Any Muffin Recipe

shared by Patty H.
(This recipe comes from the "Tightwad Gazette," a frugal-living newsletter/book. This is a basic recipe which lets you get creative with whatever ingredients you have on hand.)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk (or other liquid, such as drained pineapple juice, orange juice, etc.)
1/4 cup oil or oil substitute
1 egg
1 1/2 cups fruit additions(such as 1 cup mashed banana and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or vegetable additions such as shredded carrots or zucchini)
spices, of your choice
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 400.
2. Grease 12 muffin cups, or 24 mini muffin cups.
3. Combine dry ingredients, including dry additions (like nuts, chocolate chips, etc.) and spices.
4. Combine wet ingredients, including wet additions (like banana, berries, pineapple, etc.)
5. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling about 2/3 full (perfectly ok if you have leftover batter to fill cups to top)
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
NOTES:
a. To make non-sweet muffins, such as bacon and cheddar, just cut back on the sugar to 1 Tablespoon.
b. You can make your own "jiffy" corn muffins by substituting 1/2 cup corn meal for 1/2 cup of the flour, and using 2 tablespoons of sugar.
c. Substitute peanut butter for the oil to give muffins a peanutty taste (try using 2 mashed bananas, 1/2 cup chopped peanuts and then peanut butter for the oil)
d. If your additions are very wet (such as crushed pineapple) then use up to 1/2 cup more flour, to equal up to 2 cups total flour.
e. Play around with this! It's easy and quick!