Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffins

A while back I tried out a recipe for cinnamon oatmeal muffins that was a disaster. Adjusting and experimenting with it would have been a waste of time, especially considering how many wonderful recipes there are out there that are actually worth making, so I unPinned it. It went off into the Phantom Zone with that lime coconut one and the mocha brownies I tried to make once.

Today I noticed that I had another cinnamon oatmeal muffin recipe waiting in the wings, and I was in the mood to try something new. So I did.

I left out the dried apple because…well, ew. To compensate, I increased the spices, added pumpkin pie spice, and put some cinnamon chips on top of each muffin. But that’s skipping ahead. Let’s start at the beginning.

I started with the flour (1 cup of whole wheat white instead of the recommended 1/2 wheat and 1/2 white), baking powder (3 1/2 teaspoons? really?), salt, cinnamon (heaping teaspoon), nutmeg (generous half teaspoon), and pumpkin pie spice (half teaspoon).

I added the rolled oats (I decided not to use the quick-cooking ones) and brown sugar, and whisked it all together.

I put that aside, and beat together the egg, milk, and applesauce. I stopped when it got frothy, then added the dry ingredients.

It didn’t take long to fully incorporate the dry ingredients, and I was left with some very runny batter. But I was heartened by the recipe, which said that I should expect it to be runny, and featured a photo that looked a lot like mine.

I forgot to snap a shot of it, but I poured it into the muffin cups and then dropped five cinnamon chips on top of each one. I put them in the oven, reducing the temperature from 425 to 400 once they were in.

While they were baking, Nathaniel was bounding around the room telling us some facts about things he was interested in, making us laugh, and saying “jinx buy me a Coke” to Dave. He was in his underwear, which made it all funnier.

He’s very handsome, that Nathaniel. Look at him!

I baked the muffins for just over fifteen minutes. They looked pretty good, even if the tops didn’t puff up.

I let them cool, then peeled back the paper on one to have a look.

These taste good! The cinnamon chips add some needed sweetness, I’m glad I used the rolled oats instead of quick-cooking, and I think even more spices next time. They aren’t as flavorful as the carrot oatmeal or the banana but they bring a nice sweet simplicity to the table and they taste hearty and cinnamon-y. Nice.

CINNAMON OATMEAL MUFFINS RECIPE

I kept thinking about Ray Bradbury while I was making these. He died a few days ago, but he lived to 91, was still writing, and had a full, rich life. I read that his first paid writing gig was selling a joke to the Burns & Allen show. (Wish I knew what it was!) I grew up reading Ray Bradbury’s books, I probably read each of his short story collections dozens of times. I adapted one of his stories into a screenplay in college, and my teacher said I should send it to him. (I didn’t.) I did write him a letter when I was in my early 20s, and mailed it off to his publisher. I got a response about three weeks later, which included a drawing on the envelope of himself, and a beautiful hand-written letter, full of appreciation and inspiration, with a drawing on that as well.

Ray Bradbury is the reason I became a writer. And when I looked at his obit, I saw that he shares a birthday with my creative free-spirited Juliet.

I’m not sure quite how that ties into being a baker, but it’s all about creation, and joy, and sharing those creations with other people. Ray Bradbury wrote books that I read throughout my childhood and adolescence, and kept reading well into this so-called adulthood of mine. I leave you with a shot of my bookshelf where his books are gathered, the very same editions I had as a kid.