3/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp shortening
1 each egg, large
3/4 cup apricot nectar
4 tsp orange rind, grated
3 cup whole wheat flour
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup apricots, dried, choppedfine
3/4 cup chopped nuts, optional
Directions
Mix the sugar, shortening and egg until fluffy. Stir in the apricot
nectar and orange rind. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt
and add to the creamed mixture. Blend in the apricots and nuts and
add to the batter. Pour into the muffin tins, that have been sprayed
with a non-stick coating. Let stand for 20 minutes and then bake at
350 degrees F. for 15 to 20 minutes or until done. Cool on racks.
Servings: 4 servings
Apricot Nut Muffins Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bread; Breads; Fruit; Muffin
The History of Recipes
Historians have tracked the existance of recipes way back into distant history, in truth as far as early Egypt, and possibly even further. Interesting though that maybe, sadly, these early cookbooks were just primitive hieroglyphic recipes for preparing meals.
Fascinatingly, the most ancient recipe discovered, according to experts in ancient history is a collection of stone tablets in the Sumerian language which recount the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made people feel `wonderful`. During the time of the Roman Empire a roman called Apicius compiled a collection of documents which described recipes prepared by wealthy roman citizens. In his works, Apicius recounts how the roman meals were separated into starters, entrees and dessert, something we still use today. He also describes how the ancient Romans made use of a wide range of aromatic flavors, including a few that are still present in modern kitchens like bay, fennel and parsley. In the fifteenth century, knights returning from the crusades brought back many new foods and herbs from the holy lands, such as rosemary and coriander. These new spices and herbs was responsible for an outbreak in publications on food, most of which are now in private collections. Over the following few hundred years, the upper-class families of the West tried to lay on the most extravagent meals, and consequentially cooks and their recipe collections increased in prestige. Even so, it was during the 1800s that fine cookery and recipe books became really popular. The Famous Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the USA, dedicated years of their lives to assembling, trying out, and recording recipes that were common in the better off homes of the day. By the arrival of the 20th century, cookery publications were increasing in popularity mostly as a result of better eduction, more free time and a general increase in wealth. The introduction of television brings us celebrity chefs and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. And that neatly brings us to the present day and the invention of computers and the internet, permitting everyone to search through massive numbers of recipes just like those on sites such as this. |
We hope you enjoy this Apricot Nut Muffins recipe.
