Customer Reviews

Muffins

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was given this book as a gift the year it was published, and I use it more than any other cookbook I own. The offerings range from smoked turkey muffins (excellent as an hors doeurves in miniature) to our all-time favorite, pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. Also includes excellent basic muffin baking information. Highly recommended.

I have made almost every muffin recipe in this book and every one was a hit with many guests over several years! If you buy only one muffin book, this should be it!

I absolutely LOVE this book, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys baking. The great variety of recipes turn out perfectly every time. I especially love the recipes for muffins with a surprise inside. If you want a book that will please you every time you use it, and you WILL use it often, then buy this book.

I've tried three recipes from this book so far, and every one of them has been a hit. I tried regular-sized blueberry muffins, banana bran muffins and miniature golden raison rosemary muffins. Each has become a favorite of different friends'. In making these muffins, I used a KitchenAid mixer just because I happen to have one, but realistically these take no time to prepare even without a mixer. I especially enjoyed reading the introduction where it explained muffin basics, such as the difference between baking soda and baking powder, selection of pans, freezing and reheating methods, and tolerance of recipes, all in just a few pages. I get the impression that the author is quite an expert just by how concisely she describes all the essentials in the introduction. In terms of the actual recipes, the ingredients are wholesome and readily available in regular grocery stores, while the instructions are easy to follow. Each recipe also notes the number of regular-sized muffins, and for suitable flavors, the number of miniature muffins it would make. I had intentionally selected traditional muffin flavors to benchmark the recipes in this book. So far, I am thoroughly impressed and will embark on the less conventional treats next, such as peanutbutter-jelly muffins and bacon-onion muffins. My bacon-loving friends can hardly wait.

Muffins: Sixty Sweet & Savory Recipes ...From Old Favorite to New is another little gem by Elizabeth Alston. She was the food editor for Woman's Day magazine and the former Redbook food and nutrition editor. She trained at the Cordon Blue in London and has been a chef, and teacher. At the time of the book publication she was living in New York. With her background, the recipes are all excellent! Everyone loves muffins and they are simple to prepare, and can be served with any meal--breakfast, tea time, brunch, lunch, and dinner. Recipes are also included for English muffins, low-calorie and special diet muffins. Recipes for butters, spreads, and quick preserves add to this little treasure of a book.

Excellent recipes! Consistently receive rave reviews for the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip, Blueberry, & Lemon muffins. Easy to make and very common ingredients are used.

Muffins, by Elizabeth Alston, is a wonderful book. The recipes are unusual; they are also clear and easy to make, and the result are heavenly! The pumpkin chocolate chip muffins are my favorite, but there are fifty-eight more (there's one recipe for preserves to put on your muffins). There are sweet, savory, and English muffins recipes here, all of which are worth trying. I have not found a clunker in the bunch. Very highly recommended.

I got this book when it was first printed, though I could not really use it since I was a student living in a dormitory box. However, The New York Times Review was so riveting, I knew one day I would use it--and I did--in a Graduate Student Co-op ten full years later, in Ann Arbor, with 200 students wanting a tasty brunch each weekend

I never had been experienced at serious baking, but this little book gave such great tips and hints to the perfect muffins, people began to suggest I sell them professionally. Big muffins were just beginning to come on the horizon, at the time, in the Midwest.

It was so much fun--because the book gave up the big secrets to great baking--and 20 years later, I still abide by them almost religiously. My guests seem very happy. From those early Muffin days at the student co-op--to now--I count on this book.

Giving others great food is an uplifting and memorable experience--even at 100/muffins/batch *grin* Go for it! Completely recommend!

--Former North Campus Co-op Brunch/Muffin Magician

This is a great little book on muffins. We made a few of the recipes. LOVED the raspberry almond muffins, not so thrilled with the lemon muffins that are dipped in lemon juice and sugar. If you're going to make the lemon muffins, you should probably make some extra lemon/sugar mixture, and they are better as mini muffins (we made some of each size.) Also, the raspberry almond muffins are much better when they are warm.

I can't wait to try more recipes if/when I can get the book back from my bf.

One thing that would make the book better is if it were designed to lay flat when it is open. It is a small little book that doesn't want to stay open at all, so it's a bit awkward.

because it contained my favorite blueberry muffin recipe! Many of the other ones are great too.