Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Hey, Look! A Distraction!!!

Didja ever feel...distracted?
We're all trying to get her to look at the bubbles,
but she's distracted...I think by the bubble blower!
Yeah, me too.  This week has been especially bad with the distractions. Lovely weather that begs a body to go outside...or at least sit in the window, looking for squirrels and birdies...
Spring fever has hit, full force, and it has me really looking around my house, and thinking that it may be time for some spring cleaning! Distracted by dust and clutter this week, I have been a little bit brutal with the stash.  Don't let that thought get you too upset...mostly I am getting rid of old yarn, gifted to me by the families of knitters who have recently started shopping Heavenly Fibers at The Great Yarn Store in the Sky.  I'm not getting rid of all of it, because some of it is really great stuff, and even most of the acrylic is great for toys...but the smelly yarns, the sticky yarns, the partial skeins sans labels...anything gritty, greasy or grimy, or tangled...these yarns are landing squarely (but softly) in the trash:
Every time I turned around these past few days, I found something that needs to be cleaned out.  From the small corner projects (like the baskets I use to organize mail in the kitchen), to the BIG DEAL projects (destashing is a task that always seems to "loom"), I feel like I've gotten a lot done around my house. :^)  There has been some knitting on the baseball sweater, and also on the hitchhiker, but not much. =/  Still, it's been a good week!  So good, in fact, that I decided to celebrate with Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Muffins...I really wish you could smell these...Yummm!
Now that the weather is warmer, the bananas "turn" really fast.  This is the perfect recipe to use up those browning bananas...as a matter of fact, did you know that you can freeze mashed banana?  And you can bake in bulk to freeze the muffins, too!  Pretty cool, huh?  Anyway, the recipe follows this post, and I hope that you get a chance to try these easy-peasy muffins!

How has spring fever hit YOU this year?  Are you cleaning, or cooking, or both?  However it it hits you, I hope that you are enjoying yourself!  Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!
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Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Muffins
Makes 12 average sized muffins, or 24 "mini" muffins.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  

Dry Ingredients:
1 c. flour
1 c. rolled oats
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a large bowl, and make a well in the center.  Set aside while you mix together the wet stuff.

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 - 1/2 c. mashed banana (1 small to medium banana, this doesn't have to be terribly accurate)

In a separate bowl, beat together the wet ingredients with a fork.  The egg yolk should be broken, but the peanut butter will still be a little "chunky" looking.  That's what you want.

Pour the wet ingredients into the well in the center of the dry ingredients, and mix together gently.  My 7th grade home ec teacher said to never mix more than 20 strokes.  Everything should be moist, but don't overmix.

Drop into lined or greased muffin tins and bake 20-25 minutes.
(For mini muffins, bake 14-16 minutes.)

2 comments:

  1. I totally understand the destashing. I feel bad when I toss yarns, but when you give me a bag of yarn that a mouse has obviously nested in...well, it has to go no matter how pretty the yarn is. (Not that you gave me past mouse infested yarn...pretty would never do such a thing...never!)

    Hoping that maybe this is the week that I get to knitting night. I will shoot you a text if I am able.

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  2. spring fever and declutter. I'm there myself, decluttering the rest of the house and going through the stash just a semi-annual check it to be sure it is okay and no bugs, felting, etc. Enjoy!

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