• sck on November 11, 2018

  I know the name makes the book seem cheap or cheesy - but honestly it’s full of great recipes. We have lots of recipes we make again and again from this book.

• Christine on October 30, 2012

  I was originally reluctant to buy this book because I couldn't help but feel like I already had plenty of muffin recipes. I eventually caved because I've loved every one of Camilla's books I've ever used and I am very glad I did! This book is full of easy-to-make, delicious, & creative recipes. You have all your basics, plus so much more to choose from. There are all manner of sweet and savory options including recipes featuring "super-foods" and farmer's market produce, muffins that have a global influence, and muffins that are even gluten-free or vegan. Even though these are not diets I follow, it's great to have the recipes available for when I bake for others with dietary restrictions. There aren't a lot of photos, but that is more than made up for by the reliability of the recipes. There has only been one recipe I've tried thus far I didn't really care for, and I wouldn't even say it was the recipe's fault, but my own preferences. This is a comprehensive volume I highly recommend.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Pumpkin dried cherry muffins

  • sck on October 19, 2018

    ok pumpkin muffins. nothing special, but also very simple.

• Honey, whole wheat and wheat germ muffins

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    This isn't a recipe I might normally have chosen to make, but I had a jar of wheat germ I really wanted to use up, so I gave them a try. And I must say, I am very glad I did! This recipe takes a handful of humble ingredients and transforms them into something so simple, but so tasty. I used some local honey and the flavor of it really shone through. They were nice and moist and perfect for breakfast.

• Zucchini pecan agave muffins

  • Christine on July 27, 2014

    Recipe calls for baking 25-30 minutes and at 25 minutes they were very dark on the outside just shy of burnt and the test toothpick was coming out clean. However, the insides were still so pale and moist that they were just barely not raw. I would have liked to bake them longer, but didn't think the outsides could handle any more time in the oven. The flavor is not bad and I will eat this batch, but wouldn't make them again. One of very few disappointments from this book!

• Maple cranberry spelt muffins

  • Christine on October 29, 2013

    I used fresh cranberries instead of dried since I prefer them and that's all I had in the house. I also doubled the amount called for since 1/2 cup just didn't seem like enough when using fresh. The flavor of these is good, especially considering they are quite low in fat and sugar. A word of warning though -- you MUST follow the direction to use a greased muffin pan. I am so used to muffin recipes calling for a greased pan OR paper liners, that I just used paper liners without even thinking about it. A lot of muffin gets stuck when peeling off the wrapper. I haven't tried it the correct way yet, but I imagine it will work much better. Also, be aware the batter is very liquidy and fills the cups much higher than most muffin recipes. I was afraid they would overflow, but they did not - just the middles puffed up and the sides pretty much stayed at the same height as they baked. Best freshly baked, but OK warmed up in the microwave. Decent enough, but not sure I would make again.

• Allspice apple butter muffins

  • Christine on April 20, 2017

    I make these with white whole wheat flour in place of all-purpose. The sugar/spice topping make for nice crunchy muffin tops and tender, moist middles. I've made this recipe once with apple butter and another time with peach butter and they both came out great. I can't honestly say they even tasted all that different! I think you could use almost any fruit butter in this recipe, particularly if it's made with other "warm" spices which go nicely with the allspice.

• Old-fashioned cider muffins

  • Christine on July 07, 2015

    Made with whole wheat flour, hard cider, & extra cinnamon -- really delicious! I shredded the (unpeeled) apples instead of chopping them and was low on white sugar so used half brown sugar instead. Made a full two dozen for me. The cinnamon-sugar topping was a nice touch and I would definitely would make these again.

• Berry corn muffins 1

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    I made these with white whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose. Very good with raspberries or blueberries. A great muffin for summer.

• Sweet polenta muffins

  • Christine on May 14, 2016

    These are basically corn muffins, despite the "fancier" title. I actually used some polenta since I had some in my pantry -- I am not well versed in the difference between polenta and cornmeal, but it seems either work well in muffins. I also used white whole wheat flour in place of all-purpose, and Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt. Would make again.

• Apple cranberry harvest muffins

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    An incredibly tasty muffin that is perfect for fall. It's a little more work than your typical cranberry muffin since you also have to shred apples and carrots, but it is most certainly worth the effort. I've made these several times and my family enjoys them very much. The only substitution I made was to use white-whole-wheat flour instead of the all-purpose flour. I often make this substitution in muffin and quick bread recipes without any sacrifice in flavor.

• Blueberry goat cheese muffins

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    This recipe might sound a little weird, but it's really very delicious. It's sweet with a slight touch of savory; tender on the inside, but with a perfect golden, crusty exterior. My only recommendation would be to not overdo it on the blueberries. I always tend to add extra since I love them so much, but in this case that wasn't the best idea. The excess fruit sank to the bottom and made the muffins difficult to remove from the pan. They still tasted really good, but if you want muffins that don't fall apart, I wouldn't go over the 1 cup amount. To add a bit more nutrition without sacrificing flavor, I also substituted white-whole-wheat flour in place of the all-purpose flour.

