Apple, raspberry and pecan muffin cake + "The Great Australian Bake Off"

After the disappointment with American version of “The Great British Bake Off” I wasn’t sure I would watch “The Great Australian Bake Off”, but when I read that Dan Lepard would be one of the judges I immediately changed my mind: I’m a huge fan of his amazing recipes, each and every one of them I have tried so far turned out delicious. The other judge is Kerry Vincent and the woman is merciless: her sour comments and lack of tact drive the contestants to tears – she’s a crankier version of Paul Hollywood, while Dan is absolutely adorable, much like Mary Berry (I like him even more after watching the episodes).

I had never heard of Kerry Vincent before and kept thinking that Delia Smith could be an excellent judge for the show, but I guess that being Australian is a requirement (I had no idea Lepard was an Aussie). :)
The show is not as good as its British cousin, but it’s way better than the American version – I highly recommend it for those of you baking fanatics (like me). :)

Speaking of Delia, this wonderful cake is an adaptation of a recipe that comes from her latest cookbook, which is packed with superb baked goods and beautiful photos.

Apple, raspberry and pecan muffin cake
slightly adapted from Delia's Cakes (I bought mine here)

275g all purpose flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 level tablespoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon table salt
170ml whole milk, room temperature
75g granulated sugar
2 large eggs
110g unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 small Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and in 1cm dice
100g raspberries, frozen and unthawed
1 heaping tablespoon demerara sugar
75g pecans, roughly chopped
icing sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 190°/375°F. Butter a 20cm (8in) round cake pan with a removable bottom, line the bottom with a circle of baking paper and butter the paper as well.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, sugar, eggs, butter and vanilla. Sift the dry ingredients over the egg mixture and fold in with a fork – do not overmix; fold in the apples, then transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Sprinkle the batter with the raspberries, then the demerara sugar and finally the pecans.
Bake the cake for about 1 hour, checking after 50 minutes – a skewer inserted in the center should come out clean. Cool in the pan over a wire rack for 30 minutes, then carefully remove the cake from the pan using the removable bottom. When completely cooled, invert the cake onto a place, peel off the paper, then invert it again onto a serving plate. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

Serves 8-10

Hot-cross muffins

These delicious and tender muffins, perfumed with spices and moist from a sugar syrup, are a great way to avoid a chocolate OD during the Easter holiday: they're perfect for breakfast or brunch and are very quick to make, unlike their yeasted cousin.

Hot-cross muffins
from the always mouthwatering Delicious - Australia

Muffins:
135g dried cranberries
1 cup (150g) golden raisins
375g self-rising flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
2/3 cup (160mll) canola oil
1 cup (250ml) buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar

Syrup and icing:
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
½ cup (70g) icing sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a 12-hole muffin tray with paper cases.
Soak the cranberries and raisins in just enough boiling water to cover for 10 minutes. Drain well, then pat dry with paper towel.
Sift the flour, baking soda, salt and spices into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, vanilla, eggs and sugar until combined. Add to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Gently stir in the fruit. Divide the mixture among muffin cases, then bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then carefully remove from the pan and transfer to the rack.
Syrup: place the granulated sugar in a small saucepan with 2 tablespoons water and simmer over low heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Brush the glaze over the muffins.
Sift icing sugar into a bowl. Add lemon juice and just enough hot water to make a thick, pipable icing. Use a piping bag or drizzle from a spoon to draw a cross on each muffin. Serve warm or at room temperature.

* homemade buttermilk: to make 1 cup buttermilk place 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a 240ml-capacity measuring cup and complete with whole milk (room temperature). Wait 10 minutes for it to thicken slightly, then use the whole mixture in your recipe

Makes 12 - I halved the recipe above, used 1/3-cup capacity muffin pans and got 9 muffins

Orange and oat muffins

I am crazy for strawberries and my husband knows that very well: last Friday he brought home two baskets full of perfumed and delicious strawberries – it was a sweet surprise. My plans were to eat half the berries with just a sprinkling of sugar and to bake with the other half, so I set out to make the lovely strawberry cupcakes I’d seen in one of my recent purchases; I guess I was out of my baking mojo that day because the cupcakes turned out horrible and ended up in the garbage can; the following morning, desperate for something freshly baked but unable to deal with another baking disappointment I turned to someone whose recipes never fail, and to make things even better I was able to rescue a lonely orange left in my fridge. :D

Orange and oat muffins
slightly adapted from the always wonderful and foolproof Short and Sweet (mine was bought here)

finely grated zest of 2 oranges
½ cup + 2 tablespoons (124g) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (80ml) canola oil
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon (95ml) fresh orange juice
4 tablespoons rolled oats + a bit extra for sprinkling
1 ½ cups (210g) all purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Butter 9 pockets of a large muffin tray or line them with paper cases. In an electric mixer, using the wire whisk, beat the orange zest, sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla for three to four minutes, or until pale and thick. Stir in the juice and oats, then sift in the flour, baking powder and salt. Fold together until smooth but barely combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, filling each cavity ¾ of its capacity. Sprinkle the tops with the extra oats.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until risen and golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan over a wire rack for 5 minutes, then carefully unmold and transfer to the rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature (I liked them better warm).

