Double Cocolate Chip Muffins

A Muffin is a Muffin is a Muffin - but they come in endless variations.  Within reason, chuck in what you want.  In fact, screw reason - it's your muffin and your chance to create.  Go for it.

Here's my attempt at Double Choccy Chip.  'Double' because it's a chocolate muffin with chocolate chips in it.  Makes 6 large muffins, so you'll need a muffin tray with 6 cups each about 7.5cm across by 4cm deep.

• 240g of plain flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder (edit: try 2/3 tbsp - I found mine 'bloomed' a little bit too much)
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 130g soft brown sugar
• 2 tbsp of cocoa powder
• 100g of butter (barely melted, not boiling - I thought I'd try this instead of rubbing it in)
• 1 egg
• 100ml (100g) of milk
• 1/2 tsp almond extract or vanilla extract, who cares as long as you like it (optional)
• 100g of chopped plain chocolate (not chocolate flavoured topping)

1 - Preheat the oven to 200degC (180 for fan oven).  Prepare your muffin tins by lightly greasing them (with butter), even if they are non-stick.

2 - In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and cocoa powder.  Drizzle the melted butter quickly all over the flour mixture and stir in right away.
3 - In a small bowl, add the egg, milk and extract (if using) and lightly whisk together until combined.  Pour into the flour mixture and quickly mix through until all the flour is mixed in, but don't over mix.  STOP!! as soon as you see all the 'dryness' of the flour gone.  The mixture should be slightly lumpy.  Tip the chocolate bits into the mixture and fold through a bit.

4 - Divide the mixture equally between the 6 muffin cups.

Put into a preheated oven at 200degC (fan 180degC) and cook for about 25 to 30 mins until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Remember that there is melted chocolate bits in there so it is 'free from muffin mix' you are looking for. If it comes out covered in chocolate, test another muffin.  Personally, I'd rather have a slightly undercooked, but moist muffin than an overcooked, dry one.  But that's just me.

Muffins Before Cooking

Muffins After Cooking

RAIN ALERT - Make Muffins to kill time.

It was pouring down, dull and miserable - just a typical day in Scotland really.  I had everything in the house I needed, so decided to make some muffins to go with the mug of coffee I was looking forward to after being dragged out by the dogs for an afternoon walk.  The muffins could cool while I was out getting soaked and freezing.

Enough to make 6 BIG muffins - enough to last 2 days, at most.  Make sure you have big muffin cups in your tray, 7.5cm wide x 4cm deep is about right, or make more, smaller ones.  It's not rocket science.

You will need:
>  250g of plain flour.
>  140g of sugar. Use simple granulated, castor, light brown, or whatever you have (not icing sugar)
>  1tbsp of baking powder.
>  3/4 tsp of salt.
>  120g of butter.
>  1 large egg.
>  100ml of milk.
>  1/2 tsp of vanilla extract.  I actually used 1/4 each of vanilla and orange, but you could add some almond if that's what you have.  I also sneaked in a half tsp of mixed spice - use what you want.
>  A big handful of 'fruity' stuff, about 150g should be enough.  I used halved glace cherries, raisins and some chopped candied peel.  Use what you have lying about.

Note - these are muffins, not some airyfairy, artyfarty, baked creation that needs to be measured down to fractions of a gram and cooked to the exact second.  Muffins are far more forgiving than most baked goods.

1 - Preheat the oven to 200degC (180 for fan oven).  Prepare your muffin tins by lightly greasing them (with butter), even if they are non-stick.
2 - In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
3 - Cut the butter into small cubes roughly about 1cm or less.  Tip that into the flour mixture and rub in with your fingers until you get the proverbial breadcrumb resemblance - or use a 'pastry blender' if you like more washing up.
4 - In a small bowl, beat the egg, milk and extracts until blended.  Don't over beat so the eggs become fluffy - no point in doing any more elbow work than necessary.
5 - Pour egg mixture into flour mixture all in one go.  Stir the mixture until it is just mixed and all the 'dryness' of the flour has gone.  It should be lumpy and again, do not over mix.  Not only is it not necessary, but it also makes for denser, heavy muffins.
6 - Tip the fruity bits in and fold through until just mixed in.
7 - Spoon mixture into the prepared muffin cups.  For 6 muffins using similar size of pan mentioned above, each cup should be filled almost to the top.  Push any cherry bits into the mixture so they don't dry out or burn first.  If all goes well this should create a perfectly shaped muffin top - the kind you see hanging over jeans all too often :-)
8 - Put into oven and bake for about 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into middle of a muffin comes out clean.  Tip - If using a non-fan oven I like to rotate tray 180degrees after about 15 minutes to get even cooking on the tops.
9 - Let cool a bit and then remove from tray.  Eat warm or cool on wire rack for a chewier top.
10 - You can zap one for 30 seconds in the microwave later, but regardless - Enjoy.

Steakhouse Burgers, and neigh messin' (sorry).

If food be the foundation of life then burgers are one of it's building blocks.  A good burger is the cornerstone of....  Ok, let's forget the 'building' analogies and get back to the Meat.

If you want a good burger or a great burger, and you don't want to have to pay through the nose for it or run the risk of being very disappointed by some so called Steakhouse (or Bar and Grill) chef's attempt, then you've just got to make it yourself.  It's the ONLY way to guarantee that what you are eating is what you want to be eating and that it will taste like you want and expect it to taste.
 Note:  If you even think about using shop bought mince then leave this website now - this is NOT for you.

There are MANY ways to make a burger and I'm sure there's more than one right way, but here's my way.  This is for Steakhouse burgers, which are thick and juicy.  We will cover the thinner 'diner type' burgers at another time.

First of all, start with some fatty, cheapish steaks.  These are shoulder steaks, but some steaks just won't work.  Rumps steak may be cheaper, but it has very little fat to talk of.  Ribeye and Sirloin are even better, but do you really want to grind up a good sirloin or ribeye for a burger?   Shoulder is a nice tasting piece of meat and just the right balance of lean to fat.  About 80% lean to 20% fat is about right.

In the beginning, steak - just steak.

First thing to remember when making your burgers is to keep the meat cold at all times.  You do not want the fat starting to warm up, rendering and spoiling your finished burger.

Cut the steaks into smaller 1inch chunks, something that will fit easily into your grinder/mincer, then grind it with the largest aperture for the coarsest mince.  Only pass the meat through the mincer one time.

Grind it up.

Catch it in a metal bowl that has been chilled in the fridge/freezer and as soon as you are done, cover the bowl with cling film and put it in the fridge right away.  Now clean down your mincer and clear away your workspace - then have a cuppa coffee and a seat and dream of Burger Heaven.

Now you need to prepare your own 'secret' seasoning mix.  Here's mine and sorry, I'm not telling you yet, I hardly know you for Pete's sake.

Seasoning secrets and well chilled meat.

Sprinkle half the season over the meat and fold it through with a fork, but don't over mix the meat and cause it to lose texture.  Then sprinkle the second half over and then carefully mix through again.

Seasoned meat - note that it is still coarse and open textured

Quickly re-cover the bowl with cling film and chuck it back in the fridge for at least an hour or more.


(Update - Jan 10th 2016) TO BE CONTINUED!!