Foodie Friday Mickey Muffins

I love baking. In both uses of the term. I love eating baking. Delicious carbs, loaded with raisins and cinnamon, chocolate laced cookies, cakes of any layer, I love each and every one. I also love the act of baking, making food treats that I really shouldn’t have in the house because they are so deadly. So when late autumn rolls around and I start to prep for the holidays, I am pleased as punch to start baking again, because at least now it is baking with a purpose.

I really really really wanted an Easy Bake Oven when I was little, but my mother told me I couldn't have one because I was a bad daughter. Or maybe it was expensive, I dunno.  I still bear the scars of my impoverished childhood. My mother did, however, buy me the Easy Bake Oven accoutrements - the cake mixes, the little pans, etc., so that I could be all Betty Crocker on some, albeit, more humble scale. 

Never had this

Even then my mother would not let me make up my cake mixes unless she was going to use the oven herself - something about not wanting to turn on the oven for one tiny little Easy Bake Cake, or some such arbitrary reason.

Are you getting the picture, after 82 blog entries, that my mother is a HORRIBLE MONSTER?

Didn’t get the 64 pack of crayons, either. You know, the one with the sharpener built it. Ya. That’s right, Mom. I still carry that with me through my life. Years of therapy. Years.

Didn't have this either

She wasn’t crazy about baking, herself, so I understand her lack of enthusiasm. When she did bake it was always for either the Church group, or her PEO ladies group, or some other group of people that didn’t include her children. Woe betide any family member who tried to sneak a crumb of her peanut butter rice crispy squares with teeth aching chocolate icing. Keep your distance from those oatmeal cookies with the cherries on top. Step away from the chocolate haystacks. Just step away. 

So much does she hate baking that one year, for my birthday, I got slices of whole wheat bread with candles stuck in it. How cruel. How utterly, utterly cruel.

the kleenex was for my bitter tears

Ok, in fairness, that year I DID say I didn’t want a cake because I was doing well on a diet. But still. 

Anyway, so to this day I have a great fondness for baking sweet treats, despite my mother’s continual attempts to thwart my culinary creativity and Stalinesque stance on keeping her children from homemade goodies. Seriously, if my baking was the roadrunner, she'd totally be the coyote.

She has a few excellent recipes that I use frequently, and none of these recipes is more famous, more universally well loved than her Mickey Muffins.

No Betty White jokes. I will beat the crap out of you, do you understand me? They are called Mickey Muffins and shut up about it already.

So my mom has made these muffins for as long as I can remember for every bake sale, every afternoon coffee clatch, and always has a dozen in the freezer for unexpected guests. She halves and butters them for her book club ladies. 

They are the perfect not to sweet, not to full of superfluous crap like chocolate chips or dried bananas.  Just raisins and spice and you’re good.

I implore you to make these for the next Hockey Night in Canada or Ladies PEO meeting.

Mickey Muffins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1/2 C butter or margerine

1 C brown sugar

1 egg

1 C milk combined with 1 Tbsp vinegar, let stand for 5 minutes

1 and 1/2 C flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2  tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp salt

1 C raisins

Blend butter and sugar with egg and milk/vinegar mixture together til smooth.

Sift dry ingredients together and add to wet ingredients. Add raisins.

Either spray muffin tins with cooking spray or use paper muffin liners.

Scoop batter into lined or greased tins.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Makes about 18 muffins.

put the goop in the pans and put the pans in the oven.

take the baked goop out of the oven

just for you!

PS. My mom is awesome and baked for us all the time.

PPS. I still didn't get the 64 pack of Crayolas, though.