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So it must be almost 6 years to the day that at my birthday party at the Pegu Club, I summoned enough liquid courage to approach Melissa Clark (who was there to celebrate her latest book launch - another long circuitous story) to tell her how much I loved her writing and her column in The NY Times. But honestly, who knows what exactly I said? All that I can recall is that she said something along the lines of, "Thank you so much," then asked me if it was my birthday and if I would prefer that she and her small group move to another table to make way for my ever expanding party. We must have been super annoying because even though I said, "No, it's no problem," she moved anyway. Or maybe I came across as scary stalker? Probably.
Anyhoo...I am still reading her column in The Times and I've been holding onto this apple muffin recipe for just over a year waiting for...what? I dunno. Fall is officially here so it seems as good a time as any to bake! And since apples are plentiful, I might as well bake them into something extra tasty. It's so tiresome to eat them raw. Yawn. You should definitely bake and serve (and eat!) these on the same day, preferably within a few hours of making them otherwise they will be super sogged-out the next day. Not cute. But the day you bake them they are extra cute and tasty, like little mini-cakes. My only question about the recipe was that Melis tells you to distribute the apple slices among the muffin cups but doesn't tell you what to do with the extra sauce. Should I have cooked it down to a glaze? Poured it all in the muffin tins? Poured it over my pancakes? What's a girl to do?? I poured about half of it over the apples in the muffin tin and then threw the rest away. I worried about all of that liquid. Maybe I'll just ask her the next time I run into her...my birthday is coming up.
Upside Down Apple Muffins
Adapted from Melissa Clark and The New York Times
For the Apple Topping:
3 apples (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled, cored and sliced 1/4-inch thick
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
Pinch kosher salt
For the muffins:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Heat the oven to 375˚F. Generously grease a 12-cup muffin tin.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, stir together the apples, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 6 tablespoons butter and pinch salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender, about 15 minutes. Distribute the apple slices among the muffin cups.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, 3/4 cup brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the 8 tablespoons butter, eggs, sour cream and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold together until smooth. Distribute the batter on top of the apples. Bake until the muffins are slightly puffed, about 20 to 22 minutes.
5. Allow the muffins to cool for about 15 minutes in the pan. Turn onto a platter and serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 12 muffins.
Helloooo Cleveland!!! First of all I'd like to send a hearty thanks to the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for having free wi-fi so that I could finish this post during my 2 hour layover (except for the part where it lost connection and I lost half of this post). Why every other airport seems to charge $9.95 for wi-fi access is beyond me. Anyhoo...I have been experimenting with making something other than shrimp lately. I know, cooking chicken breasts is hardly an experiment, but making it taste like something other than the shoe leather that you typically get in caesar salads IS a challenge! It's a really good base for trying out sauces and toppings if you can keep yourself from over cooking it. (A key is bringing the chicken to room temperature first so that the inside doesn't remain cold while the outside over cooks.)Wondering about the purple chicken above? That was my experiment with using red wine in my mushroom sauce. Typically I really like reduced red wine sauces, beurre rouge and whatnot, but the color made the chicken look...weird. So I went back to the beige sauce made with stock. And in an effort to clean out my fridge before my weekend trip, I sauteed grape tomatoes and garlic and topped it all off with feta. Pretty darn tasty if I do say so myself. It would even be good on fish. Or shrimp.
Sauteed Chicken With...
Mushrooms
2 boneless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1/3 cup chicken stock (or white wine)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken breasts, add to the pan and cook, about 6 minutes per side, depending on the thickness. (Resist the urge to move them around the pan so that you get a nice golden crust on each side.) Remove to a plate and set aside.
2. To the same skillet, add the mushrooms and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the thyme, and stock and cook until reduced by about half. Add the cream and cook until warmed through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle the sauce over the chicken and serve. Serves 2.
Cherry Tomatoes
2 boneless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2 garlic cloves minced
1 teaspoon fresh oregano
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken breasts, add to the pan and cook, about 6 minutes per side, depending on the thickness. (Resist the urge to move them around the pan so that you get a nice golden crust on each side.) Remove to a plate and set aside.
2. To the same skillet, add the tomatoes and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the oregano and cook stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper and drizzle with additional olive oil. Spoon the tomatoes over the chicken, sprinkle with feta and serve. Serves 2.
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