Cinnamon Muffins, A Visit, and a Phone Call

If you could have whatever you want for breakfast,

without worrying about health or calories, 

what would you eat?

I would choose muffins, without a doubt.

I love them all...

blueberry, lemon poppy, banana, pumpkin...

but one of my favorites is just plain ol' cinnamon. 

I rarely allow myself to give in to my craving,

in fact, the only muffin top I see on a regular basis 
is the one around my middle.

But on Wednesday, I had invited a friend over

for coffee,

so we could catch up,

and I decided that a muffin morning was in order...

specifically, Cinnamon Muffins.

Can I tell you how EASY these are?

Yes, I can!
They. Are. So. Easy. 

I whipped them up in no time flat,

right before my friend arrived. 

In my opinion, they are best served warm.
 

It's great to get together with friends for lunch or dinner,

but there's something that I really love about  
having coffee and a nosh on the deck,

on a beautiful summer morning.

 So relaxing.

I was anxious to hear about my friend's summer, 

since she and her family had spent a part of it in Israel.

After all the news reports,

I couldn't imagine what it was like 
to be there during such a turbulent time,
when a bomb could go off anywhere, at any time. 
And in fact, the warning sirens went off twice 
on their first day in Tel Aviv,
and several times during the remainder of their stay. 
Can you imagine having to run to a bomb shelter,
no matter what you are doing?   
I'm glad that they are back, safe and sound.  

Conversation turned to the start of the school year,
and all of the things that parents of teenagers worry about...
at which time I broke out into a cold sweat,
and had to eat another muffin to calm myself down.

Junior Goo Shoes' ears must have been ringing, 
because suddenly my phone was.
He was calling from San Francisco!
I still can't get used to his deep voice...
he sounds so grown up!

This year, being the oldest campers,
four of their seven weeks of camp 
was spent on a trip out west.
This was the final day of their adventure, 
and they were going on a tour of Alcatraz,
before heading back to camp.

 "I'm going to get you a souvenir today, mom."

OMG, I hope it's not a t-shirt that says  
Alcatraz Psycho Ward on it!
Because, if it is, I will have to wear it
to show JGS how much I appreciate it...
and you know there will be people
who will look at me and say,
"Yeah, I can see it."

Anyway, it turned out to be a perfect muffin morning...
with a visit from a friend,
and a call from my 6-foot tall baby boy.

The original recipe, which is from Taste of Home, 
is for mini muffins,
however, this time, I made them full size
(it only makes eight regular-size muffins).
In hindsight, I wish I didn't, 
so that I could have called this post
"Cinna-Mini Muffins."
My bad.

CINNAMON MUFFINS 

Recipe by Taste of Home

Yield: 2 dozen mini muffins; 8 regular-sized muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup nonfat milk

1/3 cup butter, melted

TOPPING:

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and allspice. 
Combine the egg, milk and butter; mix well.

Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Spoon into greased or paper-lined muffin cups. 

Bake at 400°F for 15-18 minutes (or 12-14 minutes for mini muffins), or until cake tester comes out clean. 

For topping, combine sugar and cinnamon.

Brush the tops of warm muffins with butter; sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. 

If you see someone wandering the streets,
huffin' and puffin'...
and stuffin' her face with a muffin,
mumbling to herself,
and wearing nuffin' 
but an Alcatraz Psycho Ward T-Shirt...
 That'll be me...

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