Sunday Morning Strawberry Muffins

We celebrated Dan's 30th birthday last night with a huge Cuban-themed blowout: Cuban pork roast with a garlicky mojo sauce, creamy red beans and rice, bright lime-and-honey coleslaw, key lime bars (I'll post the recipe for these soon), and pitcher after pitcher of mojitos. Needless to say, we were both a little slow getting up this morning. The sink full of dishes was certainly not a welcome sight either. But there is something about post-party euphoria that still inspires me to make a little something to celebrate a wonderful night spent with friends, to commemorate the morning after the party with something to help us bask in the calm. The carton of nearly overripe strawberries in the back of the fridge led me to these muffins. Since I could not face large bowls of batter and more dishes, I made a small batch in bowls that would fill in the last remaining empty spaces in the dishwasher. Ah, the simple luxury of a strawberry muffin, the scent of tart sweetness and nutmeg, with little splashes of eye-opening red and pink--these really were a welcome treat on a sunny but groggy morning.

Thanks to all of you who came and made Dan's birthday memorable, and for those of you who couldn't make it, know we were thinking of you. Have a wonderful morning.

These muffins will be slightly tart; Dan says they taste like a muffin version of a Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie. If you'd like more sweetness, macerate your strawberries after you chop them (place them in a bowl with a few tablespoons of sugar and let them sit for 15 minutes). Drain them (or the extra juice will prevent the muffins from rising properly) then add them to the batter. Save the juice and stir it into softened butter or cream cheese for a sweet topping!

Strawberry Muffins

(Small Batch: Makes 6 regular muffins, 4 jumbo muffins)

2 T canola oil

1/4 cup milk

1/2 egg (beat the egg well, then pour in half)

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup AP flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

1/2-3/4 cup chopped fresh strawberries

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Line 6 cups of a muffin tin (or 4 of a jumbo) with muffin liners, or spray with cooking spray. (Do not spray more muffin cups than you use, or you will discolor your pan. If you're not sure how many muffins cups your batter will need, spray as you fill).

2. Whisk wet ingredients (oil, milk, egg, vanilla) in a small bowl.

3. Whisk dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices) in a medium bowl.

4. Add chopped strawberries to the flour mixture; toss gently to coat each one. (Coating them in flour before adding the wet ingredients helps them to be evenly distributed and rise with the batter instead of sinking to the bottom of the muffin.)

5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix gently with a spatula just until the flour is incorporated.

6. Fill each muffin tin to the top. Bake at 375 F for 15-17 minutes for regular muffins (or 23-25 minutes for jumbos), or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

7. Cool in pan for a minutes or two, then place on a cooling rack to cool for 10-15 minutes. Serve warm. Some strawberry butter would be fabulous here.

Pour yourself a hot cup of coffee (or cold glass of milk) and enjoy!