My wife strives to stay healthy. This effort takes many forms, including waking up really, really early to exercise at the gym.  Well, much to my pleasant surprise, this morning, my beautiful, talented, and loving wife not only went the gym really early (5AM), but also made some muffins upon her return home, which coincided with my lazy butt rolling out of bed around 6:45AM.

Making some coffee, I joined my boys to eat some of the freshly baked muffins for breakfast, while Charlene showered and got ready for work. As I opened the morning newspaper, my three sons sat at the table and picked apart the muffins.  Their primary concern was that my ultra-healthy wife had prepared zucchini muffins, which they predetermined would not be to their liking.  I scarfed down my muffin, which was rather yummy, but I could not confirm what ingredients they contained.  I had no idea, since I had been sleeping during their preparation.  All I knew was that they were freshly baked, tasty, and there for me to eat.  Why bother arguing under such ideal conditions?

The boys continued to complain about the suspected zucchini content of the muffins and soon went onto less than thrilling breakfast cereal options, abandoning their picked at muffins for me to devour with scavenging delight. If Charlene could make zucchini taste this good, these little boys should be living it up.  Oh well, more for big daddy to enjoy.

Setting down my coffee cup in the kitchen, I encountered Charlene, who was preparing to grab a muffin and finish getting ready for the day. In proud fashion, she asked, “How did the boys like the apple muffins?”  Ha!  They had guessed wrong.  Their ultra-healthy mom had taken a different nutritional route and was serving apples and not the dreaded zucchini.  I was the big winner!  By the way, please keep the lack of zucchini our little secret, at least until I finish off the last apple muffin.

Go ahead, try to spot the zucchini.

 

“Charlene’s ‘sans Zucchini’ Cheddar-Apple Muffins”

1½ cups Flour

½ cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded

1/3 cup Oats, quick-cooking

2 Tablespoons Sugar

2½ teaspoons Baking Powder

¼ teaspoon Salt

¾ cup Milk

1 Egg, beaten

1/3 cup Vegetable Oil

¾ cup Apple, peeled and chopped

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Grease 12 muffin cups.

Stir together Flour, Cheese, Oats, Sugar, Baking Powder, and Salt with a whisk. Set aside.

In another bowl, stir together the Milk, beaten Egg, and Vegetable Oil.

Make a well in the center of the “Flour mixture.”

Pour the “Milk mixture” into the center of the “Flour mixture.”

Stir until just combined.

Fold in the Apple pieces.

Pour and evenly distribute into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake for 18 minutes or until golden brown.

Place muffin pan on a wire rack.

Put a small slab of butter on the top of each cooling muffin.

Run a spatula around the outside of each muffin to loosen it from the pan.

Wait a bit and remove the muffins to either eat them or let them cool.

Makes 12 muffins.

Revised Source: “Cheddar-Apple Muffins” in Better Homes and Gardens “New Cook Book”