Some things just belong together, like peanut butter and chocolate. These muffins might cross into dessert territory, but could also stand in during brunch. Next time, I might throw in a little more peanut butter. The original recipe called for chopped peanuts, but chocolate chips sounded so much better.

If you do not have whole milk, use fat free or 1% less two tablespoons. Add 2 tablespoons melted butter (in addition to the butter in this recipe).

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Muffins
adapted from Real Simple

2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup chocolate chips, divided

Preheat oven to 350F and coat a 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray. 

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the peanut butter and combine with a pastry cutter or 2 forks until it has reached a coarse, crumbly texture. Stir in the milk, egg, and butter. Fold in 1/2 cup chocolate chip.

Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full with batter. Evenly sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over each. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Chocolate chips on top of muffins will remain in tact but will be very soft when removed from the oven. Be careful when removing from muffin tin and allow to cool completely before storing.

After a brief hiatus, Muffin Madness is back! This recipe features a delicious and slightly sophisticated flavor profile, combining white chocolate with apricot and ginger. These muffins are also a bit more decadent and stumble into cupcake territory, so they might make better desserts than breakfast.

Though it may seem intimidating at first, it is quite easy to prepare a muffin with filling, you just might want to warn people before they take a bite! As usual, I felt the recipe was lacking a bit of punch, so I increased the crystallized ginger and added ground ginger (ginger is an excellent taste compliment to both white chocolate and apricot). White chocolate baking bars are normally sold in 4 oz varieties and the recipe only called for 2 oz, so I used the additional amount to top the muffins.

White Chocolate & Apricot Muffins
adapted from Cooking Light

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
4 oz white baking chocolate, divided
3/4 cup skim or 1% milk
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large egg
1/2 cup apricot preserves

Preheat oven to 400F and coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, crystallized ginger, baking powder, ground ginger, and salt. Finely chopped 2 oz of the white chocolate and whisk into the flour mixture. Make a well in the center of the mixture.

In a small bowl, whisk together milk, butter, and egg, then pour into the well in the flour mixture. Using a wooden spoon, stir just until all the dry ingredients are moist.

Spoon about a tablespoon of batter into the bottom of each muffin cup. Then spoon 2 teaspoons of apricot preserves into the center of each cup (do not spread over the batter). Top the muffin cups with the remaining batter. Bake for 20 minutes at 400F.

Meanwhile, coarsely chop the remaining 2 oz of white baking chocolate. In a small microwave safe dish, heat on high for 10 second intervals melted and smooth, stirring well in between each interval.

After removing from oven, place muffin tin on a wire rack and allow muffins to cool for 10 minutes before removing. Use a knife to “pop” each muffin out of the tin and place muffins on a sheet of aluminum foil. Scoop a small about (about 1 teaspoon) of white chocolate on top of each muffin and use the back of the spoon to “frost” the muffin. Allow chocolate to cool set before storing in an airtight container.

Makes 12 muffins.

Looking for something to warm you up on a cold winter day? Try this pasta dish with an easy tomato sauce. I selected red bell peppers both for presentation and flavor. Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers are all similar in flavor and referred to as “sweet” bell peppers, which is a nice contrast for the spice in this recipe. Green bell peppers have a slightly stronger, more bitter taste. Of all the colors, red peppers have the highest amounts of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Beta Carotene. Feel free to substitute which ever color or color combination  you prefer.

There are two options for adding heat to this recipe. The first is to use hot Italian sausages. The second is to use sweet Italian sausage or regular bulk sausage then add red pepper flakes to taste (from 1/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp, depending on your palate). The recipe below is shown using the hot Italian sausage. For the vinegar in this recipe, I used a flavored shallot vinegar, but nearly any variety will do: white wine, red wine, balsamic, or even apple cider in a pinch.

Spicy Sausage & Peppers Pasta

1 box (16 oz) short shaped pasta, such as penne
3/4 lb hot Italian sausage, casings removed
2 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into strips
1 pkg (8 oz) sliced mini bella mushrooms
1 yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
Olive oil
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp dried oregano
1 can (15 oz) low-sodium tomato sauce

In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving about 1 cup of pasta water, and return to pot. Toss pasta with olive oil, set aside and keep warm.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage and break apart with a wooden spoon. Add mushrooms and a small amount of olive oil. Saute for 5 minutes, then add diced onion. Season with salt and pepper, then saute 3 minutes. Add red bell pepper and garlic (if using sweet or mild sausage, add red pepper flakes at this point). Saute 3-5 minutes, until peppers are crisp-tender. Add vinegar, oregano, and tomato sauce. Bring mixture to a boil and remove from heat.

Add sausage mixture to pasta and toss. If mixture is too dry, add pasta water a little at a time until sauce is desired consistency. Serve immediately.

James found a recipe on WikiHow for Sbiten, a traditional winter drink from Russian made with water, honey, spices, and jam. Before tea and coffee were popular in Russia, Sbiten was consumed during the long winter months. He wanted to give it a try, so I brewed a batch and it was really good!

There are several variations, but we selected this recipe because we are both fans of blackberry jam. Other recipes include up to 2 cups of honey, which seems like it would be overly sweet. This version has a nice balance of spice and sweetness, along with a fruity flavor from the jam. The blackberry jam tastes great, but you could certainly try other flavors.You could also replace the water in this recipe with red wine to make a drink similar to mulled wine.

Sbiten

10 1/4 cups cold water
1/2 cup honey
16 oz (1 lb) blackberry jam
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
sprigs of mint or cinnamon sticks, for garnish (optional)

In a large pot, bring water to a boil. Stir in honey, jam, and spices. Simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring gently. Remove from heat and set stand a couple minutes to cool. Ladle into mugs and float a sprig of mint on top or add a cinnamon stick, if desired.

Note: spices do not dissolve like salt and sugar do, so there will be sediment left from both the spices and the jam. You could strain the liquid, but it is more enjoyable with the spices.

Here is another dish with Moroccan flair, a vegetarian option to the Chicken & Butternut Squash Tagine. Couscous is incredible popular in Moroccan food, served as a compliment to a meal just as rice is in Asian cuisine. The spices are similar, though you can adjust to suit your tastes. You can also use chicken broth instead of vegetable stock.

As you will see in the picture below, I served this meal with rice. Rather than add it to the pot with the vegetables, I cooked the rice separately and stirred in some of the cooking liquid. I would have preferred couscous, but I did not have enough on hand and rice was a good substitute.  The recipe below includes the instructions for using couscous.

Butternut-Chickpea Couscous
adapted from Cooking Light

2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 cups vegetable stock
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 can (15 oz) petite diced tomatoes, do not drain
1 can (19 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 1/2 uncooked couscous
1/4 cup almond slivers (optional)

In a dutch oven or large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add onions and 1/4 tsp of salt and saute for 3-5 minutes until softened. Add garlic and saute 1 minute. Add remaining 1 tsp of salt, cinnamon, ginger, paprika, turmeric, cayenne pepper, and nutmeg. Saute for 1 minute, until very fragrant.

Stir in chicken stock, butternut squash, and tomatoes with liquid and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add chickpeas and simmer, covered, for an additional 5 minutes or until butternut squash is tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from heat and stir in golden raisins and couscous. Cover and let stand 5 minutes.

Stir well before serving, fluffing up the couscous. Top with almond slivers if desired.