Coffee Walnut Muffins

This recipe is taken from a '70's-era cookbook by Canadian Edna Staebler, called 'Food that Really Schmecks', which focuses on the Mennonite tradition of economical and wholesome ways of preparing food.

Given that I absolutely hate to waste food, I was dreaming up ways to use some increasingly stale walnuts that were in my kitchen cupboard. Prior to using them in this recipe, I freshened the nuts by toasting them briefly in a non-stick skillet. If you happen to make these muffins, you'll note that the texture of the uncooked batter is very dense. You will also notice, I think, that the instant coffee adds a subtle background flavour that complements the walnuts. The whole effect is quite satisfying.

They really schmeck

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs instant coffee powder
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup whole milk or cream
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup melted shortening (I used margarine)
• 2 cups flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Methods:
Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees F. Dissolve the coffee in the hot water and add the cream, beaten egg and shortening. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a bowl. Stir in the walnuts. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Spoon the batter into a buttered muffin tin (12 muffin size) and bake for about 20 minutes.

If you eschew (Gesundheit) instant coffee and don't have any hanging about, I'm pretty sure that you could simply use 1/2 cup of strongly brewed coffee instead of instant coffee dissolved in 1/2 cup of water.