It is now February and the tangerines have stopped arriving, but the oranges are still in full swing. This morning was cold and we needed a hot breakfast. Because I am preparing for a trip to New Mexico I picked up my copy of Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home on my way down to the kitchen. This book falls open on its own to Multigrain Muffins on page 56, the recipe I use most often (For a zucchini season variation, those of you in the southern hemisphere might want to check out zucchini gingerbread muffins, adapted from the same basic recipe). The muffin is a good, plain, not-too-sweet muffin containing oats, whole wheat pastry flour, buttermilk and vegetable oil.
Because there were fourteen oranges sitting on the counter we were going to have orange muffins. Grab a large one and begin zesting it with the microplane into a small mixing bowl. All of your liquid ingredients, plus some brown sugar and quick-cooking oats are going to go in with the zest. Got all the zest? Now juice the orange into a one-cup measuring cup. I got somewhere between 1/4 cup and 1/3 cup. Since the Moosewood recipe calls for one cup of buttermilk, I pour buttermilk into the orange juice until I reach the 1-cup mark. See? I have just made my first substitution: 1/4 plus cup fresh orange juice plus zest for 1/4 cup plus of buttermilk. Both buttermilk and fresh orange juice are acid and will be reacting with the baking soda in the recipe to rise. Now I turn on my oven to 400.
Having substituted orange juice for part of the buttermilk I followed the recipe as written for awhile, adding to my orange-buttermilk mixture, one egg, 1/3 cup packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats. I whisk all that together. Quick cooking oats feature smaller pieces than rolled oats. Soaking in liquids helps them break down and blend with the other ingredients — you won’t know they are in the finished product, which is useful if you have suspicious children or significant others who are dismissive of “health foods.”
The recipe calls for 1/4 cup vegetable oil. I usually use corn oil, but I have a secret ingredient for citrus recipes, a wonderful product by Mosaic, a blood orange olive oil. In case you don’t know yet that I am not a high-income gourmand who goes out and buys everything under the sun, let me tell you that this oil showed up at my local Canned Foods Grocery Outlet. My friend Elaine gave me some as a gift and I went down and snapped up another bottle of my own. If money is no object, order yourself some. If you find it on sale, stock up. This morning I was wondering if I could buy some blood oranges and whomp up some of my own for less than the cost of a new bottle (my supply is getting low), so I read the label. They make this stuff by pressing olives and blood oranges together. Oh. Too bad — I don’t have access to olives.
Anyway, back to the recipe. In the same measuring cup I used before I poured about 1 Tbsp blood orange oil. Then I filled it with corn oil to reach 1/4 cup. This was my second substitution and there is a theme here: with each substitution I am building orange flavor. I’ve added zest, juice and now oil made from olives and oranges. Just for the heck of it, I added 1 tsp of vanilla and a grating of nutmeg because I like them.
Okay. Now I’m almost done substituting. I docilely mix the 1 cup unbleached flour, 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp baking powder called for in the book, whisking them together in a large mixing bowl. Before I stir them into the liquid ingredients I get out my standard 12-muffin muffin tin. I am too old to eat jumbo muffins — if I want more, I’ll just have two.
Oops. Substitution number three coming up: Moosewood says to oil the muffin tins: if I do, they will stick — I need something greasier than oil. I dig out the greasy margarine from the butter compartment (this is the kind of thing we use margarine for — if I didn’t use margarine I’d lube the tin up with good old Crisco or another vegetable shortening. Or if I had a butter wrapper handy I’d swipe it through the muffin cups). For insurance I melt the tiny half pat of butter on the butter plate and swab that in with my fingers. It will add flavor.
Time to mix the liquid with the dry ingredients. I made a well in the dry, poured the liquids in and mixed with a rubber scraper just until I saw no flour clumps, hauled the batter into the tin quickly with the same scraper and popped the muffins into the oven. While they baked for twenty minutes I had time to do all of the dishes and put stray ingredients away, plus get out a cooling rack.
