Snickerdoodle Muffins & New Blog Feature

Anything snickerdoodle is an immediate win in my book. If I had to choose between a chocolate chip cookie and a snickerdoodle, sinckerdoodle would win out every single time. When I saw snickerdoodle muffins there was no holding me back.

I wanted this recipe to turn out perfect. I really, really did. When I saw the photos of this muffin, over at Lemon Sugar, I knew I had to make these.

Do these not just scream "EAT ME!"?
Photo source: Lemon Sugar - psst, go visit her blog, you won't regret it, I pinky swear.

I even had the perfect excuse to make these. Scott and I were going to watch a football game with some friends. *Side note: Living on the West Coast means football games start at 9:00AM. That is so early. What better treat to share at such an early morning event!

After taking inventory in my kitchen I had every necessary ingredient. Or, what I thought would be an appropriate substitute... I'll get back to all that in a minute.

When I'd finished baking and the muffins were cooling I noticed Scott in the kitchen munching away on a muffin. Upon further inspection I found he was eating the PICTURE PERFECT muffin! To all you other food bloggers out there, you know exactly what I'm talking about. You scour your finished product and pick the most gorgeous items to be photographed. As the muffins were cooling there were a few beauties that were in my picture line up. Then, Scott ATE THE PRETTIEST ONE. I may have had a small coronary.

Back to the subject at hand.

Snickerdoodle Muffins

2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (16 Tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup sour cream (here's where I started to substitute - I used 1 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt)
1/4 cup buttermilk (another substitution - I didn't have buttermilk, so I made my own with vinegar and skim milk... pretty sure I should have either a) just buckled down and bought buttermilk b) used at least 2% milk)

Topping
2/3 cup sugar
2 Tbsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350.
Line two muffin pans with liners and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cream of tartar.
In a separate bowl, beat/cream together softened butter and sugar until pale in color and fluffy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add vanilla and beat to combine.
Add half of the flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Do not overbeat (something tells me I overbeat).
Add sour cream and buttermilk, and beat until just combined, then add remaining flour.
Beat until just combined.

In a medium bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon for topping.

One at a time, and using an ice-cream scoop, scoop a ball of batter into the cinnamon/sugar mixture.
Use the bowl to swirl and coat the entire ball of batter with mixture. (My batter was just not firm enough - I'm sure that's due to my substitutions, and suspicion that I overbeat the batter *sigh*.)
Using a spoon, transfer the coated ball into a muffin liner, and repeat until you've used all the batter.
Sprinkle the leftover cinnamon and sugar over the tops of the muffins.
Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack.
Can be stored in an airtight container for up to three days.

Yields 16-20 muffins

My muffins were ok, I'm positive they could be better. Just by looking at the photos from Lemon Sugar I've learned my lesson... Some things just do not need to be substituted. I'll make these again, and follow the directions precisely.

Source: Lemon Sugar

*****

Be Kind. Be Generous. Be Thankful.
Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Roundup

You've seen it, or know someone who has done it. Random acts of kindness. I even stumbled upon a man who challenged himself to 365 days of random acts of kindness. And, one of my closest friends challenged herself to do good deeds every day during September, the month of her birthday.

Something lit a fire within me, and I wanted to make November my month to do good works. It is so amazing how simple it is to lend a hand, do a good deed, be kind, be generous, and most of all, thankful.

I once read (ok, maybe more than once) "When you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly." (Matthew 6:3-4)
Each Friday in November I'm going to quickly recap my week. As you read about my journey, please do not take it as boasting. Rather, I hope you read or see something that inspires you, too.

November 1

After a thorough shake down of my drawers and closets, Goodwill has a few more items.

photo sources: www.lemon-sugar.com
www.latimes.com, www.redcross.org

November 2

Erin over at Lemon Sugar (who just so happens to be my inspiration for today's muffins) is taking up a collection for those who were impacted by Hurricane Sandy. If you're a blogger not only will your donation go to the Red Cross, you will also score a sweet ad on her blog (this is a force to be reckoned with, her blog was viewed over 90k times last month)! To donate through Lemon Sugar (and get some sweet ad time on her blog) email her at lemonsugarblog@gmail.com. If you are not a blogger but still want to donate, head over to Lemon Sugar's blog, scroll to the bottom of the blog, click on the Red Cross button, and donate away. So easy!