• Greek yogurt muffins

  • Christine on May 14, 2016

    I had Greek yogurt to use up and this recipe called for more than other recipes (1-1/2 cups for a single batch), so it was the winner when searching my shelf this morning. They came out super moist and very delicious. I used dried cranberries in place of raisins and white whole wheat four in place of all-purpose (a go-to substitution for me in most muffin/quick bread recipes). I didn't have any lemons for zest, so substituted lemon extract according to the equivalents on the label. I'm always happy when a "use it up" recipe turns out this well -- I may not have chosen it otherwise, but I'm glad I did!

• Thai coffee muffins

  • Christine on October 17, 2016

    Made with whole wheat flour and half-and-half. These are moist, delicious, and the coffee & spices made for an interesting and tasty combination. I think they would be great with chocolate chips added, though then I probably shouldn't eat them for breakfast :)

• Blueberry oat muffins

  • Christine on August 03, 2015

    These were good, but not my favorite blueberry muffin recipe. I stubbornly skipped the step where you put the quick-cooking oats through the food processor -- since they are already such small flakes, I didn't think it seemed necessary, but I think the texture of the muffins would have been better if I followed that instruction (imagine that!) Made 18 instead of 12 muffins in my muffin pans.

• Cranberry multigrain muffins

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    I like to make 100% whole grain recipes when I can and this was a nice change from my usual cranberry muffin recipe. This one is from the "superfood muffins" chapter, but they don't taste like "healthy muffins." They are just plain delicious. I substituted white whole wheat flour for the whole wheat pastry flour with success.

• Multigrain pumpkin spice muffins

  • Christine on October 30, 2012

    A nice change from my go-to pumpkin muffin recipe. I particularly enjoyed the little bit of crunch that came from the cornmeal. I substituted white whole wheat flour for the whole wheat pastry flour with success. These are perfect for fall.

• Vanilla banana whole-grain muffins

  • eliza on October 08, 2021

    This made a nice muffin that was grainy while still being somewhat light. I did make changes; used spelt flour and substituted 1/4 cup with all purpose, used rolled oats for the oat bran, used a flax egg for one of the eggs. They were a little too sweet for our tastes so I will cut the sugar slightly next time. Great way to use up cottage cheese and bananas, they freeze well, will def make again.

• Parsnip pear muffins

  • eliza on December 21, 2023

    Made these to use some parsnip from the allotment garden. I made a half recipe for 9 muffins and had to use candied pineapple for the golden raisins. This resulted in a muffin that was very tasty but a bit too sweet for me. Next time I would sub the dried fruit for something with a bit of a sour tang (dried cherries for example), increase spices, and reduce sugar a little. Can’t really taste the parsnip in the finished muffin. Will repeat these. Edited: made again with dried cherries and less sugar. Excellent.

• Plum muffins with hazelnut crumble

  • eliza on September 12, 2024

    Very nice muffins. I used 1/2 cup rye flour and reduced the sugar, otherwise stuck to the recipe. Small Italian plums were good in these; could have increased the amount slightly. Despite using some very fresh and strong cardamom in these, I really couldn’t taste it in the finished muffin so may increase next time. Took 25 min in my oxo muffin cups.

• Chocolate zucchini muffins

  • eliza on October 04, 2024

    I needed to use some leftover zucchini and made these muffins. I made half the recipe and got 12 medium sized muffins in my oxo muffin cups. Very good, not too sweet, will probably make these again. I only had white chocolate chips, and I think regular ones would be better.

• Bara brith muffins

  • eliza on December 14, 2020

    Very good muffin using basic bara brith method. Fruit must be soaked at least 30 minutes; I did mine overnight. Then they come together quickly. I substituted oil for the butter and went with 1 egg instead of 2. I used organic apricots, large raisins and regular raisins for the fruit. Like bara brith these were good right away but improved with age and also froze very well. Will be a repeat for me.

• Michigan cherry muffins

  • eliza on March 31, 2023

    Excellent muffins. Made a few changes; used a flax egg and fine wheat bran for the oat bran. The sweet muffin contrasts nicely with the slightly sour cherries. Will definitely repeat. Note that these muffins don’t form a “domed” shape like many muffins do, still delicious though.

• Lemon blackberry muffins

  • eliza on January 10, 2022

    We grow blackberries in our allotment; they’re abundant so I always flash freeze the extras for baking or jam. I used half einkorn flour and a flax egg for one of the eggs in this recipe. I omitted the glaze this time. Will definitely repeat these.

  • eliza on December 23, 2022

    Made a second version of these using orange for the lemon and half rye flour (from Flourist), and they came out delicious! The tang of the blackberries (frozen from the allotment) works really well in these sweet muffins. I did cut back the sugar a little bit and they’re still sweet.

• Whole wheat blueberry muffins

  • eliza on January 11, 2023

    Nice blueberry muffin. Not very sweet, except for the topping. I used rye flour (from Flourist) for the whole wheat so had to increase moisture.

• Mincemeat muffins

  • eliza on February 23, 2022

    Very good muffins. I made changes; used einkorn flour for half the flour, added some spices, used 1 egg only. Baking time was too long, should probably be 18-20 minutes.

• Pistachio mascarpone muffins with honey and orange

  • Lottabooks on January 24, 2023

    Started to get too brown at 16 minutes, but still soggy. At 20 minutes, they were a little dry. Consider turning over to 415 degrees. Dryness remedied by microwaving a few seconds, then inserting a pat of butter in muffin.