Squash Muffins

I'm going to start posting a few of my favorite recipes, the old stand-by's that get us through the week.  So, I thought I should start with a long-time favorite, the muffin.  Our muffins are not terribly sweet, made with maple syrup, which is just how I like them! Without all that sugar, I don't feel like I have to monitor the muffin eating the kids do, which is just one less struggle...This recipe used to be made with bananas, which still happens on occasion, but everyone seems to love them even more with squash. Here goes!

Squash Muffins

1 egg

1/3 cup butter (I am experimenting with using flax meal instead of butter - it does change the flavor slightly, but works in a pinch)

1/2 cup maple syrup (to be honest, I pour and drizzle until it looks about right. The original recipe, long lost, called for a whole cup, but I've never used that much)

1 cup cooked squash (acorn, butternut, pumpkin, or use bananas. I have also used soft pears, apples...this is a very flexible recipe!)

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

optional: nuts

Mix the wet, mix the dry, put together - at this point I will often add a small amount of water, if the consistency is not just right -  and bake in lightly greased muffin tins at 325 for 25 minutes et voila! The beloved muffin.

(My forays into photographing food have not been very successful, so I didn't even try to make my dear muffin into a glamour puss for a press photo.  I tried that with a chicken soup with dumplings a few weeks ago and it really really looked like a pot of vomit. Needless to say, I won't be sharing that picture with you...)