Family Recipe: Oatmeal Raisin Muffins!

My motto: The more raisins, the better.

This is perhaps the most sentimental recipe in my family cookbook.  As long as I can remember, we've referred to my mom's oatmeal raisin muffins as "Dan's Muffins." Dan was a family friend who had multiple sclerosis, and my mom often looked after him. One afternoon, she left a batch of muffins on his kitchen counter, having expected him to be home. (He'd gone to a gun show, despite being told not to drive.) By the time he came back, the muffins had gone slightly stale, but he loved them, saying the harder texture made them easier for him to eat. The name Dan's Muffins stuck.     

       Now for a little gloating: It's not just Dan who adored these muffins.  I, being the dorky kid that I was, entered Dan's Muffins into a 4-H muffin competition in elementary school. I  took home the blue ribbon for these bad boys. They have a delicious, sticky sweetness, thanks to the trio of brown sugar, applesauce, and dried fruit, that somehow doesn't compromise the light, fluffy texture you expect from a muffin. 

Dan's Muffins

What you need
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
¾ cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 cup flour
½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
¾ cup applesauce
½ cup raisins
1 cup quick-cooking oats


Put it all together

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cream butter and sugar in a bowl. Add egg; beat well.
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a separate bowl. Alternately add the flour mixture and applesauce to the butter mixture, beating well after each addition.
4. Stir in raisins and oats, only until combined. 
5. Spoon into paper-lined muffin cups*, and bake for 30 minutes. 
6. Cool in the pan for 3 minutes, then remove from baking pan. Cool completely before covering.

*To make your muffins prettier—presentation matters!—evenly space a few raisins over the top of each cup of batter.