Tasty muffins start with handy basic batter, add-ins

Cupcakes are the darlings of the muffin tin lately, basking in glam and glitter. Perhaps unfairly, they've been upstaging their big sister, the muffin.

Muffins are portable sweet treats, too, only with greater depth and character that can be made into high-octane morning fuel. Chock-full of fruit or fortified with bran and oats, at least muffins offer the promise of nutritional redemption. Not guilt-free, but not exactly junk food, either.

Muffins are prominent in the display case at Dixie Supply, a home-style bakery and cafe on State Street between a convenience store and A.W. Shucks at the City Market. Kris Holmes, who owns and operates the business with her husband, Allen, loves to bake. It shows: Almost all of the baked goods, from croissants to Charleston chewies to coconut cream pie and more, are made in-house.

The beauty of muffins, she says, is their versatility. "If you get a good basic batter, you can do anything with them." And unlike cupcakes, "They don't have to be frosted. They say, 'Here I am, take a bite.' "

Among the muffins in her repertoire are sour cream and blueberry, cranberry and orange, carrot cake, mocha cappuccino and lemon poppyseed.

While biscuits are traditional breakfast fare in the South, muffins have some key advantages, says Mike Ray, owner of Normandy Farm Artisan Bakery in South

Windermere. "It's an easier, more consistent product to make, and it has a longer shelf life than a biscuit." They can be quickly reheated in a microwave, he adds.

Ray reinforces Holmes' point about a basic batter. "It's a matter of finding one that works well," he says. Then, a huge array of add-ins allow for experimentation.

There's even a rescue for a muffin that turns out kind of bland, Holmes says. Make a special butter blend, such as butter, softened cream cheese and orange zest, and spread it over a warm muffin. "Even if you have a whole-wheat muffin, you put a little bit of that on it, and you're in heaven."

Muffins are quick breads, meaning that the ingredients are rapidly combined into a batter and don't require rising time before baking. They deliver homemade goodness without a lot of time or fuss.

"It's hard to muck up a muffin," says Holmes.

Basic muffin technique involves just three steps: mixing all the dry ingredients together thoroughly, mixing all the wet ingredients together well and combining the two with as few strokes as possible into a batter, without overmixing. Note: Sugar is considered a wet ingredient in most muffin recipes. Chopped nuts or fruits either go in with the dry base or are folded into the batter near the end.

For a richer, more cakelike texture, some recipes call for creaming the butter and sugar, beating in the eggs and then the dry ingredients.

Muffins 101

Other tips on muffins:

--When incorporating blueberries, raspberries or cranberries, add frozen berries at the last minute to lessen the chance of the fruit bleeding and changing the color of the batter. Also, less fragile fruits are less likely to disintegrate in the batter, Holmes says.

--For the home cook, buy a muffin tin with a dull metallic color. Darker tins like those used by professionals absorb more heat and the cooking temperature must be reduced.

--Grease or spray the pan, including the top surface, to allow for mushrooming crowns that spill over the sides of the cups.

--To get a nice, large dome or crown, a thicker batter is ideal, says Holmes. Her method is to fill the muffin cups to the top, using an ice-cream scoop that holds 4 ounces. The scoop is inverted over the cup and the batter is released. Any way it's done, the batter is level with or mounded slightly above the rim.

Note of caution: Filling the cup to capacity has its drawbacks. The risk is muffin tops sticking together or becoming overcooked. A safer bet is filling each muffin cup about 3/4 full with batter.

--Put a sheet pan under the muffin pan to catch overflowing batter, says Holmes.

--The correct oven temperature is important. Get to know your oven or buy an oven thermometer to be sure.

--Don't overbake or the muffins will dry out.

--If you leave out a key ingredient, such as sugar, don't throw the batch of muffins away. Make bread pudding instead.

