"A friend is someone who knows all about you and loves you anyway!"

History of Muffins

-

Muffin - a small, cup-shaped bread, often sweetened and usually served hot.

-
The derivation of the word muffin comes from the French word moufflet which is often times applied to bread and means soft.
The two main types of muffins are English muffins and American style muffins. They vary in style as well as flavor and history.
English muffins are a flat yeast raised muffin with nooks and crannies that are cooked on a hot griddle. English muffin history dates all the way back to the 10th and 11th centuries in Wales.

Early English muffins were cooked in muffin rings which were hooplike and placed directly on a stove or the bottom of a skillet.

American style muffins on the other hand are more of a quick bread that is made in individual molds. The molds are necessary due to the mixture being a batter rather than dough.

Muffin recipes first began to appear in print in the mid 18th century and quickly caught on. By the 19th century muffin men walked the streets of England at tea time to sell there muffins. They wore trays of English muffins on there heads and rang there bells to call customers to there wares.
-
Three states in the United States of America have adopted official muffins. Minnesota has adopted the blueberry muffin as the official state muffin. Massachusetts in 1986 adopted the Corn Muffin as the official state muffin. Then in 1987 New York took on the Apple Muffin as its official muffin of choice.

-

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

A scrumptious breakfast food!

-

Ingredients:

4 Eggs

1 1\2 cup oil

3 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1 3\4 cup pumpkin

1 tbsp. Cinnamon

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 cups choc. chips

-

Tools:

• Large mixing bowl
• Electric beaters
• Measuring cups
• Muffin tins

Beat eggs slightly; add sugar, oil, and pumpkin; beat. Add dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Fill greased muffin cups 2\3 full & sprinkle lightly brown sugar.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 min.

"It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness."
~Charles Spurgeon
-

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

-

Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese
1\2 cup real butter, softened
1\4 tsp. vanilla
3\4 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3\4 cup mini chocolate chips
3\4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Tools:

• Mixing bowl
• Electric beater
• Plastic Spatula
• Measuring cups

Combine the cream cheese, butter and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and brown sugar. Stir in the mini chips.
Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Shape into ball, wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Before serving, roll in pecans.
Serve with Animal Crackers, Teddy Grahams, Vanilla Wafers, or Graham Crackers.

"For some, pleasure is a fever they can't shake. For others, it's a disease they cannot seem to catch."
-

...............Ham Spread on Triscuits
-
Ingredients:

-
1\2 cup chopped Dill Pickles
1\2 chunked, cooked Ham
1\4 cup soft Cream Cheese
1 box Trsicuit Crackers

-
Stir together Pickles, Ham and Cream Cheese. Spread on Crackers.
-

*For more distinction in flavors you can spread the cream cheese on your triscuit, and top with a slice of ham and dill pickle.

-

Keep smiling - it makes people wonder what you've been up to. ~Author Unknown

Cheese Quesadilla

`

These are as staple as the classic PB&J, in Mindy's kitchen. We hope you like them as much as we do!
-

Ingredients:
-

1 package (10) large Flour Tortillas

1 block mozzarella or cheddar cheese

Butter or Margarine softened

Sour Cream (optional)

Tools:

• Griddle
• Metal Spatula
• Butter knife

Heat griddle to 300 degrees. Grate cheese. Butter tortilla shells on one side. Place one tortilla shell (butter down) on hot griddle. Sprinkle with cheese, and place another buttered tortilla on top of that (butter up). Cook until it turns golden brown on the bottom, then flip and cook the other side. Remove from griddle. Cut into slices and dip in sour cream.

Yield: 5 servings

Be sure to try out some of these delicious variations. They're the BEST!

• Bacon & Cheddar - Crumble cooked bacon over cheddar.
• Ham & Onion w\Mozzarella - Add sliced or diced onion, and chunks of ham.
• Chicken & Garlic w\ Cheddar - Shred cooked chicken over the grated cheese and sprinkle with garlic salt.
• Salsa w\Cheddar - Simply add your favorite salsa to the original recipe. Or dip in salsa.

Fun Facts!

Peanut Butter

• Peanut butter is the leading use of peanuts in the USA.


• There are enough peanuts in one acre to make 30,000 peanut butter sandwiches.


• It takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce jar of peanut butter.


• Peanut butter is consumed in 89 percent of USA households.


• The world's largest peanut butter factory churns out 250,000 jars of the tasty treat every day.


• People living on the East Coast prefer creamy peanut butter, while those on the West Coast prefer the crunchy style.


• Arachibutyrophobia is the fear of getting peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth.


• The average child will eat 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches before he/she graduates high school.

• Americans spend almost $800 million a year on peanut butter.

• Americans eat enough peanut butter in a year to make more than 10 billion peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Snack Time!

`
Club Crackers, spread with creamy peanut butter, topped with an apple slice. That's all it is, and it's SO yummy!

`

`