Fresh Apple Muffins

I made a batch of apple muffins because I was wallowing. I thought about lying and telling you I made them because the air is crisp and the leaves are changing. Perhaps I should say the smoke from my neighbor's fireplace was tickling my nose and making me think about cable knit sweaters and baking. Those reasons get me feeling all dreamy but they would be fake. Nope. Today I baked because I was feeling down in the dumps and I just needed to see a project through from start to finish, any project, so I made muffins.

Don't get me wrong, these are outstanding apple muffins. They are full of tender bits of fresh apple and all those lovely things people say about fall foods. I have been thinking about making a batch for a few weeks but all the time I have been putting into the new business has left little room to cook for fun.

Which brings me to why I'm bummed. Half Her Size cooking classes have not suddenly taken the world by storm. Thursday will not be the first day but the remaining dates are still open but I'm not going to lie, I had very elaborate fantasies about how quickly the word would spread and the classes would sell out. I know it takes time to build momentum but darn it, I wished to prove the exception and not the rule.

I have been wondering how to better convey the intention of these events. From now on I am going to call them Hands-On Dinner Parties. I am so excited to share the joy of cooking and eating for weight loss and healthy living. These are not hum-drum classes where you have to memorize everything, let's just get into the kitchen and have a good time. The point is to stir things up and bit and break out of the normal routine. These Hands-On Parties are for you to learn but also have fun with healthy living.

I can see the parties so clearly. There is a group of eager cooks both new and familiar all clad in a rainbow of aprons. We will gather around the counter and stuff a chicken with herbs and fresh lemon, a few people are squeamish about sticking their hand into the raw carcass, others are old pros. More than one joke is made about the look and feel of a whole raw chicken. While the bird roasts, the kitchen warms and starts to smell like a Sunday afternoon. Next we'll move on to shredding meat for a lighter, but no less creamy, version of tradition chicken salad to munch while dicing the carrots and onions for a shockingly simple down home chicken soup. Everyone will have loosened up by the time we tackle poaching eggs and by the time we gather around the table and click glasses over our meal we have bonded in a new tribe of shared experience. By the end of the evening everyone will leave reluctantly with their head, heart, and stomach full from an evening around the kitchen table. Each carrying a bundle of goodies to feed them again the next day and use in a recipe at home.

So please come on over and join me for an evening of good friends, good food, and inappropriate remarks about poultry. We are going to have a blast!