This recipe requires soaking of rolled oats for according to my Fanny Farmer Cookbook, “The Irish cook their oatmeal all night long for a rich and creamy effect. These muffins take on that same flavor from soaking the oatmeal overnight in buttermilk.”
I found the end result to be perfect for toasting and topping with butter, maple syrup, applesauce or strawberry jam. Needless to say, none of the 4 mini loaves made it to the freezer.
Irish Oatmeal Muffin or Bread
2 cups buttermilk or 2 tablespoons lemon juice and scant 2 cups milk
1 cup rolled oats
2 eggs
½ – ¾ cup dark-brown sugar (if you like your muffins sweet, use the larger amount)
1 2/3 cups whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt or ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
In a large bowl combine the oats with the buttermilk or lemon juice and milk. Stir well. Cover. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight before mixing and baking the muffins.
Place oven rack in middle position. Preheat oven to 400 degrees farenheit. Line with paper liners or grease two 12-cup muffin tins if making muffins. If making mini-loaves, set aside 4 non-stick mini-loaf pans.
Remove milk-oatmeal mixture from refrigerator. Add eggs to this mixture and gently beat. Gradually add sugar and gently beat until well blended. Add flour, baking soda, salt and oil. Beat until batter well blended.
If making muffins, fill muffin tins about three-quarters full with batter and bake for about 20 minutes. Start testing for doneness after 15 minutes. Remove muffins from the cups and cool on racks or serve hot.
If making mini-loaves, fill pans three-quarters full with batter. Place pans on a cookie sheet and bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. The cookie sheet is to catch any of the batter in the event it bakes over the top of a pan. Remove pans from oven, loaves from pan and cool on rack for at least five minutes before serving.
Store any leftovers in air-tight container.
