APRICOT AND POPPY SEED MUFFINS

1 jar (2/3 cup) junior baby-food apricots
1 tsp baking soda
10 tbsp butter or margarine; soft
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups sifted flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp poppy seeds or finely chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with the rack in the center position. Spray a muffin pan with vegetable cooking spray.

Put baby food in a small bowl and stir in the baking soda; set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is smooth, then add the eggs and mix well. Add the flour, salt, vanilla, the apricot mixture, and the poppy seeds or nuts, and mix just until all the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not overmix. Divide the batter among the 12 cups, filling each cup two-thirds full.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins on a wire rack.

Makes 12 muffins
Source: The Kitchen Survival Guide by Lora Brody