recipe swap, farm edition

i decided to combine showing you photos of my farm trip with the wednesday recipe swap. it turns out that most of the photos i took at the farm were of our cooking endeavors anyway, so go figure. before i share the recipe for these yummy muffins, i want to tell you that the farm i was on was called frog hill farm and i was visiting my best friend caitlin there. her house was beautiful! one whole half side of it was windows! it had a composting toilet, a front mud room that doubled as a 'refrigerator-pantry' because it was the same temperature as outside, a back porch and a nice long living space complete with a full kitchen, room for a table, a couch, a bed and a piano. these components might sound obvious to you, but you have to understand that the last farm she was on, we baked bread in her toaster oven and sat on her bed to eat dinner. it was very cute but very very small.

these muffins are really not ordinary cornmeal-cranberry muffins. we poured wheat berries into a flour mill and ground our own flour on the spot! absolute-fresh-milled-whole-wheat flour immediatly dumped into a bowl with baking powder and salt. you cannot get fresher than that. eggs from the frog hill farm chickens, salt that was boiled down by caitlin from ocean water and raw sugar. these muffins were special because of the ingredients, but i think they would be just as good with the same baking ingredients you have in your home (and i have in my house in the city). so i'm sharing them with you in a way that you can vary the ingredients depending on preference and availability.

farm fresh cornmeal cranberry muffins

2 cups flour (we used freshly milled whole wheat flour, but all purpose works or a 1 to 3 whole wheat to white combo.)
1 cup cornmeal (fine or course, depending on toothsome preference)
1-1/2 teas baking powder
1 teas baking soda
1/2 teas salt (make your own for fun! boil a gallon of ocean water for 2-3 hours until it resembles salt)
2 large eggs, organic
3/4 cup sugar (we used raw, you can experiment with a mix of brown or white or even honey)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted and slightly cooled
3/4 cup sour cream (yes...sour cream!)
1/2 cup milk
3/4cup-1cup dried cranberries

Heat oven to 400 degrees and grease a 12-cup muffin tin.
Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to combine; set aside.
Whisk egga in a second medium bowl until well combined. Add the sugar and whisk vigorously untill thick. Add the melted butter in three additions, whicking to combine after each addition.
Add half the sour cream and half the milk and whisk to combine; whisk in remaining sour cream and milk until combined. Add dried cranberries and toss until incorporated.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry. Mix gently with rubber spatuale until batter is just combined and evenly moistened.
Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, divide the batter evenly into the muffin tin. Do not flatten the surface of the mounds.
Bake for about 18 minutes, or until light golden brown and they pass the toothpick test. Cool in tin for 5 minutes, then set on rack for 5 minutes longer.
They were elicious warm, but the flavors melded even more the longer they sat.

Enjoy!!

For more great recipes, check out some of my favorites: noddyboom, godful food, the wednesday chef, orangette, 3191 miles apart and pictures & pancakes.