I finally replenished my stock of all purpose flour but, for reasons I won’t go into, ended up buying two 10 kg bags about a week apart, instead of my usual 20 kg bag.
In any case, it all ended up in five pound bags in the freezer, except for what was used to fill my tin flour canister.
Among the many things I made with the flour were blueberry muffins and blueberry pancakes. Fresh blueberries sometimes go on sale, and, if I can, I buy a couple of clamshells full and bag and freeze them since no preparation is needed and they can be used straight from frozen.
The muffins were from a basic recipe which can be adapted with whatever additions are desired. You may find the combination of brown and white sugar a bit less sweet than a regular muffin recipe. In that case, use all white sugar.
Carole L’s Basic Buttermilk Muffins – makes a dozen large muffins
2 cups (254 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (50 grams) brown sugar
1/2 tsp fine salt
1 tbsp baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, melted & cooled
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract (if desired)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
Line a large muffin tin with paper liners or coat with nonstick cooking spray (or both).
In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients: flour, sugars, salt, and baking powder.
In a liquid measuring cup beat together the buttermilk, butter, egg, and vanilla. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir JUST until combined, do not over mix. Divide evenly among the muffin tin cups.
Bake for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 400 deg Fahrenheit (don’t forget this!!). Continue baking until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about another 12 minutes.
Mix Ins:
Add 1 cup chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit, candy, etc.
For Fruit Muffins:
1 1/2 cups fruit (such as berries, apples, etc.), finely chopped and well drained
If using fruit, add in with the dry ingredients to make sure the fruit stays evenly distributed and doesn’t sink to the bottom.
Banana Muffins:
3/4 cup mashed overripe banana (from about 2 small bananas) Add in with the wet ingredients.
The pancakes themselves, from a King Arthur Flour recipe that used an equal combination of all purpose flour and barley flour (home ground from some pot barley in my pantry) were a great success, taste wise, even if the blueberry version was a disappointment.
All purpose and barley flour pancakes
The second side, with the blueberries sticking out, didn’t make contact with the frying pan, and the surface didn’t really brown properly but looked almost wet and gummy when done. When cooled, I didn’t even bother eating one (of the three I made) but bagged and froze it until I have a pancake craving and buy some more maple syrup.
The pancakes look great
Thank you for the comment. I had greater expectations for the result, to be honest. They could have been puffier, among other things. And I used too much milk .. though that was a choice I made among the range of volumes given. (Operator error, I guess.) The taste was good in any case.
I love both and make them frequently, but I use spelt or whole wheat flour and homemade soy buttermilk. Lovely!
I’m afraid the ‘healthiest’ flour choice I’ve made is whole wheat, oat flour and the barley here. 🙂
As a combination of all three?
No, usually paired with all purpose flour.
I am trying to keep my husband on gluten free, or at least gluten reduced diet, so I only use all purpose flour for traditional holiday baking. And since during holidays he loads himself with sweets (which is another no-no), it makes no difference already. Detox time comes later.
Necessity means you need to adapt. I just want to try some new things or repurpose items from my pantry. Rolled oats –> oat flour.
The digestive biscuits made with whole wheat and oat flour were a nice treat. I’ve set aside the rest of my oat flour for another batch. After I buy some more whole wheat flour.
A delish wish!