Kitchen Hospitality

Remnants of last weekend’s torrential rain storms lingered in my kitchen ceiling, which began leaking a few days later. Apparently, my gutters were clogged and the water found its way into the walls and through the light sockets in my ceiling. It wasn’t the greatest week to have an out-of-commission kitchen, since I needed to cater an upcoming gymnastics meet with my friend Lynn and I had plans to make Irish Soda Bread and corned beef for St. Patrick’s Day.

This was a really great time to have friends who have the “my kitchen is yours” attitude that stems directly from Cooking with Friends. Thank goodness for my neighbor Jenn’s St. Patrick’s Day hospitality, without which our mini Irish Soda Bread muffins wouldn’t have been possible.

You see, when Jackie arrived at my house Wednesday, we weren’t quite sure where we’d be baking our muffins. We knew we’d be mixing the ingredients together in my soggy kitchen, but hadn’t yet decided on where to bake them. So, when we spotted Jenn, who had her earphones on and was poised for a jog outside her house, we asked if we could borrow her oven. Without hesitation, Jenn generously agreed!

It was quite a comical scene (if the neighbors were actually watching) as Jackie and I took turns running from my house to Jenn’s, two houses away, with our muffin tins in tow. We were determined to bake these two bite suckers for a St. Patrick’s Day treat. I have to say, the pleasure we witnessed as our 4-year old boys gobble them up made our escapades worthwhile. “These muffins are too good,” they said, licking their fingers clean.

We modified a King Arthur recipe: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/irish-soda-bread-muffins-recipe, eliminating the caraway seeds, using buttermilk and a raw cane Demerara sugar. The muffins are almost scone-like and could probably be free-formed on baking sheets with a bit of extra flour. In fact, they are so delicious that I’d make them for a Sunday brunch year-round!

Here’s the recipe:

Mini Soda Bread Muffins
Makes 36 Muffins

1 ½ cups white flour
¾ cups white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoons salt
1/3 cup sugar
1 ½ cups currants
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
6 tablespoons melted butter
¼ cup raw Demerara sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and currants. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg and melted butter. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry. Spoon the batter into in a well greased mini muffin pan, generously sprinkle each with the raw cane sugar and bake for eleven or twelve minutes until firm.