Plenty of Harvest

This is my favourite time year! I head down to our garden and reap the rewards of all the time spent there in the summer months.

I learned to bake and make preserves from my mother with recipes handed down through the generations. This is one of the reasons I love the start of fall; I can spend time in the kitchen making pickles, jams, salsa and lots and lots of muffins! Yes, muffins! I enjoy using fruit and vegetables to make dozens of muffins that I freeze for us to enjoy for the coming months. It is a popular item in my daughter’s lunch at school.

Here are some of our favourite muffin recipes I make yearly and freeze by the dozens.

Cinnamon Apple Muffins

• ½ cup of butter
• ¾ cup of sugar
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• ¾ cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 medium sized apples, cored, peeled and sliced into cubes
• 1tbsp of sugar and ½ tsp of cinnamon mixed together and set aside

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large mixer, add all the ingredients (except sugar/cinnamon mixture) and stir until mixed. Grease muffin tins and add an even amount of batter to each tin. Sprinkle the top of the batter with the sugar/cinnamon mixture and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from muffin tin.

Zucchini Muffins

• 1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ¼ milk
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• ½ cup chocolate chips
• ½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Grease muffin tins and add batter evening to the tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Let cool before removing from muffin tins.

Pumpkin Muffins

• 1 ¾ cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of sugar
• ½ cup of brown sugar
• 1 tsp of baking soda
• 2 tsp of ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp of ground cloves
• ¼ tsp of nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups of pureed pumpkin
• ½ cup of coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Grease muffin tins and scoop batter evening to each tin. Bake for 20-22 minutes until golden brown or a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes until removing from muffin tins.

I will not only freeze the muffins, but I will also freeze pureed pumpkin and shredded zucchini (in 2 cup servings) so I can make more muffins or pumpkin pie later in the year. There is nothing like using produce you have grown in your own garden to make treats and meals for your family!