Shoofly Cupcakes

The cottonwoods budded out Tuesday. Three days of farrier work. Two ranches in the county. Eleven horses. The body is tired in the right way.

Patrick on the porch in the afternoon. Coffee in the good cup. The cottonwoods. Tuesday meeting in Roundup. Eight regulars. Three vets. I do not lead. I show up.

Biscuits Sunday morning. Same recipe Mom learned from her mother. Lard, not butter — old school.

The sky was the sky. It held everything.

Mr. Whelan from down the road came over Saturday with a story about a horse he sold in 1979. The story took an hour. I listened. He needed someone to tell it to.

Wrote a blog post Friday night. The first one in two months. About making chili in a snowstorm. Short. Practical. Posted it. Forgot about it.

Took a walk to the river before supper Tuesday. The cottonwoods were silver. The water was running. I did not think much. I just walked.

The wood pile is half what it was at Thanksgiving. I will split another cord on Saturday. The cord will be ready by next winter. The wood always is.

Truck started cold Tuesday. Twelve below. Battery is the original. I will replace it before next winter. I always say I will replace it before next winter. I never have.

The Musselshell was clear Sunday. Could see trout in the deeper pools. Did not fish. Just watched.

A neighbor's heifer was choking on a corn cob. I drove over with my emergency kit. Cleared the cob with a length of garden hose. The heifer recovered. The neighbor brought a pie the next day.

Drove to Billings for parts Friday. Stopped at the cemetery on the way home. Stood for ten minutes. Came home.

Listened to the cattle market report on AM radio while I worked the shop. Beef is up. Feed is up. The math is the math.

Three days of horses this week. The work is meditative. The horses know. The owners pay. The cycle holds.

Worked on the truck Saturday afternoon. Plugs and wires. Two hours. Hands black with grease. Came in. Showered. Ate.

The barn cats are doing their job. Down to one mouse this week, in the feed shed. The cats brought it to the porch as proof. They are professionals.

The Tuesday Roundup AA meeting was eleven this week — three new guys from a referral. The room was full. The coffee was strong.

Storm came through Friday night. Thunder. The dog hid under the bed. The kids slept through it. The cattle bunched up by the windbreak. Standard.

Hauled three bull calves to the auction yard Wednesday. Got a fair price. Came home. Counted the cash. Put it in the ranch account.

Hank, the dog, herded the chickens by accident. He apologized in the way dogs apologize — eyes down, tail low. The chickens were unimpressed.

Mended the chute hinge Wednesday. Welder was finicky. Got it on the third try. Patrick used to do this. I do it now.

A reader emailed about the elk chili recipe. Asked what beer to use if non-alcoholic was not available. I wrote back: any beer is wrong if you don't drink. Use stock.

Drove the back fence line Saturday. Two posts down from elk. Replaced them in the morning. The fence held the rest of the week.

The biscuits Sunday morning got me thinking about the recipes that don’t need improving — the ones your mother made because her mother made them, and that’s reason enough. These Shoofly Cupcakes are that same kind of thing: molasses, brown sugar, hot water, and patience. No fuss. No upgrades. The week was full — eleven horses, a choking heifer, a cemetery stop, a storm — and by Sunday I wanted something that tasted like it had already survived a few hard winters.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar, packed, divided
1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat oven. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
Make the crumb topping. In a medium bowl, combine flour, 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, and salt. Work in the cold butter with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside 3/4 cup of this crumb mixture for the topping.
Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together molasses, hot water, and baking soda until the baking soda dissolves and the mixture foams slightly. Let cool for 2 minutes, then whisk in the egg, vanilla, and remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar.
Combine batter. Pour the molasses mixture into the remaining flour-butter crumb mixture and stir until just combined. Do not overmix — a few lumps are fine.
Fill cups. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 lined muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full. Sprinkle the reserved crumb topping evenly over each cupcake.
Bake. Bake for 18—22 minutes, until the tops are set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The molasses will keep them darker than a typical cupcake — that’s right.
Cool and serve. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. No frosting needed.

Nutrition (per serving)

Shoofly Cupcakes — Old School, Like Mom Made It