Honey Cornbread Muffins

So, I wasn't actually planning on baking Honey Cornbread Muffins today. I was saving this recipe for later on. I already baked Mexican Wedding Cookies earlier and so I thought I was about done baking for the day. I was working diligently to finish my 3 essays, art homework and read for my Asian Studies Class. A couple hours went by and I decided to take a break and get something to eat in the kitchen. While in the kitchen, my brother comes out of his room and says "What you making? Cornbread?!". I replied "No, if you look over there, I already made some cookies". He then said "Come on. You should make some cornbread". Well, that's why I made these Honey Cornbread Muffins. I got the recipe from the Neelys. These were super simple to make and I made them in no time which was great because I had a lot of other work to do. The Honey Cornbread Muffins were moist and had that classic corn/nutty taste from the corn meal, sweetness from the sugar and honey (the honey also gave a nice floral note) and the sweetness was balanced out by the salt. Overall, very good recipe. I didn't like the crumb of these however. I think I need to figure out how to make the crumb better and I have an idea in mind. I also think the temperature should be lower because these did brown up fairly quickly. Well, here's the recipe.

Honey Cornbread Muffins
Ingredients
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup honey
Special equipment: paper muffin cups and a 12-cup muffin tin

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Into a large bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the whole milk, eggs, butter, and honey. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir until just mixed.
Place muffin paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin. Evenly divide the cornbread mixture into the papers. Bake for 15 minutes, until golden.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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Chocolate And Almond Biscotti

I have a new found love for biscotti. No, I'm not talking about the biscotti that are individually wrapped in plastic and are sold in those fancy looking boxes at supermarkets. I'm talking about the real, home-made biscotti. There is definitely a difference in, not only the taste, but in the texture. Sometimes I find that a store bought biscotti are as hard as a rock and you're basically breaking your teeth with every bite you make. Home-made biscotti are hard enough to give you that crunch but still not too hard that you'll have to go to the dentist afterward. In addition, I personally do not like the anise/licorice flavor that store-bought biscotti have. It definitely turns me off. That's why I decided to make a biscotti without that licorice flavor and make it simple with almonds and chocolate. The recipe I used and adapted comes from Giada De Laurentiis. I completely changed her recipe all together and came up with my own. The recipe creates a lemony biscotti with almonds running through, giving it a nutty aspect. Plus, with a layer of chocolate how can you go wrong?

*Keep in mind that this is NOT my tweaked recipe.

Chocolate And Almond Biscotti
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons grated lemon zest (from about 3 to 4 lemons)
3/4 cup coarsely chopped whole almonds
18 ounces white chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt.

In another large bowl, beat the sugar and eggs with an electric mixture until pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Mix in the lemon zest and then the flour, and beat until just blended. (The dough will be sticky). Stir in the almonds. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

Divide the dough evenly into 2 equal mounds and place on the prepared baking sheet. With moist hands, space the dough evenly apart and form into 2 (9 by-3-inch) logs. Bake for 35 minutes until lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes. Using a serrated knife, cut the logs crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick diagonal slices. Arrange the biscotti cut side down on the same baking sheet. Bake until the cookies are pale golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the pan does not touch the water. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Dip the end of each biscotti in the chocolate. Transfer the dipped biscotti to a wire rack, set over a baking sheet, until the chocolate has hardened. Store in an airtight container.

These would actually make great little give-aways. Just buy some cellophane bags, twist ties and you're all set. Quick, easy and inexpensive.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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