BANANA MUFFINS WITH OIL from A Taste of Kosher

These are great and come from A Taste of Kosher. I made half and got six, like the recipe stated. They baked in 15 or 16 minutes. The only negative about them is that they're extremely sweet! They could have used half the amount of sugar because bananas seem to get sweeter as they ripen. I will definitely make these again and I'll use half the sugar. I added ground toasted pecans and 1/4 t. of cinnamon for half the recipe.

I give these 4.5 stars.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS

These are great and come from Baked By An Introvert. I made half and got 8, not 6 as the recipe states. I omitted raspberries and used 1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips. I used an extra 1/8 t. salt. I used yogurt (the recipe says you can use that or sour cream) and baked them on 350 F, not 400 F and they took 16 minutes. While not bitter, I think these could have used a little less cocoa, about 1 T. less.

I give these 4.5 stars. These aren't quite as moist the next day but are perfect when heated in the microwave for 10 seconds.

Here's a tip- you can freeze sour cream and yogurt, thaw it and use it in baked goods. Sour cream will be very runny but yogurt will still be thick and will look a little different. I used thawed yogurt in this recipe.

DRIED CHERRY MUFFINS from The Kitchenarium

This recipe's from The Kitchenarium. I made half using almost 1/4 c. batter for each muffin and got 10. The recipe called for no salt! so I added 3/8 t. and it was perfect, as was the amount of almond extract called for. I added 1/4 c. of ground toasted almonds and added 1/2 t. vanilla extract, and those two ingredients weren't in the recipe. Mine baked in exactly 14 minutes on 350. I don't care about getting domed muffin tops so I didn't start them out on a ridiculously high temperature like the recipe stated to do. I didn't coat my dried cherries, which were chopped, in flour before adding to the batter and they didn't sink, nor did I soak them in hot water to reconstitute them, as that's never necessary, ever. They'll plump up in the batter. I made a thick glaze for these.

Like most muffins, these are best eaten still warm from the oven. They're drier after awhile and the next day, so I had to heat them in the microwave. They taste great but I give them 4 stars.

BEST DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS from Also the Crumbs Please

 

This recipe is from Also the Crumbs Please. They're made with Dutch process cocoa, vegetable oil and buttermilk ( I used homemade). This is the second time I made half a batch. The first time they were overcooked at 14 minutes on 350 (I got 10) so this time I baked them on 325 degrees and it took 16 or 17 minutes for 9. Make sure you fill muffin cups no more than 2/3 of the way or they'll likely bake up and spread out onto your pan and stick, like these did at the lower temperature. I had to loosen them up with a toothpick before I could remove them from the pan.

I didn't bake them on a very high temperature for a few minutes like the recipe said to do. Doing that is to help them rise quicker and get a domed top, which I care nothing about. This second time they turned out perfectly. They're even moist the very next day after being in an airtight container, which is very very rare for a chocolate muffin, in my experience. I made a thick glaze for these.

I give these 5 stars. I've made them about 4 times now, including just 1/4 of the original recipe (which makes 5) and they're my favorite of all-time.

BEST BANANA MUFFINS EVER from The Busy Baker

 

This comes from The Busy Baker. I made half, got six, and they baked in 16 minutes, nowhere near the suggested 22-25. I added about two tablespoons of ground toasted pecans to the batter. These turned out great but need more salt. 

I give these 5 stars. They're extremely moist!

JORDAN MARSH-INSPIRED (BLUEBERRY) MUFFINS from Epicurious

These come from Epicurious. I made half and didn't use blueberries or sprinkle sugar on top. I used 1/2 c. of sweetened dried tart cherries and 1/4 t. almond extract and got seven using 1/4 c. batter for each. I added an additional 1/8 t. salt but they need more. They baked in 19 minutes at 350 degrees F, not 375.

They taste good and are moist when still warm but like almost every muffin I've ever made, these are pretty dry at room temperature. I even added a little vinegar to the milk to make buttermilk to ensure that these were moist but it probably didn't do any good. 

These get 4.5 stars when fresh and warm from the oven and 3 stars after they've cooled down because of how dry they are.

