From the Recipe Box: Chocolate Chip Muffins

I would love to be one of those women who bravely lets her children cook and experiment with her in the kitchen. Unfortunately my kids fight like cats and dogs with each other when the time comes to cook, so I usually secretly slip away to stir up a batch of cookies or pizza.

My oldest was off from school yesterday so I decided we were going to take the plunge and make chocolate chip muffins. They got the idea a few days ago after breaking into a bag of chips, sneaking handfuls of them upstairs with sweaty palms. Blech. So I dug up a recipe that didn't require too many fancy ingredients and endured the sibling rivalry for a little cooking lesson.

The first thing I usually remind them when cooking is: "If you have to cough or sneeze, do NOT do it on the food!" I want them to learn how to cook and enjoy it, but consider this a first-and-foremost rule of thumb. Aside from the usual bickering over who got to measure what and who pours this, it went fairly well and was a pretty kid-friendly recipe.

We doubled the recipe, and the only changes I made were inadvertently adding an additional 1/3 cup of milk as well as adding about two teaspoons of vanilla, at the suggestion of another reviewer. It turned out just fine with the extra milk, and not biscuity at all, as someone else suggested. I also added regular-sized chips rather than the miniature ones, and they turned out just fine. Not too much, and perhaps could have added a little more. (I put in about 3/4 of a bag.) I would probably add an entire bag, if I make this again.

One reviewer added an additional 1/4 cup of milk plus vanilla chips, so I guess my accidental addition of milk was not much of an error. Perhaps this takes care of the biscuity taste some people noticed.

Chocolate Chip Muffins, submitted by Lori Thompson

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ready in: 35 minutes
Serves: 12

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup miniature chocolate chips

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the first four ingredients. In a small bowl, beat egg, milk and oil. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack.


I found this recipe here .