It’s said that friendships are made, but I believe instead that they just happen. There are folks you connect with and those you don’t. The ones you connect with? Definite friend potential. Past membership in a local mom’s club added a few more connections to my life and even though the mom’s club years are behind me, the friendships remain.

One of these friends is a consummate foodie and I was lucky enough to bake with her earlier this week. The night before, we laid plans to make Cranberry Whole-Grain Muffins and I showed up at her house the next moning with cranberries, oats, whole wheat flour, buttermilk powder, and an orange. She furnished the remaining ingredients (including the toasted pecans) and we set about to measure, stir, chop, zest, mix, fill, and bake. The muffins turned out better than I’d imagined–wholesome and healthy, containing no white flour, but also slightly sweet, indulgent, and satisfying. Breakfast and snacktime were made for these muffins. (They were so good we didn’t even bother with the orange juice glaze.)

Better than the muffins themselves, though, was baking with a friend. There was flow in Sarah’s kitchen–we didn’t verbally assign tasks, we just baked. She mixed the butter, eggs, milk; I whisked together the dry ingredients. I chopped cranberries; she filled muffin tins. We enjoyed catching up with each other and somehow baked up an amazing batch of muffins as we chatted. Muffins, bread, scones, pie pops–all have been made while I’ve baked with friends. But the friendships themselves? They’ve just happened.

Whole wheat, oats, cranberries, toasted pecans–good for you and pretty, too. No glazing necessary!