CHOCOHOLIC MUFFINS (PART 2) from Once Upon a Chef

The original recipe comes from Once Upon a Chef. This is the third time I've made these and the second time using my adjustments. The second time I made these, which was just a few months after making them the first time in June 2020, I used vegetable or canola oil in place of melted butter and I decreased the cocoa powder by 2 1/3 T. cocoa powder, so I used three tablespoons instead of 5 1/3 T. I make half every time and get 10 every time, using just 1/4 c. batter, but got 9 larger ones this time. This time I frosted them with a heated chocolate glaze, which I made thicker this time by using less milk. I meant to use Hershey's Dutch-process cocoa powder in the glaze because it's much darker in color but I forgot and used regular, which doesn't taste as good.

CHOCOLATE SOUR CREAM MUFFINS from Taste of Home

This recipe is from Taste of Home. The muffins use oil, sour cream, milk, water, and cocoa powder. I made half the recipe in a Wilton mini loaf pan and and got eight full ones. I lined each cavity with nonstick foil. The capacity of the eight loaf cavities is 2/3 c. each. I doubled the vanilla and amount of mini chocolate chips, and these need more salt, about 1/8 t. more. Mine baked in 18 minutes. They're very most but really no different than the others I've made that turned out well. I would make these again if I had sour cream I needed to use up.

I grade these an A.

DOUBLE-CHOCOLATE MUFFINS

This recipe is from Better Homes and Gardens. I first made them in 2016 or 2017 when I saw them in a cookbook of theirs that I'd just bought, called Baking. This is the third time I've made them and I made half this time. Half will yield five or six standard muffins but I used a jumbo muffin pan and got three, using a scant 1/2 c. dry measure of batter for each. I do use slightly more salt and I double the vanilla. I also add a thick glaze to most muffins I make so I did for this.

I grade these an A but like all the other chocolate muffins I've made, these are drier once they've cooled completely. I just microwave them for about 8 seconds before eating once they've cooled and they're very moist again.

CHOCOHOLIC MUFFINS from Once Upon a Chef

This recipe is from Once Upon a Chef. It uses buttermilk (I made homemade w/vinegar), all brown sugar, and melted butter. I made half the recipe, filling the muffin cups 2/3 of the way, and got ten. They baked in 12-13 minutes on 375 degrees F. I didn't bake them at a real high temperature then turn it down like the recipe stated. They're very good and cake-like. They have a finer crumb than any chocolate muffin I've ever made before. I do think they need less cocoa powder, so I'll use less next time, not 1/3 c. like I used this time. I think for half the recipe I'll use only three tablespoons. They need more salt too though I did add extra. 

I grade these an A- because of too much cocoa.

Edit: I made half a batch again using all vegetable oil, no butter, an extra 1/8 t. salt and just 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and they turned out great. Those I grade an A+.

PEACHES AND CREAM MUFFINS from Taste of Home

These come from Taste of Home and are nothing special. I made half the recipe and got five. I added vanilla, cinnamon, and ground toasted pecans. We could use sour cream or milk so I used sour cream. They need more salt. I baked these at a lower temperature for about 15 minutes, not 20-25 like the recipe stated. I wouldn't make these again and threw the last muffin out.

I grade them a C.

CHOCOLATE LOVER'S CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE-CHIP MUFFINS from Averie Cooks

This recipe is from Averie Cooks. I made half and got 9, filling the cups with 1/4 c. of batter. They baked in 15 minutes. I omitted the espresso powder and splash of coffee. I used an extra 1/8 t. salt. I used 1/4 c. cocoa, not 1/3 c. as called for but I think I could have used one less tablespoon for a total of three for half a batch. These use oil and all light brown sugar but they're the same as all the others I've made with white sugar. You wouldn't know there's no white sugar in these and you can't taste pure brown sugar.

I grade them an A while they're hot and fresh and a B left over because they aren't as moist without having to reheat them, but most muffins are that way.

APPLE STREUSEL MUFFINS from Taste of Home

This recipe is from Taste of Home. These are very good and are made with melted butter and contain no milk so the batter is thick. I made half the recipe and got seven and they baked in 15 minutes. I didn't make the streusel topping or glaze and I added cinnamon to the batter and three tablespoons of ground toasted pecans. These need more salt, an extra 1/8 t. for half the recipe. I stored these in an airtight container and they were just as moist the next day.

I grade these an A.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS 2 from Handle the Heat

This recipe comes from Handle the Heat. I made half and got 10 and they baked in 14 minutes, well under the time stated. It uses sour cream, melted butter and cocoa powder. I doubled the vanilla extract. These are really good and like most muffins, best eaten while warm from the oven or reheated in the microwave.

I grade them an A.

SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE MUFFINS WITH STREUSEL and ALTERNATE CHOCOLATE VERSION from Just a Taste

These are excellent and they come from Just a Taste. They're made with equal parts butter and vegetable oil. I omitted the streusel completely and added sweetened dried tart cherries and almond extract. I made just half the recipe and got nine standard size ones, so the full batch will yield 18. They baked in exactly 15 minutes. They needed a lot more salt. I used 3/8 t. instead of just 1/8 t. They're not as moist the next day but that's alright.

I grade them an A.

CHOCOLATE VERSION

I made this version over a month later using the same recipe I used above (leaving out the streusel.) I omitted three tablespoons of flour and replaced it with three tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa. I added 1/2 c. mini semisweet chocolate chips, which was a little too much. The texture of these are different, more like all the other chocolate muffin recipes I've tried. They're a little dry the next day but not quite as dry as other recipes I've made. Perhaps I'll leave out one tablespoon of cocoa next time and use just two.

SOFT AND MOIST BLUEBERRY MUFFINS from Spice Bangla

This recipe comes from Spice Bangla. They're neither soft nor moist and I'm really disappointed. I didn't use blueberries but did use 3/4 c. chopped sweetened dried tart cherries, ground almonds, and almond extract. I got eight. They baked in 18 minutes.

I grade these a D and I'd never make them again because they're dry as can be and they were NOT overmixed or overbaked.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MUFFINS from Sugar Spun Run

This recipe came from Sugar Spun Run. This is the second time I've made these and I made half each time. They're made with cocoa powder, sour cream, and oil and have chocolate chips inside. I used mini semi-sweet chips mixed into the batter and one tablespoon less cocoa powder. They could use a bit more salt and I doubled the amount of vanilla. I got five jumbo muffins (using a jumbo 1 c. capacity muffin pan) and I filled them halfway using 1/2 c. of batter. They baked in 17 minutes.

I grade these a B because I think these could have been moister.

MOIST CHOCOLATE MUFFINS from Baker Bettie

This recipe is from Baker Bettie. These are very moist and cake-like and made using cocoa powder. I used regular unsweetened cocoa powder, not Dutch processed like the author preferred. I did use a little more salt and vanilla extract and it worked out great. I made half the recipe and got eight. Muffins are best eaten while still warm and these were no exception. The next day I noticed these were a bit more crumbly than they were when fresh baked. These use oil and require no mixer, just a big bowl and whisk.

I grade them an A when they're eaten fresh and warm and a B when they're left over.

NEW BAKING BOOK by Better Homes and Gardens (2004)

PUBLISHER: Better Homes and Gardens, 9/2004
GENRE: Cookbooks/Baking
PURCHASE: link
MY GRADE: A

FROM PUBLISHER: Baking Basics chapter provides short course for novices and a good refresher for experienced cooks.

Includes chapters on baking reliables: Cakes, Pies and Tarts, Yeast Breads, Quick Breads, and Cookies.

Specialty chapters such as Baking with Kids, Holiday Classics, Spectacular Desserts, and Old-Fashioned Desserts meet the needs of a variety of readers.

Provides extensive baking tips and question-and-answer boxes throughout.

THINGS I'VE MADE

TRILEVEL BROWNIES

I'm very happy with how these turned out. This is a chocolate frosted brownie that's on top of a thin oatmeal layer. It uses a small amount of melted unsweetened chocolate in both the brownies and frosting as well as melted butter in both.

The oatmeal crust is made from oats, brown sugar, melted butter, and a few other ingredients and gets pressed into the pan and is prebaked. The cake-like brownie mixture gets poured over the partially baked crust and mine baked in 24 minutes. The brownie is extremely moist. The mixture used no salt so I added 3/8 teaspoon and I think it could have used more. I added ground pecans to the batter and sprinkled some on top of the frosting.

I used just half of the chocolate called for in the frosting and it was perfect. I doubled the vanilla and added a sprinkling of salt.

These are easiest to eat if you cut them into small bars and hold them because the crust crumbles slightly when you cut into it with a fork.

The recipe is here on their site.

COUNTRY PEAR AND CHERRY CRISP

I'd never combined pear and cherry before. I'm glad I tried this because they go really well together. This recipe used two tablespoons of flour in the filling (four pears and one can of drained tart pitted cherries) but it wasn't nearly enough to bind the fruit together. It just fell apart and needed at least two more tablespoons. I omitted the 1/2c. liquid too because it made no sense to add it. Cooked fruit produces its own juice so there was no need at all to add water/reserved cherry juice to it. Had I done that it would have been a real disaster.

