Blogging, Royal Visit, Jigsaw Puzzle

I caught a segment on Good Morning America today, a teacher has been suspended for what she has been writing about her students. The basic premise is the right of free speech and there is nothing to prevent her saying, or writing, what she thinks and the school is, maybe, wrong to suspend her. However, on TV this morning she said that she didn’t think anyone but her friends would read her blog and that it was difficult to find. Sorry, you must be pretty dumb. If you want to blog, it is open for perusal from anyone who wants to find it. Ain’t nothing private about blogs. I don’t know if she mentioned to her students that she was writing, but searches frequently bring up blogs.

Canada is delighted because it has now been officially announced that the first official visit by the newlywed Royals, William and Katherine (not Kate please) will be to our country. They are scheduled for a June/July visit so you know the flags will be out. They will be spending Canada Day (July 1) in Ottawa as the Queen did last year and their itinerary covers a cross country tour.

One of the things I do most days is a jigsaw puzzle on line. So much easier as you don’t have to sort out all the pieces and turn them right side up etc. etc. One puzzle I do enables me to put it in my blog. Not tried it out, so I am about to do so. Hope it works.

These muffins are recommended for a Grab and Go healthy breakfast, I don’t approve of grabbing and going, you should sit down and eat properly, not eat on the run, however, I still think these muffins sound pretty good.

Honey and Goat Cheese-Filled Fig Muffins

From EatingWell: January/February 2010

Sweet figs and a filling of tangy goat cheese give a surprising twist to these hearty breakfast muffins. Make a batch of these on the weekend and enjoy them for breakfast all week long. If you’re not a fan of goat cheese, try them with cream cheese instead.

1 dozen muffins

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup crumbled soft goat cheese or reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel)
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
• 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
• 2 cups white whole-wheat flour (see Note)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg white
• 3/4 cup packed dark or light brown sugar
• 1 cup low-fat or nonfat buttermilk
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/4 cups chopped dried figs
• 3 tablespoons turbinado (see Note) or granulated sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line 12 (1/2-cup) muffin cups with paper liners or coat with cooking spray.
2. Thoroughly combine goat cheese (or cream cheese), honey, lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Whisk flour (see Measuring Tip), baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Lightly beat eggs and egg white in a medium bowl; add brown sugar and the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla and whisk until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in buttermilk and oil until smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined; do not overmix. Fold in figs.
4. Spoon half the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Add 1 generous teaspoon of the reserved cheese filling to the center of each muffin, and cover with the remaining batter. (The filling should not be visible.) Sprinkle the muffins with sugar.
5. Bake the muffins until the edges start to brown and the tops spring back when gently pressed, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.

Nutrition

Per muffin : 272 Calories; 9 g Fat; 2 g Sat; 6 g Mono; 39 mg Cholesterol; 44 g Carbohydrates; 6 g Protein; 3 g Fiber; 239 mg Sodium; 184 mg Potassium

3 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 starch, 1/2 fruit, 1 1/2 other carbohydrates, 1 1/2 fat

Tips & Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Individually wrap the muffins and store at room temperature for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month. To reheat, remove plastic wrap, wrap in a paper towel and microwave on High for 30-45 seconds.

• Ingredient notes: White whole-wheat flour, made from a special variety of white wheat, is light in color and flavor but has the same nutritional properties as regular whole-wheat flour. It is available in large supermarkets and at natural-foods stores. (Or find it online from bobsredmill.com or kingarthurflour.com.) Store it in the freezer.
• Turbinado sugar is steam-cleaned raw cane sugar. It’s coarse-grained and light brown in color, with a slight molasses flavor. Find it in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets or at natural-foods stores.
• Measuring tip: We use the “spoon and level” method to measure flours. Here’s how it is done: Use a spoon to lightly scoop flour from its container into a measuring cup. Use a knife or other straight edge to level the flour with the top of the measuring cup.

Have a great day