Triple-Chip Scone Muffins

Funny thing about this recipe. I'd pulled it out of a magazine years ago (yes, it was my own magazine), and it looked yummy. The little man and I liked the picture, so we decided to make them.

But the recipe was provided by a margarine company, and as a general rule, we don't keep margarine on hand. And to substitute butter just looked like ... a whole lot of butter for a batch of muffins. So we cut the butter in half. And then we changed a few other things, too. Like the amount of sugar. The amount of milk. The amount of chocolate chips. The baking time. So just a few things.

By the time we finished, the only components of the original recipe that remained were the flour and baking powder measurements.

But it worked! These aren't my usual jumbo-sized, gooey dessert muffins. In fact, the texture is much more like a scone than a muffin, and also scone-like in that they're not nearly as sweet as muffins usually are. But I think the lack of sweetness in the dough showcase the chocolate well, (although I'm glad we increased the amount of sugar from the original).

Triple-Chip Scone Muffins
Makes 12 muffins

3 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter
1 1/2 cups 2% milk
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.

Jack chose Superman liners. So we could have a "daddy party." (Superman = Daddy and Cupcake liners = Party? Maybe?)

2. Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in milk until just moistened, adding a bit more milk, if necessary.

3. Here's where things get a bit more complicated: The chocolate chips.

3a. First, pour your chocolate chips onto the counter.

3b. Count them.

3c. Sniff them for freshness. Maybe lick a few, for good measure.

3d. Form them into a picture. This was Santa.

3e. Heap your chocolate chips into a measuring cup. Jack likes to round up when it comes to chocolate chips. You know, for good measure. (Ba-dum.)

4. Fold chocolate chips into batter.

5. Spoon mixture evenly into muffin cups.

6. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until brown.

Serving suggestion: Serve in Superman liners with a cup of coffee in your favorite JLA mug.

Linguine with Shrimp and Scallops

We stayed with my mother-in-law recently, and the hubby likes to make sure that we make plenty of yummy food for her in exchange for taking over her house while we're there.

Also, I usually eat most of the contents of her candy bowl. There, I admitted it.

This is a modified version of a Rachael Ray recipe, which we made because my mother-in-law loves seafood (especially scallops). This dish is sort of like the shrimp scampi that I make for the hubby, but with more lemon and less heat.

Linguine with Shrimp and Scallops
Serves 2-3

8 ounces linguine
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined, and patted dry
1/2 pound sea scallops, muscle removed, and patted dry
1/2 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
1 lemon
1/2 stick butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup white wine

1. Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions, and reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining.

2. Meanwhile, toss shrimp and scallops with Old Bay seasoning and half a lemon, cut in slices. Set aside.

3. Melt butter over low heat and stir in garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Let bubble gently for 10 minutes.

4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp, scallops, and sliced lemon.

5. Cook 5-6 minutes, turning once, until seafood is opaque and are cooked through. Add wine and the juice of the remaining half of lemon to deglaze the pan.

6. Transfer mixture to a bowl.

7. Stir parsley into garlic butter. Add to seafood mixture.

8. Stir in pasta and the reserved pasta water and toss gently. Let pasta sit for a few minutes until liquid is absorbed by pasta. Add salt and pepper to taste.