The topping is made from store-bought granola (oats, brown sugar, oil) and melted butter. I forgot to check for overbrowning at the fifteen minute mark so my topping burned slightly. My fault. It need more because 1.5c. wasn't enough to even cover the top of the dish.

This was very good and I'd make it again using 1/4c. flour mixed in with the fruit and use more topping...and not overbrown it.

CLASSIC CHOCOLATE CAKE

This turned out to be very moist. It's made with melted unsweetened chocolate. I can't really explain the flavor. It's not bitter but flavorwise it would probably taste better if made with bittersweet or semisweet chocolate. This tastes the way unsweetened chocolate/semisweet chocolate smells, if that makes any sense. I wouldn't make it again.

I made half the recipe in an 8.5"/2qt. baking dish. I made my own buttercream frosting for it.

MILK CHOCOLATE CREAM PIE

This is the milk chocolate version of Vanilla Cream Pie and is made with semisweet chocolate. It's very easy to make and is cooked on the stove and poured into a pre-cooked or pre-made crust. It's a little bitter, so it's not like milk chocolate at all.

I made half the recipe and that took 1.5oz semisweet chocolate. I used a store-bought 6oz. graham cracker crust. This pie is nearly identical to one called Epic Chocolate Pudding Pie from The Cookies & Cups Cookbook, published eleven years after this one, that used unsweetened chocolate...and was very bitter. I've come to the conclusion that this would be best made with milk chocolate. The pie is very firm and holds it's shape when sliced.

CHEESY BATTER BREAD

This yeast bread is very good, moist (made with shortening), and couldn't have been easier to make. The recipe's actually called Sweet Pepper-Cheese Batter Bread. I left out the sweet peppers because I don't like them, and left out thyme and onion. I used dried chives and pepper instead. I used 1/2c. shredded cheddar, as called for, but I can't taste it very much.

The top was as brown as I wanted it after just fifteen minutes so I covered it loosely with a piece of foil. This baked in five minutes less than the maximum time suggested. It's lightweight and very good. I made compound butter to spread on each slice after toasting.

SOUR CREAM-CHERRY MUFFINS

I made half the recipe and got 23 mini muffins, not 18 like stated in the recipe. They have good flavor but need more salt. I also added 1/2t. vanilla extract. I don't care for the texture. They're very firm, tough, not moist, and seem like they were overmixed but they weren't. These were to bake on 400 degrees F for 12-15 minutes. Mine were overcooked at 10 minutes. Because of the texture, I wouldn't make these again.

PEACH AND ALMOND CRISP

This is nothing special because of the crumb topping. I made half the recipe in a 1.5qt baking dish. I used canned peach chunks in place of fresh or frozen slices, about 4.5 c. The topping (flour, rolled oats, butter, white sugar, brown sugar) is a little too sweet and strange-tasting from all the brown sugar. It's made with a lot more brown sugar than white sugar, which is very common for crumb toppings. Definitely wouldn't make this topping again or if I did, I'd use very little brown sugar.

GIANT RASPBERRY MUFFINS

These may be the moistest muffins I've ever made. They're made with your choice of melted butter or vegetable oil. I used oil. The actual name of the recipe is Giant Blueberry Muffins but since I don't like blueberries I used frozen raspberries instead. I made half the recipe and got four jumbo muffins. They baked in 27 minutes. The recipe didn't call for salt so I added 1/4t. but that wasn't enough. I also added a little vanilla extract. I made my own glaze for these (powdered sugar, melted butter, almond extract, vanilla extract, water).

This exact recipe is on their site under the title Blueberry Muffins but they don't give you the option of using either melted butter or oil like they do in the cookbook.

CUSTARD PIE

This is your basic sweet custard (eggs, milk, sugar, salt, vanilla) that's to be poured into an unbaked pie shell. I skipped the pie crust, made half the recipe and poured the mixture over a drained 14.5oz. can of pitted tart red cherries (1.5c.) that I'd placed in the bottom of a deep dish 8.5"/1qt. pie plate. I added 1/8t. almond extract to the mixture. This needed a lot more salt than half the recipe called for so I used 1/4t., not 1/16t.

This tastes very good but the custard doesn't look at all right because of all the water that cooked out of the cherries into it. Completely my fault. I should have cut back on the milk or used just half a can of cherries. It must have been severely overbaked too because overbaked custard will curdle and this was definitely curdled. It's ugly but it tastes good!

