Montana Morning Muffins…

Low clouds are hanging over the mountains this morning…but they’re still visible and beautiful. I would never tire of this scenery! Temp in the 50’s this morning with a slight drizzle. My granddaughter Sarah and I are going to be out to walk Annie in a bit – rain or not. Yesterday morning, Sarah and I made Montana Morning Muffins (we gave them a new name) and they were delicious for breakfast this morning with my son’s freshly brewed coffee. He is off until Tuesday and that’s great. His birthday is Sunday and the girls and I will be baking his birthday cake. We will probably head to Yellowstone tomorrow and I can’t wait to see it. I love this rugged, BIG SKY COUNTRY!

Here’s the recipe, as promised, for Montana Morning Muffins (adapted from the recipe for Orange-Yougurt Muffins in the Williams-Sonoma book, Muffins & Quick Breads):

Montana Morning Muffins

3 large oranges

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons water

5 tablespoons butter

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 & 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

3/4 cup plain yogurt

3/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter standard muffin tins.

Finely grate the zest from the oranges – just the orange part. Ours made about 3 tablespoons of zest.

Combine the zest, 1/4 cup of the sugar and the water in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat for about 2 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Add the butter and stir until melted, about 1 minute more. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Set aside. In a larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, milk and reserved orange mixture until smooth. Add the combined dry ingredients and stir just until blended. Spoon into prepared tins, filling each cup about 3/4 full. Bake until toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. 15-20 minutes. Cool in the tins about 3 minutes, then remove. Enjoy! (I think the pics are clearer if you click to enlarge).

As we were downloading the pics of the “food photo op” I saw my granddaughter’s amazing photos below all taken with a simple small point and shoot. I think she’s asking for a more powerful camera for Christmas and I can’t wait to see what she does with that if she can do this with the small camera she has! Obviously, it’s all about having an eye for composition. Enjoy! Don’t forget to click to enlarge for a clearer image.

Below, a yellow-bellied marmot!

By the way, I am doing these posts this week on the MAC computer with my granddaughter’s help. I am so not used to a MAC! ;-

I left Des Moines yesterday morning in a FIERCE Midwest storm – the likes of which I haven’t seen for a while. I couldn’t find my umbrella, so by the time I had the luggage loaded into the back of my friend Susan’s car (who had kindly offered to drive me to the airport), I looked like I had just stepped out of the shower. Not to worry though, I dried. Once the plane got up above the clouds and past a few major bumps, it was sunny and smoother flying. Once we arrived closer to Bozeman, I looked out the window to see a mountaintop so close, I could almost touch it! The scenery here is magnificent. Definitely different from Oregon but amazing. I can see why they call this “Big Sky Country”! The sky stretched as far as the eye could see over the mountains. I was so happy to see my oldest and his precious family! The girls have grown so much and are, of course, beautiful! They love it here and it suits their outdoor, hiking, camping, mountain biking lifestyle beautifully. Later in the week, we will head to Yellowstone and I will take some pics there. In the meantime, enjoy a few of their Montana living pics below!