Applesauce Oat Muffins

Tonight's game between Bama and LSU provided a good excuse to make some muffins as a snack.

I found this recipe in Taste of Home magazine (February/March 2002).  I kept most, if not all, of my magazines from the year or two that I have subscribed.  I've been slowly going through them culling the recipes I wanted to try.

Gracie always likes to be doing whatever I'm doing (which can make some things difficult to accomplish!).  She wanted to "help" me make the muffins.  She did help.  She helped make a mess!  She is fascinated with my drawer of kitchen gadgets.  I pulled out some tongs and a BBQ brush, but she was more interested in my collection of measuring spoons.  I had a time trying to corral her efforts in spooning muffin ingredients from the mixing bowl to her pot.  She had loads of fun, though.

Ingredients: (4 muffins)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder*
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon*
1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon canola oil

I tripled the recipe to make 12 muffins.

1.  In a bowl, combine the first six ingredients.  Realize that you forgot to buy baking powder and substitute 1/3 the amount of baking soda instead.  ("worth a try")

2.  Remove toddler's hand from bowl.  Grab toddler's spoon and dump mix back into the bowl.

3.  In another bowl, combine the egg, milk, applesauce and oil. Preferably away from toddler.  Scoot farther down if she follows you.  Use olive oil because you just don't feel like digging under the cabinet to find the canola or vegetable oil.

4.  Repeat #2.  Also remove measuring spoon that toddler just shoved in her mouth and put back into drawer.

5.  Stir wet mix into dry mix just until moistened.  Or longer if you didn't read that part.

6.  Repeat #2.

7.  Fill four greased muffin cups two-thirds full.  Remove toddler's spoon from muffin cup.

8.  Tell toddler to get down and move because "HOT HOT HOT!"  Bake at 400 F for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack.  Or just leave them in the muffin cups if you didn't read that part.


9.  Clean up mess on counter.  And floor.  See the bottle of cinnamon and realize you forgot to put that in.  Put 15 measuring spoons in the dishwasher.

Robert, an enthusiastic guinea pig for my new recipes, tried it first.  I asked him, "How is it?"  He paused and said, "You said it has what in it?"  Oh boy, that's not good.  "It has baking soda instead of baking powder."   He didn't like it.  He gave a morsel to Gracie who eagerly took it (probably because she got to help).  Robert came back into the kitchen and said, "She said "Back! Back!"  So she didn't like it, either.  I tried it, and although, I didn't hate it, I didn't LIKE it, either.

Not sure if I want to retry using the correct recipe or not.  By the way, tripling the recipe made too much mix for 12 cups.  I put the leftover in the fridge.  Maybe I'll try to add something to it to make it more palatable.

PS  ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!!