I created the basic muffin batter, then mixed it with several flavours, and it was the smoked bacon and mushroom that proved popular with staff. This was essentially the recipe I ended up with:
Smoked Bacon and Mushroom Muffins
Step 1 - Mix all of the following together to create the basic savoury muffin batter (combine all dry ingredients first, then add in the wet ingredients):
270g plain flour
90g corn meal (polenta)
13g baking powder
3g salt
40g sugar
2 eggs
240g milk
220g vegetable oil
a pinch of coarse pepper
10g finely chopped fresh french shallots
2g finely chopped garlic
Step 2 - Add the following into the basic batter for flavour (you can also use other flavours like parmesan and chives):
30g chopped mushrooms, sautéed in a little oil (to remove excessive moisture in the mushroom)
20g lightly pan-fried smoked bacon (to remove excessive fat in the bacon and to intensify the flavour)
Step 3 - Spoon the muffin batter into lightly-greased muffin trays (I used shallow trays for small muffins 6cm in diameter), and bake in the oven at 170 degrees Celsius until the muffins are golden brown and done. Test by inserting a skewer into the centre of a muffin - if it comes out clean, it is done.
(Aside: At LCB, we are never told how long to bake something because every oven is different; we simply have to know how to tell if something is cooked, either by measuring internal temperature or by sight/touch.)
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Here are some photos of winter scenes outside LCB Ottawa that I took this afternoon, when I left Production Kitchen:
Lots of snow fell overnight, and this is what the park across from LCB Ottawa looks like now.
Snow in the Student Entrance Area of LCB Ottawa. This is how much snow fell in 24 hours, because this area was cleared of snow yesterday afternoon.
