eclaire (what’s in a) name?

there are some cookbooks, like the one i used to make butternut squash risotto, that i go back to over and over, finding new and delicious recipes every time.  there are other cookbooks, however, that despite enticingly written concoctions, never quite carry through.  sadly, mike and i bought a cookbook like this years ago, entitled the student’s vegetarian cookbook: quick, easy, cheap, and tasty vegetarian recipes, by carole raymond. quite a title, huh?  we bought it when we were still students, and i can still remember spending an afternoon in the local bookstore, pouring over all kinds of cookbook options, before finally deciding that this cookbook had the most recipes that we would actually make.  unfortunately, every recipe we made was kind of a dud, and we stopped using the cookbook.  except for this one recipe, called sunday morning muffins.  the recipe was not perfect by any means, but i’ve reworked it a ton over the years (see all my edits below!), and i think it’s finally ready to share with you.

what this recipe does right, and thus why i kept editing it instead of just starting from scratch or giving up, is that you mix the wet ingredients separately from the dry ingredients, and barely mix them together.  this yields a super moist, tender, and fluffy muffin that is unlike most muffins i’ve had, because it doesn’t have the heaviness of butter, and is, in fact, vegan.  applesauce and vegetable oil are the only liquids needed to keep the dry ingredients together.

what didn’t work for me is that it lacked substance – there was nothing to chew, really.  also, there was a dearth of salt, making you wonder with every bite what was missing without immediately thinking of the answer.  salt rounds out flavors in such an important and subtle way!  so i began by adding oats (plus a little more liquid, to allow the oats to expand) and salt to the recipe, then started throwing in nuts and dates and doubling the cinnamon.

after all of these changes, i am finally satisfied with this recipe. so when i had the occasion to make muffins for my sister who was traveling across the country, these were the ones i picked.  i figured that since they were vegan, there were no worries about eggs or dairy being unrefrigerated, and the walnuts, oats, raisins, dates, and whole wheat flour would sustain her throughout her travels.  so if you’re looking for a healthy and hearty, yet light and delicate muffin, this is the recipe you should make for yourself!

sunday morning muffins

adapted from student’s vegetarian cookbook: quick, easy, cheap, and tasty vegetarian recipes, by carole raymond
yields 12 muffins

• 1c whole wheat flour
• 1c white flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
• 3/4c oats
• 1/4c brown sugar
• 2t baking powder
• 3/4t baking soda
• 1t ground cinnamon
• 1t salt
• 2c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4c vegetable oil
• 2T (soy) milk
• 3/4c raisins
• 5 dates, diced
• 1/2c walnuts, broken
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1. preheat oven to 375°
2. in a large bowl, combine flours, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and stir to mix up all the ingredients
3. in a medium bowl, whisk the applesauce, oil, and soy milk together
4. add the wet mixture to the dry mixture, and stir just enough to combine, so you don’t see any patches of flour, then stop!
5. add the raisins, dates, and walnuts (these are all optional, or open to changes depending upon what you have on hand), and stir just enough to combine
6. ice cream scoop the batter into greased muffin tins and bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean
7. allow to cool a bit, then serve with butter, jam, and/or honey, and enjoy!