Muffin

'90S SEINFELD After Elaine exclaims that she only likes the tops of muffins ("The Muffin Tops" first aired on May 8, 1997), her former boss thinks Elaine has hit on a clever marketing idea. But when you only sell the tops, what do you do with the hundreds of muffin "stumps" (bottoms) that are left? Elaine and her gang take to the streets with garbage bags of stumps, trying to pawn them off on anyone and everyone. There are no takers; even the homeless turn them down with disdain. It didn't take long after the airing of the episode for muffin-top pans to appear on store shelves — another TV triumph. Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

"Since I moved from the West Coast to Santa Fe, I've been baking more quick breads because my recipes for yeast doughs just aren't the same without the sea air." Joan Nugent of Sante Fe, New Mexico. "A leftover can of coconut milk inspired this recipe for muffins. To guarantee that I always have something interesting for breakfast, I prepare extras and freeze them."

"I love cooking with the new recipes every month when Bon Appétit arrives," writes Gabriella Hughes of Windham, Maine. "One dish I'd really like to make is the gingerbread with lemon icing from Standard Baking Co. in Portland, Maine. Could you request it?" Serve these tender gingerbread muffins with whipped cream for teatime or dessert.

The following recipe comes from my mother's home economics class in Louisiana back in the 1940's. I hope your readers enjoy the muffins as much as I do.

The preserves keep these moist and tender.

The almond paste in these muffins adds wonderful flavor and keeps them moist.

St. John's Jug Muffins "I was given the recipe for these muffins years ago, and I make a batch of the batter every winter," writes Judith Cadigan of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania."When the urge for a muffin strikes, you can bake just one instead of a whole batch, and put the remaining batter back in the refrigerator." Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 1 hr

These delicious "puddings" are a cross between a popover and a puffy pancake.

Cayenne pepper in the batter gives these muffins a nice little kick.

These bran muffins bake up moist and chewy. They're so good that my in-laws, Reed and Nancy, make a batch every couple of days for snacking. This is another recipe that shows how buttermilk works to tenderize and lighten many baked goods. Bran retains much of its natural oil and can quickly turn rancid, so always store it in the refrigerator or freezer. I like to use unprocessed sugar crystals (don't confuse this with brown sugar) to complement the bran's whole grain taste. Each muffin has over 2 grams of fiber.