Do newly wed women still receive Betty Crocker cookbooks when they get married? It may sound a bit passé in this day and age, but when I was first married, someone gave me Betty Crocker's Cookbook. And I must admit that over the years, I've referred to it to learn the basics of cooking. Recently I consulted this cookbook to find a recipe for blueberry muffins, because we had guests and I wanted to bake something fresh for them in the morning. The day before, I had brought home a large package of big, organic blueberries from Trader Joe's. I believe in getting whatever fruit is in season, and use organic produce as much as possible; we're lucky here as San Diego County has the greatest number of organic farms nationwide.
The recipe is easy to follow and the muffins take very little time to mix together, and about twenty minutes to bake. There is something so enticing about warm muffins made from scratch for breakfast, or at any time of the day. Here is the recipe:
BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour
1/3 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh or drained canned blueberries, or 3/4 cup frozen blueberries, thawed and well drained
Preheat oven to 400º. Grease bottoms only of 12 medium muffin cups, or line with baking cups. Beat milk, oil, and egg together. Stir in flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt, all at once, just until flour is moistened (batter will be lumpy). Gently fold in blueberries. Divide batter among muffin cups. Sprinkle muffin tops with a bit of sugar, if desired. Bake until light golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Immediately remove from pan. Makes 1 dozen muffins.
I like the fact that these muffins are not overly sweet, even though I sprinkled a bit of sugar on the muffin tops before baking them. They are very good--and very hard to resist. The cookbook also offers variations of this recipe, such as apple or oatmeal raisin, if you want to try baking muffins of a different flavor.
I've seen Weekend Cooking hosted by Beth Fish Reads numerous times on Bermudaonion's Weblog, and am happy to participate in this meme for the first time. In Beth's words: Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend.
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I bought this cookbook in 1968 when I got married and I still use it.
ReplyDeleteI have an old Betty Crocker Cookbook and also some the Betty Crocker specialty books (cookies, crock pot, and so on). The recipes are utterly reliable. These muffins look wonderful. I buy in season and organic as much as possible but around here, the fruit choices get pretty slim in the winter.
ReplyDeleteMarjorie, it is a good, basic cookbook.
ReplyDeleteBeth, we can rely on Betty Crocker! Thanks for hosting this meme and for stopping by. :)
I don't have a Betty Crocker cookbook (sadly), but I use the online recipes all the time.
ReplyDeleteYou can find my WC HERE
I'm glad you took the weekend cooking plunge! The muffins look fantastic! I don't know if people still get Betty Crocker cookbooks for wedding gifts, but they should!
ReplyDeleteYou can't go wrong with Betty! I still have some cookbooks from 45 years ago. They seem to be the ones I go to the most. You're lucky you're near a Trader Joe's not just the organic farms. Here in "Podunk", there's not much. The closest Trader Joe's is hours and hours away.
ReplyDeleteOh, those muffins look gorgeous. Definitely worth a try
ReplyDeleteI bought my own Betty Crocker Cookbook twenty years ago and my mother-in-law gave me a McCalls Cookbook about the same time. Both of these I used extensively to learn the basics. And once in a while I still haul them out. The McCalls meatloaf recipe is the best I've ever found.
ReplyDeleteI try to buy local produce in season too but in Chicago it's difficult to find much this time of year. A few days ago my husband, a man who loves his junk food, was muttering about eating blueberries because they are healthy. I'm going to give these a try.
Those fresh organic blueberries are just popping on your muffins. Yum.
ReplyDeleteI got my first Betty Crocker cookbook as a wedding shower gift in 1964. It's held together now with a fat rubber-band. It's been a great resource over the years. I suspect many young homemakers today simply turn to he internet which is also a great resource.
Your blueberry muffins look delicious! I see you have some Trader Joe's seasonings in the background there. I use their Everyday Seasoning regularly.
ReplyDeleteI'm also in Podunk...it is a challenge to find anything "in season" around here...unless you grow it yourself :( I don't have a Betty Crocker cookbook and I don't think I've ever had one. My family can put away some blueberry muffins though...in about an hour :)
ReplyDeleteJealous of your organic fresh fruits where you live. Kudos that you find the time to bake and cook things from scratch. Food always taste better that way!!
ReplyDeleteThese look delicious.
ReplyDeleteI'm having a book review competition if you're interested.
Ann
A good basic cookbook is a wonderful wedding gift. These muffins look wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI am eager to make more muffins! This recipe is super easy. Weekend Cooking is a wonderful meme, and I've added it to my Memes page. Thanks for all the comments. :)
ReplyDeleteI have to agree ...Betty Crocker is a good basic cookbook that every new cook should have in his or her inventory.
ReplyDeletewish I had a muffin right now....
These muffins do look very good-
ReplyDeleteI love blueberry muffins...
