When we first moved to Boston, three-day weekends were our golden ticket to travel. We’d leave bright and early Saturday morning and wouldn’t return until late Monday night. Whether we were headed out to the mountains, or just enjoying ourselves around town, we’d often return to work and school in worse shape than we were on Friday. Now that we’ve had roots in Boston for a little while, we are able to appreciate long weekends without totally exhausting ourselves in the process. And on top of that, we’ve fully entered savings mode so that we don’t go completely broke while in Europe.
After spending time with friends on Friday and Saturday night, Jacob and I enjoyed some time together on Sunday with lunch at a local gastropub and a trip to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. This museum, by the way, is probably my new favorite in Boston. If you live in the Boston area, or ever plan to visit Boston, be sure to add this to your list of things to see. It’s well worth a few hours of your time.
Then came Monday. Usually, the most dreaded day of the week. Not this time, thanks to Martin Luther King, Jr. For the first time in a long time I was actually able to enjoy a day of rest at home. Most of my days off are usually spent cleaning or running errands. Well, thanks to a Saturday afternoon cleaning sesh and an unusually short to do list, I was able to enjoy some quite rest and peacefulness at home. After some light morning cleaning and furniture rearranging, I enjoyed some lunch with the hubs before seeing him off to work. With candles flickering, Joe Pug playing softly in the background, and the apartment all to myself, I was able truly enjoy a bit of me time. I took down our tree and Christmas decorations, exercised and showered without rushing, and even had time to read my new “Better Homes and Gardens” magazine that came in the mail a few weeks ago. Anticipating 3-5 inches of snow (which was actually more like a half inch of snow), I put on a pot of chili and started rummaging through the cabinets to make a snowy morning treat for today. Stumbling across a few pears in the fridge that were past their prime, I knew just what I wanted to make; Ginger Pear Muffins.
I really dig pears, and am a huge fan of ginger, and having recently made ginger, pear juice, I knew the combination was right up my alley. If you are a ginger-lover like me, I feel that the proportions in this recipe are right on. Although, if you like ginger as more of supporting flavor and not a star performer, I’d scale back on the ginger a bit.
Ginger-Pear Muffins
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup white sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 cup finely chopped pear (I used Green Anjou)
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
Preheat oven to 375 F. Meanwhile, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the center.
In a small bowl, beat the egg with a fork. Stir in the milk and oil. Pour into flour mixture and mix quickly with a fork until well moistened, but do not beat. The batter will be a little lumpy. Fold in pears and ginger.
Pour batter into a paper-lined muffin pan and bake for 20 minutes. Cool completely on cooling rack. Recipe yields one dozen muffins.
The Daily Doss 