Quick Breads

Today's post deals with Quick Breads, and includes Festive Sweet Corn Bread and Chocolate-Raspberry Muffins. Enjoy!

"STROKE OF MIDNIGHT" PUMPKIN BREAD

This is from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list. The notes throughout the recipe are from the person who posted it on the list.

Preparation time: About 1 hr; Serves: 8 - 10

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups, sugar

1/3 cup, shortening (I use Smart Balance *Vegan*)

1/2 cup, applesauce

1 cup, pumpkin

1 2/3 cups, flour (I use a combo of wheat and soy)

1/4 teaspoon, baking powder

1 teaspoon, baking soda

1/3 cup, water

dash of salt

dash of nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, ginger (Whatever you like)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Beat the sugar, shortening and applesauce until 'light and fluffy' or well mixed. Stir in the pumpkin.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Add the batter and water, alternatively.

Spoon into a greased and floured bread pan. Bake about 45 minutes – 1 hour or until done

BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

This is from American Heart Association, and begins, “These no-added-sugar muffins make for an easy snack on the go. Soccer practice? Walk in the park? Whatever has you on the move, simply wrap a piece of waxed paper around a muffin and take it with you.”

To view this online, go to https://recipes.heart.org/en/recipes/blueberry-muffins

Ingredients

Cooking spray

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon stevia sweetener

OR

2 stevia sweetener packets

1/2 cup corn oil

OR

1/2 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg

1 cup fat-free, plain yogurt

1 cup blueberries (fresh, or, frozen)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt.

In a separate large bowl, whisk together the stevia sweetener, oil, vanilla, egg, and yogurt. Add the dry ingredients. Stir together until the mixture is just moistened but no flour is visible. Gently fold in the blueberries, reserving 24 to 36 blueberries to garnish the tops.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. Using the reserved blueberries, sprinkle 2 or 3 berries on top of each muffin.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Transfer the pan to a cooling rack. Let cool completely.

TEX-MEX CORNBREAD

This yummy recipe is from Diana Rattray, who has contributed to About.com and The Spruce Eats for years. For this recipe, she wrote, "This is a moist and delicious cornbread, perfect to serve with beans, a bowl of chili, or a hearty soup or stew. Add more or less minced jalapeño to suit your taste. A cast-iron skillet makes the best crust, but a heavy baking pan could be used if necessary."

Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 25 minutes; Total Time: 35 minutes; Makes 8 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.thespruceeats.com/tex-mex-cornbread-3054149.

Ingredients

1/4 cup canola oil plus 1 tablespoon for the skillet

3 large eggs

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, 9 ounces

1 small can (8 ounces) cream-style corn, or about 1 cup

1 tablespoon finely minced onion, red or yellow

2 tablespoons finely minced jalapeño peppers

1 1/2 cups stone-ground cornmeal

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (4 ounces) finely shredded Cheddar Jack cheese blend or a mild or sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions

Put 1 tablespoon of oil in a 10-inch cast iron skillet and put it in the oven. Heat the oven to 425 F.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the remaining 1/4 cup of oil, the buttermilk, cream-style corn, minced onion, and minced jalapeño peppers.

In another bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cheese. Blend well.

Carefully take the hot skillet out of the oven and set it on a metal rack.

Combine the egg and buttermilk mixture and the dry mixture. Stir just until blended. Pour into the hot pan.

Return the pan to the oven and bake the cornbread for about 20 to 25 minutes, until browned and crisp around the edges.

Cut into wedges and serve.

Tips

A cast iron skillet will make the best crust, but a 9-inch baking pan can be substituted.

Use fresh jalapeño or canned, minced finely.

SOUTHERN-STYLE CORNBREAD

This yummy recipe is from Diana Rattray, who has contributed to About.com and The Spruce Eats for years. For this recipe, she wrote, "Cornbread is a staple in the South. It is absolutely essential with bean dishes, black-eyed peas, greens, hearty stews, and, of course, country-style ribs. It's a cheap, filling dish that's easy to make from scratch and better than any boxed mix. Throughout the years, Southerners have enjoyed cornbread in many different ways, from fritters to corn pone and spoon bread to hush puppies. Despite all of those options, many believe that the best Southern cornbread is baked in a cast-iron pan so it gets a crispy crust.

"Southern-style cornbread rarely contains sugar, though some regions and many people do like to sweeten their cornbread a bit. To add sugar or not can be a hot topic of debate, and it's an optional ingredient in this recipe. If you have Northerners and Southerners to cook for, you might have to look for compromise. Or make two pans!

"This cornbread recipe doesn't require buttermilk. It's richer than most because it's made with three eggs, and using a combination of cornmeal and flour ensures it won't get too dry or crumbly."

