Allspice Crumb Muffins

It has taken remarkable restraint not to dive headfirst into Baking: From My Home To Yours.

Part of me wants to be "race weight" by October 4th. (How badly do you want it? Apparently not badly enough.) Then Mr. Enstone instituted a ban on baking. He'll tell you that what he meant was not to give any to him. But he later let it slip that it's part of his routine to get baked goods at the farmer's market, so it must not be a strict ban. And as Mike asked, why would I listen to someone who wears old man socks, a metronome, a fanny pack and has an acute GPS addiction? Good point.

Yesterday I finally sat down to peruse 40 pages of messages on eGullet, taking notes on which recipes were universally adored, dutifully noting errata, and enjoying that Ms. Greenspan herself cheerfully replies to questions and comments. She seems genuinely delighted to read about people using her book.

Oh where to begin? Since I've tabbed nearly every page, the tabs weren't exactly helpful. I decided it would be one of the several muffin recipes that were tempting, but even then I'd have to narrow down my choices. Allspice Crumb Muffins. There. The hardest part was over.

No, that was the 2nd hardest part. Now comes the part where I eat only one, save one for The Young Master, and send the rest to work with the oh-so-slender husband.