Another recipe I discovered in my son's 9th grade handwriting, presumably from his 'Intro to Cooking' class. Trouble was, it didn't really finish. Meaning, there weren't any instructions for how hot to make the oven, how long to cook the muffins, and finally, there were some random ingredients listed at the bottom that didn't really seem to fit anywhere. So I went looking elsewhere.
I found a recipe for applesauce muffins with oatmeal in them. I'm a big fan of oatmeal as a filler and as an ingredient that gives a nice hearty texture to foods, so I was in. The recipe bordered on being too complex. Whenever I read 'mix and set aside' I get nervous, as that inevitably means I'll be mixing something else, then mixing the two somethings together. But this worked out ok.
I had all the ingredients on hand, though I don't know if my baking powder was 'double acting' as the recipe called for. Is there a difference? I may never know. I was intrigued by the option of using raisins or dried cranberries, as I've become a huge fan of cranberries. It might be due to the large amounts of sugar they put in, I don't know. I was also intrigued by the 1/3 cup of sugar that was both 'optional' and never referred to in the directions.
As I formed the batter, it looked delicious. And I realized then and there that one measuring stick for how good I expect something to taste is how good the batter tastes. I know that grosses some people out, raw eggs, and all, but it seems to hold true. And lo and behold, I tasted the batter and it tasted, well, like it was missing something. I couldn't put my finger on it, and I certainly couldn't have guessed what it was. Salt perhaps? Maybe it was that missing (optional) sugar. But it just tasted bland. Then again, we're talking applesause and oatmeal, not the most dynamic of flavors ever.
I put the muffins in the oven and that was when my big fear returned. This is the fear that makes me think baking may not be in the cards for me in this project. I never know when something is done. I hate the recipes that say 'bake 15-20 minutes' because my mathematical mind wants to know, is it 15 or is it 20? "Or when a toothpick comes out clean" - hate that one. So I cook the minimum, then 'check on it'. Remember, my wife is a professional baker, so she knows how to check on it. I don't. I touch it, look at it, and when it looks right, I pull it.
I pulled these out and they looked pretty good! Until they cooled...and set...and dropped. Not a disaster, but not good (see the photo). I let them cool and tasted one. And to be honest, it was ok. Not awful, but certainly nothing spectacular. And I find myself thinking, if I really wanted to learn how to cook, I would ask someone what I could do differently to make them better - better tasting, better looking, etc. But really, this project is designed so I can learn how to cook SOME things that I have confidence in. In the end, this will not be going in the book.
Verdict: Miss
Score:
Hits - 2
Misses - 4
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