Too Corny

MOPS tomorrow!

We're going with a spicy, Mexican, hot weather theme as far as food goes.

Hot cheesy-salsa dip with tortilla chips, vegetable platter with coloured peppers and tomatoes... and a savoury muffin I thought.

I hunted through my extensive cookbook collection and found "Bacon and Cornmeal Muffins", which seemed to be exactly what I was looking for.

I made a trial batch this morning.

UGH!

Total flop!

Dry, tasteless, more biscuit than muffin...

My baking reputation was in serious jeopardy!

I took one along to the pre-teen gathering this afternoon and subjected all the adults to a taste-test.

Verdict confirmed.

When my labours were done at the church I came home and let the experimentation begin:

Round one saw the amounts of cornmeal and flour rounded off and switched, and the baking powder, salt and sugar all increased.

Round two saw the melted margarine and butter replaced with Canola oil.

Round three had the milk increased by a quarter of a cup.

Although each batch is acceptable, the third muffin is really good- quite the best. I'll bring them all tomorrow morning as a bacon-free option for muffins. Tomorrow morning I'll bake up four dozen fresh "Round Three" muffins with bacon. 

Yup.

Third time's definitely the charm.

Thank God for imagination.

And a big bag of cornmeal...