The muffins were good. That’s why I’m telling you about them. I made myself a cup of decaf coffee with half and half and ate two of them slowly. They have a subtle sweetness, best noticed if you chew them thoughtfully rather than wolf them down. I know from experience that Moosewood’s Multigrain Muffins taste sweeter and stronger after they have cooled, but it is lovely to eat them hot on a cold morning and know that the ones you don’t eat will taste better later.
Food Notes: The Mosaic blood orange oil is a lovely thing. I said that already. I would try any oil of theirs that I came across. No, they do not pay me, and I have no affiliation with the company. Could you make lemon muffins instead? You certainly could. Tassajara Bakery used to make a killer lemon-ginger muffin. You could do that, too. Could you use all white flour? Sigh. Yes, you could, although it pains me to admit it. In the privacy of your kitchen you can pile on the white flour and white sugar, too. I do that in desserts sometimes, but I don’t like gummy, white muffins. Could you use a different oil? Sure. If you keep to the amounts given in the recipe you can make any reasonable substitution. Out of buttermilk? Use yogurt or sour milk. Have only regular milk in the house? Sour it with a little vinegar or lemon juice OR eliminate the baking soda and add an additional teaspoon of baking powder. Enjoy
Painting Note: There is no painting this week. I thought there would be — let’s just say time management is not my forte. I did take a few photos to prove that I actually made these muffins and didn’t make them up, so, just this once, I substituted a photograph for a painting.
By the time you read this I will be en route to Taos, New Mexico sans mobile devices for eight days. I will not be able to read and respond to comments until my return on February 12, but I love it when you comment. If I can, I will bring you back something good from the land of green chile and pine nuts.
What an excellent recipe. And an excellent blog.
Thank you, Linda, for the compliment. For anyone else reading this, Linda is the one who took the photo of me that I use on this blog when we met to write in Grand Central Station last May. She writes her own blog, which you can visit by clicking on her link above.
Blood orange olive oiL??? I had no idea such a product exited, Sharyn, but now I’ll look for it. These muffins sound delicious but, with all of that orange zest and juice, how could they not? Have a great and safe trip to Taos, as well as a safe journey home.
Thanks, John. I’m just home now. The blood orange oil was quite a find and versatile as well — I use it to roast winter vegetables, etc., but I’m almost out…
Hi Sharyn – I’m with John… that blood orange olive oil just sounds divine. I totally need to keep an eye out for that! Fantastic looking muffins – I love all the substitutions you made – sounds like you had a lot of fun 🙂 Have a wonderful trip to Mexico 🙂
Thanks, Charles. The blood orange oil is definitely worth having. I guess, technically, it is called a “fused” oil because they press the oranges with the olives. It was New Mexico, not Mexico: the land of green chile, posole, stacked enchiladas and blue corn
I’m with John on that one…blood orange olive oil.. I need to find that! I have that same cookbook but I’ve not yet tried this muffin recipe. Looks and sounds really good, especially with your substitions! Have a safe trip!
Thanks, Linda. I use that basic muffin recipe all of the time. Of course, I mess with it a lot…
Everything is better when it’s multigrain. These sound delicious.
You’re right, yummy. Multi-grain is good, especially if you can get whole wheat pastry flour to keep some lightness. Moosewood’s basic recipe is excellent and there is no end to possible variations.
So now we are all going to go one hunt for blood orange olive oil! You should get some kind of fee for your promotional effort! These muffins sound so good and your substitutions are always welcome! I’m looking forward to making these as treats for a staff meeting…a nice change from the typical blueberry that always shows up! Debra
Hi Debra. The oil is so, so good — it’s worth buying it if you find it.
Another bookmarked post, both for the recipe and the reminder to look out for blood orange olive oil. Love all that layered orange goodness with the oatmeal, buttermilk and the little bit of brown sugar. Those muffins have to be terrific, and not too sweet which is the way I like ’em….I don’t like sweet breakfast generally. Hope you have a super trip and can’t wait to hear about it when you return. I like your photo BTW!
