Becca's-Pistachio-Oat-Cookie Muffins #MuffinMonday

With only one half cup of sugar and one quarter cup of oil in 12 muffins, not to mention the steel cut oats, flax seeds, pistachios, raisins and cranberries, these guys are reasonably healthy but, more importantly, for me at least, they are chock full of flavor! 

Ever since I started participating in Muffin Mondas more than two years ago, my mind has worked in strange and wonderful ways. I am always, and I mean always, on the lookout for muffin inspiration. Doing my shopping, cooking other recipes (sweet or savory) and especially when I am trolling the internet and reading posts on blogs that I love. This week’s inspiration came from the no-bake pistachio oat cookies made by my friend, Becca from It’s Yummy. Becca does share decadent sweets and desserts from time to time, and she’s a fan of all things bacon – so we have that fabulous love in common - but overall, she tries to keep things reasonably healthy. Part of her mission is to turn an unhealthy meal into something delicious and nutritious, without spending a fortune! And who wouldn’t appreciate that?!  If you haven’t met her yet, please do go on over and say howdy and give her a little love. Besides being a great recipe developer and blogger, she is also one of the sweetest, kindest, most generous people you would ever like to meet.

Anyhoo, here’s my muffin take on her great no-bake cookies! Thanks for the inspiration, Becca!

Ingredients
1/2 cup or 90g steel cut oats
1/2 cup or 120ml orange juice
1/2 cup or 65g shelled roasted pistachios (unsalted, if possible)
1/3 cup or 50g golden raisins
1/3 cup or 60g dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups or 190g flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
1/3 cup or 45g toasted flax seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
3/4 cup 180ml milk
1/4 cup or 60ml canola or other light oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method
Because the steel cut oats need soaking to soften enough to add to this recipe, start the day before you want to bake. Warm your orange juice and pour it over the oats in a small bowl. Cover it and set it aside until it is cool. Now put it in the refrigerator overnight. Ideally, you’ll want to let the oats soak for at least 12 hours. Give it a stir occasionally, if you think about it.

Warm orange juice just poured in on the left. After an overnight soaking on the right.
It turned a little starchy and sticky but don't let that bother you. 

When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C.  Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper cases or grease liberally.

Chop your pistachios roughly and do the same with the dried cranberries if they are large. Set aside a small handful of the pistachios, cranberries and raisins for decorating the tops of the muffins before baking, if desired.

In a large bowl, mix together your flour, sugar, flax seeds, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

Toasted flax seeds are crunchy and delicious! I'll be putting them in and on everything from now on.

In a smaller bowl, whisk your eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Add the soaked oats and any liquid with them to the eggs/milk/oil bowl and stir well.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just moistened. Some flour should still be showing.

Fold in the chopped pistachios, cranberries and raisins.

Divide the batter into the muffin cups and decorate the tops with the reserved pistachios, cranberries and raisins, if using.

Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes in the muffin tin and then remove to a rack to cool completely.

Or break one open and start eating it warm!

Enjoy!

Bacon Parmesan Twists

Puff pastry spread with Dijon and sprinkled with Parmesan, then twisted with streaky bacon, is baked till it's crispy, puffed and golden. Bacon Parmesan Twists are a divine savory snack!

A number of years ago, I discovered refrigerated puff pastry sheets and I began a crazy period when they featured almost daily in my baking repertoire with sweet fillings, savory toppings and all the permutations between the two. I even taught a small class for a few of my Malaysian friends who had never used puffed pastry and wanted to be able to duplicate some of my treats for their families. The beauty of puff pastry sheets is that you can throw them in the freezer (if they haven't already come frozen) to extend their use-by date because they thaw so quickly, even as you are preheating your oven. Then they bake to golden crunchy perfection!

Bacon Parmesan Twists

I’ve adapted my recipe from this one on the BBC website. You can cut the twists into smaller pieces once baked to make the perfect snacking nibbles with cocktails. Even handier, these savory treats can be frozen once baked and rewarmed in the oven when ready to serve. Keeping a supply of puff pastry sheets in the freezer is like paying your insurance premiums. Except in this case, it is a delight to be able to take advantage of being paid up.

Ingredients
1 x 14 oz or 400g puff pastry sheet
Plain flour, for dusting, if not using parchment to roll your pastry
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup or 45g freshly grated Parmesan
8-9 slices good-quality streaky bacon (not thick cut!)
1 egg, lightly beaten

Method
Line a baking tray with baking parchment.

Lay one slice of bacon along side your sheet of puff pasty and roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface or another piece of baking parchment so that it is as wide as that slice is long. (There is no need to remove the plastic sheet the pastry was probably rolled up with in the package. Just leave it on.)