ReplyDeleteI gave you something at my blog
http://socratesbookreviews.blogspot.com/
I got one of these when I first got married in the 70's ...too funny. For basic reference it is still very good, as well as for common recipes.
ReplyDeleteThe muffins look yummy.
Oh God, they look delicious. The oly time i tried to make blueberry muffins, i only succeded in getting blueberry all over my ceiling, dog and mom. Neither were happy.
ReplyDeleteThese look good! I do like Betty Crocker recipes, I've used a few and gotten some great results.
ReplyDeleteI like Trader Joe's too! I go every couple of weeks for a few of my favorite things...especially their chocolate truffle bars.
http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/
I'm happy to report back that I made the muffins for breakfast this morning and they were a success!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE blueberry muffins. I never cook anything for breakfast, but this is so easy! I'll have a look for blueberries, they're not often available here in the Netherlands, and then expensive but blueberry muffins. Thanks for the recipe! :-)
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness these look so good!! I usually make blueberry muffins straight from the box but I have a box of frozen blueberries in my freezer (usually use for pancakes or waffles) but these sound too good.
ReplyDeleteLast week a few of us started a perpetual cooking challenge--Whip Up Something New--for trying out new recipes. I hope you'll maybe join us! Joanna from Lost in a Good Book is hosting this month and I'll be hosting next month--not sure if there's anything set in stone beyond that.
LOL--totally forgot to mention I have that SAME cookbook. My mom had it when we were growing up so I snagged it when I found at a used book sale. 70s edition, though. ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks again for all the great comments. Glad so many of you value Betty Crocker, or are at least open to her simplicity. We're really fortunate here to have plenty of available organic produce, year round. (However, we suffer from a lack of rain, so we need to irrigate.) Trish, I've noticed the Whip Up Challenge and it sounds terrific! Leslie, I'm glad you made the muffins. The recipe is easy, isn't it?! I'd kind of like to try using butter instead of oil in the recipe, but am not sure how they'd turn out.
ReplyDeleteI love blueberry muffins, but usually use a box mix, so this recipe is very welcome to my eyes! I would love the chance to make these and see if my family could tell the difference. I am going to be printing out this recipe for use this week. I have a great big bag of frozen blueberries in the fridge that will work perfectly with this! Thanks for sharing, Suko!
ReplyDeleteI have a few cookbooks that I rec'd for wedding shower gifts, but not the Betty Crocker. I do have JOY OF COOKING from 20+ years ago. I like it for basics ("what is celeriac?"), but I'm finding the recipes a bit dated and heavy.
ReplyDeleteYour blueberry muffins look fantastic - so glad you had success with your recipe!
Suko, my favorite muffin is blueberry white chocolate! I urge you to try adding in white chocolate chips into your blueberry muffin mix. It'll make all the difference! :D
ReplyDeleteMee, if I added white chocolate chips they might be too sweet for me--maybe semi-sweet chocolate chips instead (although I am trying to be more healthy in the new year). Thanks for visiting! :)
ReplyDeleteOK those look super yummy and I think we have to BC cookbooks here somewhere...I'll have to find it and look for more yummy stuff like this!
ReplyDeleteXOXO~ Renee
These look so good. But I must say, it takes a special kind of commitment to bake blueberry muffins in the morning! I love the idea, but can't imagine being that organised! :-) Oh and I love Betty Crocker, although I don't have any of her cookbooks. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
ReplyDeleteAbout the white chocolate chips, no I promise you it won't make them too sweet. I find white chocolate too sweet for me too if I eat it just like that. But it's different once you mix and bake it with the muffins. Talking about white chocolate blueberry muffins I just made two batches for fund raising tomorrow at the office. So it's great timing :)
ReplyDeleteJoanna, although these are quick and easy to make, I would only make these when I have enough time in the morning, such as on a leisurely weekend.
ReplyDeleteMee, I guess if you added just a few white chocolate chips, maybe 1/3 cup or so, they wouldn't be too sweet. But I have to watch myself as I tend to overindulge in sweets if they are around. :)
These look so yummy! I love blueberry muffins so I will have to give these a try. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThey sound wonderful! The only thing I'd do different is use melted butter. :<)
ReplyDeleteI don't know about newly weds, but I got mine when I first moved out on my own and I've been using it ever since.
ReplyDeleteThese look very tasty! I need try out this recipe. I love Betty Crocker. Mydad got me my first betty crocker when I first went to college .I've gotten numerous cookbooks since then that I still use betty for most things .
ReplyDeleteI love blueberries,but we dont get it where i live.But the recipe sounds yummy.thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThat looks delicious, Suko! I want to definitely try it out here!!
ReplyDeleteThey are very good--and very hard to resist. The cookbook also offers variations of this recipe, such as apple or oatmeal raisin, if you want to try baking muffins of a different flavor.Quick and Easy Blueberry Muffins
ReplyDelete