Get your 1982 on and make a batch of these super-simple, cakey, chocolatey muffins.
I don't know why, but once the pandemic hit, Saturday mornings became mornings for baking in my house. Sometimes it's a solo baking session, and other times my girls (Sophie, 9, and Juliette, 6) are on board. (It really depends on how good the cartoons on TV are, tbh.) I've tried so many new recipes, but when I want a hit of nostaglia, it's all about Muffin Mania.
Muffin Mania is an all-muffin cookbook written by two sisters from Ontario, Cathy Prange and Joan Pauli, and it hit the shelves in all its cerlox-bound glory in 1982. It has since gained a bit of a cult following, so you can still sometimes find vintage copies online. My mom broke the law and photocopied it from a colleague (she's sorry/not sorry about it, too) so I have always known it as a duotang of contraband pages. My family had lots of favourites (namely the pumpkin muffins, but also the muffins that taste like donuts) but for me, it was all about the chocolate chip. My mom didn't make them as often as some of the other recipes, but when she did, they were gone before they even had time to cool.
This recipe is incredibly easy (like we're talking about seven minutes to mix and 20 minutes in the oven) and they are perfection with a cup of coffee (or three) pretty much anytime of year. On a rainy spring morning? Yep. On a dock in the summer? You bet. Listening to Christmas music? Sure. Just do yourself a favour a make a batch. And if you ever come across a copy of Muffin Mania, I'm telling you, snap it up. You won't be sorry.
Muffin Mania's Chocolate Chip Muffins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup milk
1/3 cup melted butter
1 egg
1 cup chocolate chips
Mix dry ingredients and stir in chocolate chips. (I use mini chips because I like more dispersement of the chocolate, but you can use standard-size ones, too.)
In a separate bowl, combine egg, milk and butter. Stir into flour mixture. Do not beat. (Yeah, don't. Overworking makes them tougher somehow.)
Portion out into a greased muffin tin (this recipe makes exactly a dozen of these glorious things) and bake at 375 F for 20 minutes.
Tip from the Mania: A few chocolate chips melted and drizzled over the tops when slightly cooled makes these a special dessert treat for chocolate lovers. Also, for your awesome viewing pleasure, this charming tidbit: "Our cadet, Bob, from Robert Land Academy, always requests these when he's home on weekend leaves."