BLACKBERRY BUCKLE

This isn't a good cake recipe at all. It's actually called Blueberry Buckle. I used blackberries because I don't like blueberries one bit. I added 1/4t. vanilla extract. Though it tastes good it's very dry. I didn't overmix or overbake this. I made half the recipe (thank goodness) in an 8"x2" pan. It took 36 minutes to bake. I used 3/4c. frozen berries that were naturally 'slightly sweet'. They were huge so I cut each into thirds. I sprinkled the top with about 2t. sugar instead of making a crumb topping. I definitely wouldn't make this again.

BAKED CUSTARD

This is basic custard that consists of milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. I used half and half cream instead of milk. The recipe didn't call for any salt so I added a scant 1/4t. and it was perfect. I also added a small amount of melted semisweet chocolate but it wasn't really enough to notice. I baked mine in three 10oz. bowls in a water bath for 32 minutes. This turned out great and I'd make it again.

PUMPKIN PIE

This turned out well. The recipe is very similar to that on the can of Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin except this uses an extra egg, part evaporated milk/part whole milk, and nutmeg in place of cloves. I used cloves as I don't like nutmeg at all. This recipe called for no salt at all so I added 1/2t., which wasn't nearly enough.

This was too much mixture for a 9"/1qt. pie dish. I had to fill my dish with more mixture than I was comfortable with and I poured out about 1/2c. that definitely wouldn't have fit in the dish, so at least 3/4c. got wasted. This took 58 minutes to bake. Next time I make any pumpkin pie I'll use my 10"/1.5qt. dish.

This pie is not quite as firm as I'm used to but it does taste good. I think I'll just stick to Libby's recipe.

PIE CRUST

This is almost the same recipe as the classic one from Crisco. It's very easy to work with and roll out. It's flaky and doesn't have a strong flavor once baked. I made two and froze them both. I rolled each out between two sheets of wax paper, rolled them up, folded the ends over and wrapped each one in plastic wrap and froze. I thawed each one in the refrigerator then left it on the counter for ten minutes before rolling out to put into the pie plate. I used this crust in the pumpkin pie recipe from this book.

TRIPLE-CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES

I made half the recipe and got 26 doughballs using a 1T./1.5" diameter scoop. The cookies taste good but they didn't spread out quite as much as I'd have liked and they're cakelike, which I don't like. The recipe had no salt in it so I added 1/4t. but it needs more. I added a lot more vanilla too. I left out the semisweet chocolate chunks and white chocolate chunks and used ground pecans instead of chopped. I used a small amount of mini semisweet chips.

BROWNIE PUDDING CAKE

This is one of those 'magic' cakes that makes its own pudding on the bottom. It uses no egg and just 1T. oil. It turned out good but was a little bitter. The cake part was dry even though it was baked in less time than the recipe stated. There's a little too much cocoa powder in both the pudding and cake part. I added a little vanilla to the pudding mixture and I added 1/8t. each to both the pudding and the cake.

OATMEAL-CARAMEL BARS

These oat bars have a layer of chocolate and caramel in between. You take caramels (I used Kraft Bits), add a little milk to them and melt them in the microwave, 50 seconds. You press 2/3 of your creamed mixture into the baking pan, sprinkle semisweet chocolate chips over it evenly then pour your melted caramel mixture over that. You drop the remaining 1/3 of your creamed mixture evenly over the top and bake it a short time, 25 minutes.

I added 2T. unsweetened cocoa powder to the dry ingredients. I used equal parts brown and white sugar instead of all brown. The recipe used no salt so I added 3/8t. I left out the nuts. If you use salted butter you'll still need to add probably 1/4t. salt. I used an extra 1/4c. mini semisweet chocolate chips because 1/2c. wasn't enough to cover the surface.

I made half the recipe in an 8" foil-lined pan and baked them for 25 minutes. After they cooled I trimmed the edges because the caramel got too chewy where it cooked out onto the edges of the foil for my liking. I cut them into six bars then cut each of those in half.

The recipe is here.

MY THOUGHTS: This is truly a great book. I don't care for the binding because you have to turn the pages carefully so you don't rip them. Everything I baked didn't turn out perfectly but you can learn from each and every thing you've made, decide what to do differently the next time. There's not a photo for every recipe but there are a lot.

I purchased this book myself in 2004 at Walmart.