raspberry streusel muffins

It’s getting to be about time for my thesis defense, so a few weeks ago I decided to pull a page from Courtney‘s book and bring refreshments for my committee. Once my thesis advisor got wind of this plan, he very helpfully suggested I make a test batch — that he could sample, of course — to make sure the muffins are perfect. To be honest, I was planning to do a test run anyway since I’ve only made this recipe once before, so this afternoon I put on my iRiver and made quick work of my mother’s raspberry streusel muffins.

The recipe I have is in my mom’s familiar handwriting.

It’s not as though I don’t make an effort when I’m cooking for my own family, but something about making muffins for Dr. T. spurred me to step up my game. Of course, in true DG style, nothing went the way I planned. After disintegrating a napkin in the muffin cups trying to grease them with butter, having to fish an egg shell shard out of the mixing bowl, and liberally splattering everything in the kitchen with batter, I was ready to go. It was a lot thicker than I remembered, but I’m glad I resisted the urge to water it down because these babies turned out perfect. A little sprinkle of oatmeal streusel on top and here we are:

My mother made them with fresh black raspberries, but I had to settle for red raspberries from Kroger.

The Husband and I shared one, heated in the microwave and spread with margarine, and it was heavenly. It was — dare I say — just as good as the muffins Mom made back in the day. My goal in being the Dumbass Gourmet is to make things that taste like the things she made, and this success certainly bodes well for me being able to make a meatloaf that tastes like it came from my childhood. How about I pass my thesis defense first and then start working on childhood Sunday dinners?