You can see the original blue plastic sheet that the puff pastry was rolled up in underneath.
That's how big the sheet was originally.

Turn the pastry so that the longest side is facing you and spread on the mustard.

Sprinkle with the cheese.

Line the pieces of bacon up on the pastry, leaving a small gap between them.

Use a sharp knife to cut the pastry between each slice of bacon.

Carefully start at one end and twist each piece of pastry 4-5 times.

Place them on the prepared baking tray, leaving at least two to three inches in between the twists to allow space for the puff pastry to expand. You may have to bake these in two batches, depending on the size of your pan. Chill the pastry twists in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C.

Remove the twists from the refrigerator and brush with the beaten egg.

Bake the twists for 20-25 minutes, or until the pastry is well risen and golden-brown and the bacon is crispy.

Remove from the oven and set aside to cool a little. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Honey Whiskey Mini Bundts with Honey Whiskey Glaze #BundtBakers

Baking with honey and bourbon whiskey in the batter and adding a honey bourbon glaze gives these little Bundt cakes a sweet and almost smoky flavor that keeps you wanting just one more small piece. Till they are all gone. 

This month’s Bundt Baker theme, ably hosted by Laura of Baking in Pyjamas, is honey! I started searching for recipes with honey online, looking for an interesting twist, when I came across a recipe for a honey whiskey cake. Come to find out, there is an actual thing made by Jack Daniels, called honey whiskey. Who knew? That recipe called for a yellow cake mix so I kept the idea and created my own, using normal Jack Daniels and Ugandan honey, brought back from my trip there last February. The Ugandan honey is a deep amber color and has quite a strong flavor so it was well able to compete with the strong bourbon to flavor this cake.

Make sure to scroll to the bottom and see all the other lovely honey Bundt links from the group this month!

Ingredients – for a five-cup capacity mini Bundt pan making six mini Bundts
For the batter:
3/4 cup or 150g sugar
6 tablespoon or 85g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for buttering pan
2 eggs
2 cups or 250g flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup or 60ml honey
2/3 cup or 155ml milk, at room temperature
1/3 cup or 80ml bourbon
3/4 cup or 90g chopped pecans

For the syrup/glaze:
1/4 cup or 60g butter
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup or 60ml honey
1/4 cup or 50g sugar
1/4 cup or 60ml bourbon
1/4 teaspoon salt

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your mini Bundt pan by using a pastry brush to paint the inside and around the edges liberally with butter. Don’t be shy.

Sprinkle your pecans into the bottom of the buttered Bundt pan.

Combine your flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl and set aside. Combine the milk, bourbon and honey for the batter in a measuring vessel and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together your butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well between them.

First egg

Second egg

Now add half of the flour mixture and half of the liquid mixture and beat well.

Add the balance of the flour and liquid mixture and beat well again.

Gently scoop or spoon the batter into your prepared pan, on top of the pecans.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning the mini Bundts out of the pan.

Cool on a wire rack while you make the syrup glaze.

Put all the ingredients for the syrup in a small pot and heat it until boiling. Allow to boil for a few minutes, until it reduces slightly. Turn off the fire and allow to cool for a few minutes.

That's the bourbon going in and the dark honey already in the pot.

Put your mini Bundts in a pan or plate with sides to catch the glaze that doesn’t soak in immediately and drizzle the syrupy glaze, at little at a time, over all of the Bundts.

Enjoy!

Check out all the lovely honey Bundts we have for you this month!

• A Taste of Honey by Margaret at Tea and Scones 
• Hipy Papy Bthuthdth Thuthda Bthuthdy Cake by Lauren at Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Honey Almond Bundt Cake by Terri at Love and Confections
• Honey Baba au Rhum by Kelly at Passion Kneaded
• Honey Banana Bundt by Jane at Jane's Adventures in Dinner
• Honey Bundt Cake with Lemon Honey Glaze by Bea and Mara at I Love Bundt Cakes
• Honey Bunny Bundt Cake by Teri at The Freshman Cook
• Honey Caramel Apple Bundt Cake by Laura at Baking in Pyjamas
• Honey Glazed Blackberry Cornmeal Bundt Cake by Tux at Brooklyn Homemaker
• Honey Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake by Lauren at Gate to Plate
• Honey Roasted Peanut Butter Pound Cake by Renee at Magnolia Days
• Honey Whiskey Mini Bundt Cakes with Honey Whiskey Glaze by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
• Orange Hazelnut Bundt Cake by Zainab at Blahnik Baker
• Whole Wheat Honey Spiced Apple Breakfast Bundtlettes by Laura at The Spiced Life

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme.  Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on the BundtBakers home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send me (Stacy) an email WITH your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.