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 24 minutes; Total Time: 39 minutes; Makes 8 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.thespruceeats.com/southern-style-cornbread-3054179.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable shortening

2 cups yellow cornmeal

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

3 large eggs, beaten

2 cups milk

1/4 cup unsalted butter

Directions

Gather the ingredients. Preheat oven to 425 F.

Put the shortening in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet and place in the oven to preheat while making the batter.

In a mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and butter.

Combine with dry ingredients and stir until all ingredients are moistened. The batter will be similar to a thick pancake batter.

Carefully, with heavy oven mitts, lift the skillet out of the oven and turn to coat the bottom and sides with the melted shortening.

Pour the cornbread batter into the skillet and return it to the oven.

Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, until browned. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Serve and enjoy.

Tips

Baking powder starts acting quickly, so have the oven preheated and the skillet ready before you combine the wet and dry ingredients. As soon as the batter is combined, pour it into the skillet and get it into the oven.

If you don't have a cast-iron skillet, a greased 8-inch or 9-inch baking pan may be substituted.

This same recipe can be used to make cornbread muffins. Be sure to grease and flour the muffin pan thoroughly.

Recipe Variations

Replace the sugar with honey or cane syrup if you like.

The salt may be reduced to 1 teaspoon.

Add 1 cup of well-drained, cooked corn kernels to the batter.

Brown about 1/2 pound of crumbled sausage in the skillet. Add the cornbread batter and bake. As soon as the cornbread comes out of the oven, run a knife around the edge to loosen and invert it onto a plate.

Add 1 to 2 cups of Mexican-style cheese and green chile peppers for Tex-Mex flavor.

What's the Difference Between Southern and Northern Cornbread?

It's difficult to generalize recipes because every cook has their own way of making popular dishes. However, there tend to be some regional preferences when it comes to cornbread. One of the most controversial is the sugar, though Northern cornbread also tends to be more cake-like and less crumbly because it uses more flour. Southern cornbread often skips the sugar, includes more cornmeal, and is baked in a piping hot cast-iron pan for that signature crispy crust on the bottom and sides.

What's the Best Fat to Grease the Skillet?

One key to great Southern cornbread is the fat that greases the skillet. Vegetable shortening is just one option. You can use the same amount of oil as long as it has a high smoke point that can handle the oven's temperature. Canola and vegetable oils are good choices. To give the cornbread even more flavor, use bacon grease (some people insist it's the only way to go):

Dice 3 or 4 strips of bacon and cook it in the skillet. Use 1 tablespoon of bacon grease instead of the oil or shortening and replace some of the butter with the rest. Add the cooked diced bacon to the batter, if you like.

Why Does Cornbread Get Crumbly?

Cornbread is inherently crumbly to some degree, particularly Southern-style cornbread. A few factors may produce really dry cornbread that simply falls apart, though. Over baking will dry it out, so be sure to check for doneness with a toothpick. Another consideration is if a recipe has too much cornmeal and not enough (or no) flour or eggs. Fortunately, this recipe includes those three elements in proportions that result in tender, not-too-crumbly cornbread.

CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY MUFFINS

You may remember me posting about Rollin' Oats, one of my favorite places to shop. It has two stores in the Tampa Bay (Florida) area, one in Tampa, the other in St. Petersburg. Since I live way closer to St. Pete, I frequently go to that store. It's really one of my favorite places to shop. (Hint: If you live in the area, or are visiting, I highly recommend checking it out.)

Anyway, whenever I'm in Rollin' Oats, I pick up a copy of Taste For Life. This is from the March 2021 issue of Taste For Life (page 12). Prep Time: 35 minutes, plus 30 minutes cool time; Makes 9 muffins

To view this online, go to https://tasteforlife.com/healthy-recipes/desserts/chocolate-raspberry-muffins.

Ingredients

1/4 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

4 large eggs

1/4 cup oil, plus additional for greasing pan

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease 9 of the muffin cups in a muffin pan.

In a large bowl, combine coconut flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, honey, and vanilla extract. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients until fully incorporated. Gently fold in raspberries.

Scoop approximately 1/4 cup of batter into each greased muffin cup.

Bake approximately 20 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into center of muffin comes out clean. Cool muffins in pan for 1/2 hour.

FESTIVE SWEET CORN BREAD

This is from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

1 tbsp. baking powder

1 1/4 cups milk

1/2 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 tbsp. melted unsalted butter or margin

2 tbsp. honey

1/2 cup whole corn

1 small red bell pepper, deseeded and chopped

1 small green chili, deseeded and chopped

Directions

Preheat an oven to 400 degrees. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with butter. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder. In a large measuring cup, whisk together the milk, honey and eggs. Stir the egg mixture into the cornmeal mixture, mixing well. Stir in the melted butter and then gently mix in the corn kernels, chili and red bell pepper. Pour the batter into the baking pan. Bake until firm, 18-20 minutes. Cut into squares and serve hot.