Muffin Monday: Oat-and-Jam

Sometimes schoolwork gets to be a bit too much. It becomes hard to concentrate; you want to do nothing but surf mindlessly through Facebook, or practice piano, or balance your checkbook, or do anything to get your mind off of F. Scott Fitzgerald. 

That's where I was today, so I eventually decided that I simply had to make a batch of muffins.

These muffins were very light, and so tasty when smeared with homemade strawberry jam! The recipe comes from Gregg R. Gillespie, who wrote the lovely little book 501 Muffins: Plus Biscuits, Doughnuts, Popovers, Fritters, Scones, and Other Quick Breads. He has also written 501 Recipes for a Low-Carb Life, which may need to be the next book on my reading list.... I made  a couple small alterations, using spelt instead of all-purpose flour and 1/4 cup of canola oil + 1/4 cup of melted butter.

Oat-and-Jam Muffins

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup sour milk or buttermilk (I just used 1 tbsp. of vinegar and 1 cup-less-a-tbsp. of regular milk)
• 1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (if using spelt, always put in a little extra)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg or mace
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 tbsp. jam or preserves, warmed

1. Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease or line with paper baking cups twelve 2 3/4-inch baking cups.
2. In a small bowl, blend together the oats, buttermilk, and brown sugar. Set aside for 5 to 7 minutes. Meanwhile, in a  large bowl, blend together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. In a medium bowl, beat the egg until foamy. Beat in the butter. Fold in the oat mixture. Combine the two mixtures, blending until the dry ingredients are just moistened.
3. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from the oven and brush the warm jam over the tops of the muffins. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 to 7 minutes. Serve warm , or invert onto the rack to cool completely.  

Enjoy!