Interesting Muffins

Today I took a great whole wheat flour muffin recipe and added edible flowers and sweet herbs to make some rather colorful and interesting muffins.

5 T. butter or vegetable oil
1/3 cup vanilla sugar (I make my own by splitting and scraping a vanilla bean and stuffing it all in a container of sugar) or sugar plus 1/2 tsp vanilla
2  eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
(also use 1/2 tsp baking soda if you use an acidic ingredient)
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup milk or juice or yogurt
1/2 cup edible flower petals or chopped sweet herbs, like chervil, mint, lavender, etc.

Preheat the oven to 375.  Grease a 12 cup muffin tin or line with papers.  Cream the fat and sugar till smooth.  Beat in the eggs, salt and powder till smooth.  Beat in half the flour, then half the milk.  Repeat with remaining flour and milk till smooth.  Mix in the edible flowers and herbs.  Fill muffin cups 2/3 full, and bake 18-20 minutes till a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

These were really mild and interesting.  You could flavor the base however you like, you could substitute your favorite type of flour, your favorite juice, or buttermilk or yogurt, and they always come out.  I used calendula petals and lemon balm, and it was a yummy treat with some homemade fruit jam for the kids snack.