i'd rather be baking

Muffins make Mondays better. I’m pretty sure it’s science…but I need to keep conducting these studies. One can never be quite sure.

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Things on my mind this week: when in doubt, paint your nails. Tuesday night is a great time to make a cake.  If you have brown bananas, you should make muffins. Getting a haircut might improve your outlook on life. If you have 20 minutes to take for yourself, you totally should. Really super-important things, obviously.

I’ve done all of these things in the past week and although my focus group is one, I can vouch for them all. Sometimes you just have to put your head down and your busy pants on. Put on a dress or some wedges and get it done.

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Why have I never made a soda bread before?! There’s certainly plenty of Irish in my blood (though only my sister has the hair to prove it). My great-great-grandparents changed their last name from O’Flynn to Flynn when they came to America in hopes of avoiding prejudice…because Flynn doesn’t sound Irish at all…

But truth be told, I’ve never put much thought into St. Patrick’s Day. I have no problem wearing green, ever, as it’s pretty much my best color…but that’s nothing out of the ordinary. But this year I’m ready. When we moved to Portland last summer, many people told us that The Rain lasts from Halloween to St. Patrick’s Day. Clearly I don’t expect the weather to strictly adhere to this calendar…but I am hopeful. It’s almost St. Patrick’s Day! We’ve almost made it!

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I make pumpkin bread at least once every year, usually several times. It’s just easy, delicious, comfort food when the weather starts to get a bit chilly. It’s that lovely time of year again, and I think I’ve found my new favorite pumpkin bread recipe! It’s been less than a week and we’ve nearly finished both loaves. Before you think we’re gluttons…it’s healthy! And it definitely doesn’t taste healthy.

In fact…I kind of hate to share the fact that it’s a lighter version. If I were you, I wouldn’t tell anyone! We have a saying in my family: “don’t tell everything you know.” Sometimes it’s just the truth.

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I’ve realized that my recent blog entries (except for this lovely pie) have centered around fruit or something reasonably healthy. Honestly, it’s just where my head is most of the time! I know that healthier baking isn’t for everyone, but most of the time it’s definitely for me. If I can indulge my baking habit with foods that nourish my body well, that makes it all the more enjoyable for me!

These zucchini muffins fall perfectly within those parameters. Zucchini bread is a classic summer treat, whether your zucchini is the result of a homegrown bumper crop or simply the rock-bottom prices on squash this time of year. It’s something I dearly love to eat, and healthy-ing it up a bit means I get to eat it more often. I win!

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