down a chewy, moist, veggie laden muffin laced within enough walnuts and crystallized ginger to make me feel like I could open my own coffee shop. 

I wouldn't say these are necessarily a strictly breakfast muffin, and in short order you could probably sweeten and spice them, frost them with cream cheese frosting and make a (slightly) healthier cupcake. The ginger, along with the reserved nuts and zest that add cruch to the top go a long way toward making this a sweet and spicy treat at any time of day.

I found the original recipe for these beauties over at 101 Cookbooks, which (for someone as afraid of baking as I am) is an INDISPENSIBLE website (but you already knew that, right? Forgive me, I'm sort of new here.) I removed the poppy seeds, added some flax seed (these are breakfast muffins, right?) and changed around the spices a little bit, to incorporate a spice that my Lebanese neighbors have me hooked on: allspice. (I'll be sad when winter comes and I'm not able to smell what my neighbors are cooking when I get home. Its always inspiring) You very well could take this into a harvest – muffin area and sub out some of the zucchini for shredded carrots, shredded beets etc. I wouldn’t eliminate the zucchini entirely without making some adjustments to ensure there is enough liquid in the mix. Feel free to pull out the nuts, flax seed, zest and ginger and sub in something you prefer (or nothing at all and have a traditional zucchini bread). Next time I make these, (which might be next week, the way zucchini is showing up on the farmer’s market tables) I am going to add toasted coconut, and maybe cocoa nibs, and eat it as a dessert..

Zucchini Muffins Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

Note: this will make approx 24 muffins, or 12 muffins and a loaf of bread

1/2 cup crystallized ginger, fine dice

1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

zest of one medium lemon

zest of one medium orange

1/2 cup - (1 stick) - unsalted butter

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups grated zucchini (3 medium) squeeze out most of the liquid before use

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour

¼ cup ground flax seed

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 tablespoon curry powder

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line your muffin tin with liners or parchment paper squares

In a small bowl combine the walnuts, citrus zest, and diced ginger. Separate approx. ¼ cup. And set aside

In a mixer, cream the butter and sugars. Add the eggs one at a time scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. Add the vanilla extract and slowly add the grated zucchini

Separately combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and spices. Slowly add these to the wet ingredients on a low speed . Remove the bowl from your mixer and stir in the walnut-ginger mixture.

Fill your muffin tins. The mix will look wet, but it is supposed to. Bake for about 45 minutes and as soon as your fingers (or tongs) can handle it, pull the muffins from the tin to finish cooling, this will keep them from getting that slick skin common in quick breads.

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