1. Use a good quality tin, preferably one with a nonstick finish. Old, worn, tins don't release as easily. It's amazing how much easier it is to remove muffins from the new, quality non-stick pans.

2. Grease the surfaces well, especially in the corners. Be sure to grease the flat surfaces around the edges where the muffin cap may cling.

3. Let the muffins cool in the tins for four to eight minutes before removing them. We usually set the timer for five minutes so we remove them when we should. If you let them sit too long, they will sweat and become soggy but letting them set for few minutes gives the muffin a chance to pull away from the tin as it cools.

4. Spread a towel over the muffins and pan to gently catch your muffins then, while holding the edges of the towel and the muffin pan, turn muffin tin upside down and gently joggle it up and down. The muffins should fall out. If they don't, run a flexible metal spatula around the edge to loosen them. (This does not work well for muffins that are topped with streusel as it shakes some of the streusel loose.)

What works best for greasing the tins? We prefer an oil sprayer to get down in the corners of the cups. If you don't like the taste or additives found in cans of commercial oil spray, look on line for refillable, pump-up sprayer. If you do use shortening or butter, wipe around the corners generously. We prefer butter over shortening to avoid hydrogenated oils.

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