Apple, Oatmeal and Raisin Muffins

Oh the pressure! I'm in charge while Giz is in San Francisco for the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival.


I, on the other hand, am stuck in Ottawa in what "feels like" -5 Celcius, at home with a cold (because going to work with a cold might get me excommunicated in times of H1N1 panic) with next to nothing in my cupboards (I shouldn't complain about this last one, since that was the goal). Ok...pity party over.

Now, I'm just trying to use up whatever is left in my cupboards. So, here we go with another apple post.

This time I made Apple, Oatmeal and Raisin muffins with a recipe on Cooks.com.


Apple, Oatmeal and Raisin Muffins

1 egg
3/4 c. milk
1 c. raisins
1 apple, chopped
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 c. sugar
1 c. oatmeal

Beat egg. Stir in remaining ingredients, mixing until just moistened. Pour into greased muffin tin and bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.


I was pretty skeptical about this recipe once I started it. Everything in me said "don't just beat the egg and then add everything else in". So, I separated the dry ingrediants from the wet ones. In the end, it turned out decently. Maybe a bit on the mushy side because of the apples (doesn't seem to have lingered once cooled). It tastes like a healthy muffin, which is code for "it's not very sweet". But with only 1/3 a cup of sugar, that's to be expected. In hindsight, I should have gone with Hopie's recipe for apple muffins.

Zabar's Brunch

Did I tell you that hell froze over last month? Yeah...Actorboy (my brother) made a meal for the family by his own initiative. Granted, Actorboy does cook for himself -- some concoctions strangers than others. But, he's never said, "Hey - how about I make brunch? I'll get the groceries and prepare the whole thing". I think this new gf has a positive, unhuman-like, influence on him.

Not only did they make brunch, during Giz's birthday weekend....they brought in food from New York for the occasion. We were all still "recovering" from the big meal the night before. But, it was such a treat to have a selection of foods from Zabar's, a place Giz had raved about.

Without a doubt, these are the best rugelach I have ever eaten. You can read about them on the Zabar's website here. It does not suprise me that they are an all-time best seller.

Apparently, the coffee was quite strong (I'm not a coffee drinker) -- but it may have just been how it was made.


We had a mix of NY-style and Montreal-style bagels, some brought from NY and some bought locally at a Pusateris store.


Bagels, lox and cream cheese....I'm in heaven.

Actorboy even prepared personally-tailored omlettes:

It was a delicious brunch all around!

Nearing the End of Market Season

Does anyone have any wise words of wisdom about adjusting to change? From the changing of seasons and turning back of the clock to packing up my house and relocation(s) at work -- I'm all for re-establishing homeostasis.

Since I'm getting low on everything (a good thing), I haven't been making any new recipes. But, I have been doing some exploring and am a bit behind on sharing some pictures. So, let me share a few with you....

I'm not sure if I'll be able to get to market again -- only 2 weeks left :(. Here are some shots from my last visit:














I am eagerly awaiting the start of our new Green Bin Program. I can only imagine how much less garbage I'll have every week if all of my organic waste can be composted!

I must say, there seem to be more recycling options in Ottawa lately. The days of being expected to pay $50 to recycle an old tube tv seem to be in the past.

I finally finish a knitting project I started a long, long time ago. After finishing the two panels, I lost motivation get through the final steps to completing my poncho (yikes -- 9 months since finishing the knitted portion and completing the project). But, with weather cooling down a lot, the timing seemed right. I was worried about not having blocked the panels enough, but am actually happy with the result. I just compensated for my less than perfect blocking by adding extra length on to the tassles.