--Muffins can be frozen before or after baking to save time. According to the "Joy of Cooking," to freeze muffins before baking, scoop the batter into paper-lined muffin pans and freeze. Transfer the frozen muffins to a plastic freezer bag, along with a note about oven temperature and baking time. To bake, place frozen muffins into the pan and bake for about 5 minutes longer than the original time.

--The richer and sweeter the muffin, the longer it will stay moist, says "Joy." Reduced-fat muffins and muffins with 4 tablespoons or less butter or oil are best eaten immediately or soon after baking.

--Let finished muffins (with no toppings) cool upside down. While the muffin tin is still hot, place a dry kitchen towel over the top of the muffins and gently flip to turn the muffins out on to the counter. The shifting weight will create more volume, according to celebrity food expert Alton Brown.

A few healthy substitutions to try include:

--Up to 1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour for an equal measure of all-purpose flour.

Two egg whites for one egg in recipes that call for a single egg. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form and fold into the batter for an extra-light texture.

--Low-fat or no-fat milk instead of whole milk or cream.

--Honey for up to 1/2 the sugar in a recipe. Reduce the liquid in the recipe (usually milk or water) 1/4 cup for each cup of honey used. Reduce the cooking temperature 25 degrees.

--Canola oil and applesauce for butter, replacing the amount of butter with 1/4 canola oil and 3/4 applesauce. For example, 1 cup of butter would be replaced by 1/4 cup canola oil and 3/4 cup applesauce.

Recipes

The Holmeses operated Terrible Tom's bakery in the City Market for nine years before leaving Charleston in 1993 for work and travel in the United States and abroad. Holmes, a cookbook and recipe collector, says she always tried to "soak up" the local recipes in each place. "Everyplace we've been, we've picked up something," she says.

She and her husband have been back in the Lowcountry a little more than a year. They opened Dixie Supply, named for his family's longtime Charleston business, last August.

Not inclined to give away her secrets for Dixie Supply's popular sour cream and blueberry muffins, Holmes did share recipes for two others in her rotation. One is sweet and the other savory.

Chocolate-Chip Muffins

Makes 18-24

3 1/2 level teaspoons granulated instant espresso coffee

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons each of baking soda and salt

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 cups vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Whisk together the instant coffee, flour, cocoa power and baking soda and salt. In another bowl, blend the sugar and eggs with a mixer until ribbons form, approximately 5 minutes. While mixer is running, add the vegetable oil in a stream. Add the vanilla.

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix in the buttermilk and the white vinegar. Mix until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips.

Scoop batter into muffin cups and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

This recipe is from a Canadian cookbook that Holmes has often used:

Cheese 'N' V8 Muffins

Makes 10 medium

1 egg

1/3 cup oil

1 cup V8 juice

3/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and prepare pan.

In large bowl, add and combine well the egg, oil, V8 juice and cheeses. In smaller bowl, combine well the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cayenne pepper.

Combine wet and dry mixtures and fold together gently until just mixed. Spoon into prepared pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from pan, sprinkle tops with additional shredded cheeses and cool on rack.

This recipe is adapted from the "Christmas From the Heart of the Home" cookbook by Susan Branch:

Oat Bran Muffins

Makes 18 muffins

2 cups unbleached flour

1 1/2 cups oat bran

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Grated rind of 1 navel orange

Juice of same orange

3/4 cup white grape juice (see cook's note)

1 cup low-fat buttermilk

1/2 cup unsulphured molasses

3 egg whites

2 tablespoons light vegetable oil

1 green apple, peeled and diced

1/2 cup coarse-chopped walnuts

1/2 cup coarse-chopped dates

Cook's note: The orange juice and white grape juice together should equal 1 cup juice.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly oil muffin tins or use paper muffin cups. Thoroughly toss together all dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix together all wet ingredients. Pour liquids into dry and combine, stirring just enough to blend. Fold in apples, walnuts and dates. Fill tins full and bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees; turn oven down to 325 degrees and bake 15 minutes more.