Apple Muffins

When the temps drop into the 60s, and a friend drops off a bag of freshly picked apples from her family's apple orchard, 

It's such a beautiful orchard!

it's time to bake some apple muffins! Oh yeah!

Preheat the oven to 400˚ and spray a 12 cup muffin tin with Pam cooking spray.

In a large bowl combine 1 cup sugar, 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

Whisk to combine.

Cut one medium size apple into bite sized chunks. Stir apple chunks into flour mixture.

In a separate bowl combine 1 cup room temperature buttermilk, 2 large eggs, and 1/2 cup of melted butter.

Room temp buttermilk

2 large eggs

Add buttermilk to eggs whisking gently

Add melted butter to eggs and room temp buttermilk stirring to combine

Gently fold buttermilk mixture into flour and apple mixture.

Now that makes a very pretty batter!

Spoon the batter, evenly divided, into the 12 muffin cups.

Here you have the makings of a delicious apple muffin. But we're going to kick it up a notch to make them super delicious!

In a small bowl combine 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

Stir that up nice.

And sprinkle brown sugar mixture on top of muffin batter.

Oh yeah!

Bake muffins in 400˚ oven for 16 to 18 minutes. 

Allow muffins to cool in muffin tin for a few minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.

YU-UM!!

Sugary sweet muffin top...apple chunky insides...who could resist??

Okay, Miss Emma Bean, who doesn't like anything with baked apple chunks but can eat apple sauce by the jar full, she can resist. -go figure-

The rest of the Family however cannot resist.

You better act fast if you want one!

Christine

My Chicken Addiction

It's no secret that the Family has acquired a slight chicken addiction.

From the moment we brought these little chicks home, we were in love!

So cute and fluffy! -squeal-

You just wanted to scoop them up and rub them all over your cheek and tell them how much you wuv der widdle fwuffy sweetness. -sigh-

Eh hem

While they aren't so widdle little anymore...

they are full of personality and charm.

And they have begun to bestow upon us the most beautiful and delicious eggs!  -woohoo-

The Husband recently asked me if raising chickens was all I had hoped, and wondered if I was still excited about them.

The answer was YES!

The whole family is very much in love with the chickens!

Everyone pitches in with coop cleaning, egg collecting, and I don't think a day has gone by without the kids going out to play in the garden with the chickens. We're even planning to add a couple more to the flock next Spring. Yep, we're a bit obsessed. Although as far as obsessions go I think this one is fairly healthy. Even the Husband, who had his misgivings when I first brought up the idea of raising chickens, has been totally supportive. He's really gotten on board! 

He has, in fact, kicked things up a notch!

Inspired by our little backyard flock, and aware that we are not alone in our backyard chicken obsession, he has created a new line of t-shirts!

He's very cool that way!

The new t-shirt line is appropriately named My Chicken Addiction.

I love how that man's mind works!

Here are a few of my personal favorites.

Now we who are chicken obsessed no longer have to leave our chicken addiction in the backyard. We can wear it loud and proud! -oh yeah-

Wondering how you too can get your Chicken Addiction t-shirt so you can declare your own love of chickens?

Check out all of the Husband's new t-shirt designs by clicking the link here...My Chicken Addiction. And if you purchase 2 or more t-shirts before September 17, 2013 using promo code FALL2013 you'll receive free shipping! How great is that??

And it's perfectly okay to purchase a My Chicken Addiction t-shirt even if you don't have your own backyard flock. Chicken owners everywhere appreciate the solidarity...and the Husband's got to support mama's chicken addiction somehow! Yeah baby!

And while you're at it, would you be so kind as to check out My Chicken Addiction's Facebook page and like it? Please and thank you!

Up with backyard chickens...and fresh eggs...and supporting mama's chicken obsession! -whoop whoop-

Christine

The Week in Review

This week the children started school!

I'm pretty sure they were excited. I know the Husband and I were...not because the children will now be gone all day - sniff sniff - the house is crazy quiet...but because the husband took the day off so we could spend the day together and have some fun. 

Chocolate chip cookies when they got home from their first day of school helped take the sting out of that one. 

I'm very sorry you had to go to school while we took the day off to have fun. Cookie?? Yep, they forgot all about it.

The Morning Glory have been blooming like crazy!

So beautiful! I've yet to get a moonflower blossom though. -weird-

I enjoyed a coffee date with friends. A morning spent chatting with friends is a very good way to avoid a very quiet house! It always takes me some time to get used to the quiet when the kids go back to school. On the upside, now that no one is around to distract me, I get my to do list completed before noon. Ha!

Pookie, our Buff Orpington, laid her first egg this week!

That's three out of our four chickens now laying eggs!

Whoop Whoop! The eggs are gorgeous! They also make the best omelets ever!

Luna is the only one who has yet to lay an egg.

I suspect she prefers to be fashionably late. Hmmmm

And this week we got a Ninja!

Oh yeah! The Ninja!

Our old blender began to make the most horrible screaming noise when used. It was awful! We used it anyway. But, when it began to smell like it was burning... 

Hello Ninja!

I've been told it's great. However, I wouldn't know from experience. The Husband hasn't allowed me to try it yet. -sigh- It is nice to have him make the smoothies in the morning though!

All in all it was a good week. Now bring on the weekend!

Christine