Thanks for the compliment, Betsy. These muffins are not too sweet. It’s nerve-wracking for me to take photos — there always seems to be something unsightly in the viewfinder that I have edited out with my eye.
I love a great muffin recipe and the blood orange olive oil sounds to die for, Sharyn. I’m going to have to hunt that down for my Olive Oil collection.
Thanks, Eva. I’m sure you’ll be happy with the olive oil if you can find it: I’ll snap it up if I see it again.
Sounds like the muffins smell and taste wonderful, perfect for a chilly morn.
Thanks, Nancy. They use up some of the oranges, too!
Sounds delicious as ever Sharyn! So creative and clever with the substitutions. I’m just about to bake creatively too 🙂 some sort of Victoria sponge with lemons and oranges and to use up the last of my homemade lemon Curd 🙂 love the sound of blood orange oil. I will keep my eyes peeled for that! X
The blood orange oil is lovely, Lauren. I’m just back from New Mexico and look forward to reading about your Victoria sponge soon.
I have used lemon olive oil – but not blood orange – sounds wonderful. With the multigrain these will quickly become my favorite muffins. I am having company this weekend and these will be on the menu. Thanks for the recipe and enjoy your trip.
Thanks, Jane. I hope the muffins were a success for you. The blood orange oil is terrific, so good that I would try anything Mosaic bottles.
These orange muffins sound great! 🙂
Thank you, Christina. And thanks for stopping by.
I hope you bring back many colorful paintings. I have a hunch you will be inspired to do so. Meanwhile…
As a token of appreciation for your Blog, the words and ideas you share and the many ways in which you inspire, I would like to offer you the Versatile Blogger Award. Please visit the article below, at Granny’s Parlour, to see easy instructions regarding how to accept this award and how to pass it along, should you wish to do so (no obligations). Have a great weekend!
http://grannysparlour.com/2012/02/11/writing-from-the-heart-seven-random-things/
Thank you, Granny Wise. I’ll click on the link soon. I did paint a couple of paintings while I was in Taos, but they are of stargazer lilies rather than food. I brought back blue cornmeal and some recipe ideas, too.
I seemed to have missed this post and couldn’t say Bon Voyage!
anyway, lovely recipe, and I’ve never heard of blood orange olive oil before,I think you should pop over to Chica’s place for the oil 🙂 and thanks for the substitutions as I don’t see butter milk here, but obviously can get good yoghurt. Claire
Thanks, Claire. How’s the healing coming?
Slowly but surely 🙂 and thanks for asking/remembering
You’re welcome, Claire. Glad to hear it.
What no painting! 😉 Just giving you a hard time 🙂 I love multigrain muffins, the blood orange olive oil sounds great! I’ve seen some crazy oil blends but not blood orange, neat.
The blood orange oil is fabulous and has many uses, sweet and savory. New painting tomorrow of some sort — I’d better get busy!
I hope your trip went well 🙂
I love the idea of blood orange olive oil, do you think infusing the olive oil with some orange zest could yeild something similar?
I love your muffins, citrusy and not too sweet. My kind of muffins
Thanks, Sawsan. I read the bottle to see how they made the blood orange oil and that is how I found out that they crushed the olives and oranges at the same time. I think if you infuse olive oil with orange zest you will get something similar but without the depth of flavor. Try it and see and let me know if it works well.
I’m so excited, I think I have this cookbook and haven’t tried this recipe yet! I love that you don’t like white flour;) multi-grain is always the way to go, isn’t it! It makes such a nuttier tasting muffin. I’m sad to not see a painting, but think you have a great knack for photography and this photo is pretty tempting.. the muffins look heavenly! Have a fabulous time on holidays! Enjoy and we’ll see you when you get back. xo Smidge
Thank you, Smidge — you are so kind. I make muffins from this recipe all the time, substituting seasonal ingredients. I should have a new painting up by tomorrow evening at the latest with a simple soup recipe.