My big, strange muffins.

[Vinca]

Today I decided to try a new recipe for "Apple Pie Muffins." It looked pretty ordinary, but I discovered I didn't have any buttermilk on hand. I couldn't remember how much lemon juice to add to regular milk, so I checked a little booklet of substitutes I have. To my surprise it offered another solution - adding 1 3/4 T. cream of tartar to a cup of regular milk. So I did. About 7 minutes into baking the muffins, I looked through the window to check them and the suckers were double the size of a normal muffin. They were HUGE. Since there was nothing I could do about it, I left them to cook for the entire 20 minutes. It was just luck I used extra large paper muffin cups today - I usually save them for something else. The muffins looked fine - except for the size - and when I cut into one I found it had a light, cakey texture. The taste was good, so now I'm thinking maybe muffins are better if you toss in some cream of tartar. Do any of you use cream of tartar in baking??

[Phentex]

1. Could you share the recipe please?

My son has been asking for something apple-y and I'm tired of the same ole same ole. Can a muffin be too big? :D

Good to know it didn't change the taste!

[Warpy]

2. My own apple muffins are from a generic muffin recipe

I add diced apples to it and top the muffins with a mixture of brown sugar, a touch of cinnamon, and some finely chopped pecans before baking.

When it works exactly right, those sweet pecans ride the tops of the muffins and provide some crunch on top to contrast with the soft apple inside.

[Vinca]

5. Sure. It's actually a compilation of 2 recipes I found on Recipezaar.

For the streusel topping:

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

For the muffins:

2 1/2 cups flour (I use King Arthur White Wheat)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 c. milk with 1 3/4 T. cream of tartar)
4 ounces melted butter or 1/2 cup oil (I used extra light olive oil)
1 1/2 cups chopped apples (I like MacIntosh apples to cook with.)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon (you could also add some nutmeg, maybe 1/2 tsp.)

Mix streusel topping and set aside. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Mix eggs, milk, oil, vanilla and sugar in another bowl. Dump the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and combine. Stir in chopped apples. Spoon into muffin cups and sprinkle with the topping. I made 12 muffins out of this using a regular sized muffin pan with Wilton giant muffin cups. I imagine if you use buttermilk and no cream of tartar they'll come out like regular-sized muffins. In any case, bake at 400 for 20 minutes.

[Arkansas Granny]

3. Here's some interesting info on cream of tartar.

Cream of tartar is best known in our kitchens for helping stabilize and give more volume to beaten egg whites. It is the acidic ingredient in some brands of baking powder. It is also used to produce a creamier texture in sugary desserts such as candy and frosting, because it inhibits the formation of crystals. It is used commercially in some soft drinks, candies, bakery products, gelatin desserts, and photography products.

http://www.ochef.com/933.htm

I don't know what texture your original muffin recipe would have had, but it sounds like the rise and texture you achieved was due to the cream of tartar.

[Vinca]

4. The muffins are lighter than what I usually produce.

They remind me of the giant muffins at Dunkin Donuts.

[AwakeAtLast]

6. Snickerdoodles calls for it

It's mainly butter and sugar and vanilla, so I'm sure it's useful as a stabilizer. My husband makes them all the time, in fact, I need to give him a nudge for the weekend! ;) Nothing better than snickerdoodles fresh from the oven! :9

I do have a funny family story about that ingredient. My older cousins were at home by themselves one day. They were probably 12 and 14 at the time. The older cousin was trying to make spaghetti sauce but it was too thin for her liking. The younger one, who had recently helped whip egg whites, calls out, "Just put in some cream of tartar to make it thick!"

We still pass that story around to this day. :D