Williams-Sonoma Collection: Muffins

This is my favorite go to cookbook for prep ahead breakfast. The recipes are delicious every time. And, when guests arrive I don't have to worry 'Will the recipe turn out'. There are more than just muffins in the book. There are breads and coffee cakes. As I type this I am eating the Spiced Apple Coffee Cake. The recipes aren't complicated. In fact, they are very simple and call for ordinary ingrediants. But, who would have thought that you could make a muffin that tastes like a dognut! Williams Sonoma did, and it does. The secret ingrediant? Buttermilk. Other favorites of mine in the book are the rasberry muffins, the jam filled muffins, the chocolate chip muffins, and the pear muffins. I have used the batter for the rasberry muffins with many other fruits - one of our favorites is peaches. This books gives you an awesome base and you can mix and match and get creative without worry! I made my sister a batch of the cherry muffins with the coconut topping and plan on baking more when she delivers her first child... Excellent for a beginner and tasty enough for the expert cook.

Out of this collection by William's-Sonoma I think that this book and their Cookie book are my favorites. Overall I found the recipes in the muffin book to be clear, concise, and easy to follow with good results. I also liked the fact that the recipes mainly called for common ingredients and were quick to make. My two favorite muffins in the book were the cheese and the blueberry muffin recipes. Although the cheese muffin recipe was more like bread, it was hearty, warm, and absolutely perfect for a cold day. If you are looking for a well-rounded collection of muffin recipes I would recommend that you purchase this book.

I cannot rave enough about this cookbook! I have been baking for over 20 years and have gone through many cookbooks. This one is amazing. I have tried over 15 recipes so far and all have been fabulous. It is very user-friendly and the instructions are clear. I really like the photos of all the goodies, it helps to see what the final goal is! This book is more than just muffins too, the quick breads are delicious and my family all have their favorites now. I use this cookbook at least once a week, if not more. Also, many of the muffin recipes freeze well (chocolate chip, banana-walnut, lemon-poppyseed) so I can double up batches and freeze them for the kids. 35 seconds in the microwave and they taste fresh! If you like to bake, this is a must in your collection : )

The great thing about the Williams Sonoma series are the detailed tips and instructions at the back. In the Muffins book, this includes adjusting cooking times to make jumbo or miniature muffins instead of standard size, tips on getting the muffins out of different types of pans, and substitutions for common ingredients. Each recipe has a gorgeous photo, easy-to-follow instructions, and short tips on the key ingredients (such as the difference between sweet and sour cherries and tips on buying them fresh, frozen or canned). The book includes not only sweet and savory muffins of many different varieties, but coffee cakes and similar items as well. I brought the first two recipes I tried, raspberry muffins and chocolate chip muffins, to work, and they disappeared faster and got more raves than anything else I've brought in, and they were far easier to make than anything else. I'll never eat store-bought again.