Makes 9 – I made the exact recipe above using a muffin pan with 1/3 cup-capacity cavities and got 11 muffins

Banana streusel muffins + "Skyfall"

I must admit that I’m not a fan of the 007 movies – it’s not my thing. I tried watching several of them, many, many times, but 20 minutes into it and I was either changing the channel or had fallen asleep. :S
The first Bond movie I watched from beginning to end was “Die Another Day”, and well... let’s just say that by the end of it I wished I’d spent those hours baking a cake or something. :)
Years later, I gave the movie franchise another chance and decided to watch “Cassino Royale”: the trailer seemed interesting and I wanted to see how Daniel Craig would do as the new 007; I thought he did an excellent job, giving the character an emotional depth I hadn’t seen before (and Eva Green was pretty amazing as Vesper, too). Despite not having watched “Quantum of Solace” yet, I know for sure I’ll be in the theater next November for “Skyfall” – Craig, Judi Dench and Ralph Fiennes together in a movie would be reason enough for me, but to top it all off beautifully “Skyfall” is directed by Sam Mendes, a director I adore. The new trailer is out, and it is worth watching.

***

These are called banana muffins (even though they’re made as cake) and they’re super tender and very delicious – their perfume while in the oven was intoxicating. The streusel topping tastes great and adds a nice crunch – I swapped a bit of the flour for the oats as a way of making them a bit healthier and it worked out fine.

Banana streusel muffins
from a book I adore and should definitely use more often

Streusel topping:
¼ cup (35g) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (38g) rolled oats
½ cup (88g) light brown sugar, packed
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup (56g/½ stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

Muffins:
2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 very ripe bananas (I used 2 giant ones)
½ cup plain yogurt

Streusel topping: in a medium bowl, stir together flour, oats, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add the butter and work it into dry ingredients using your fingers or a pastry blender until mixture is lumpy. Refrigerate while you make the batter.

Muffins: preheat oven to 190°C/375°F. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
Beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in the vanilla and bananas. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients, beating just until the flour in absorbed. Mix in the yogurt.
Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups. Sprinkle each with streusel topping, pressing down so the mixture adheres to the batter. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins come out clean. Let cool in the pan, over a wire rack, for 8 minutes, then carefully unmold and transfer to the rack to cool.

Makes 12 – I made the exact recipe above, using this pan (¾ cup capacity each cavity) and got 8 (very high) muffins

Spice muffins

It’s wonderful to see my little sister become an adult but being around her certainly reminds me that time really flies. I don’t have a problem with that – at least not yet – and the age gap between us sometimes delivers funny moments: when we watched “The Social Network” together last year I had to explain to her what Napster was. :D

Another sign I’m getting old: there are days that the thought of going somewhere gets me tired already. I prefer to stay home, with a good book or a good movie, and a muffin on the side – since I had no fruit to bake with (not even lemons or oranges, the horror, the horror), spices came to my rescue.

Spice muffins
from Deborah Madison’s vegetarian bible

2 ½ cups (350g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¾ cup (132g) light brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups (320ml) buttermilk*
1/3 cup (80ml) vegetable oil
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Butter a muffin pan with twelve 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin cups or line them with paper cases.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until combined – do not overmix; batter should be lumpy.
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cups. Bake until golden and risen and a skewer inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack 5 to 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack.

*homemade buttermilk: to make 1 cup buttermilk place 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a 240ml-capacity measuring cup and complete with whole milk (room temperature). Wait 10 minutes for it to thicken, then use the whole mixture in your recipe

Makes 12

Blueberry muffins with doughnut topping and Indiana Jones

Despite being responsible for bringing Ralph into my life I don’t like Steven Spielberg as a director; I find that most of his movies are immersed in a squishy atmosphere, it’s just not my cup of tea. But I have to say that I adore the Indiana Jones trilogy, each and every movie, the first being my favorite.

You might as well be thinking: “why is she talking about Indiana Jones?” – well, after several blueberry muffin disasters – some too heavy, others with no flavor at all – Flo Braker’s absolutely perfect recipe has became my holy grail of blueberry muffins. :D

Blueberry muffins with doughnut topping
from the delicious and wonderful Baking for All Occasions

Muffins:
1 ¾ cups + 1 tablespoon (255g) all purpose flour
½ cup (100g) superfine sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk*, well shaken
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon (89g) unsalted butter, melted and tepid
2 large eggs
2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (225g) fresh blueberries

Doughnut topping:
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons (42g) unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Butter and flour a 12-cup standard muffin pan.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, butter, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and lightly whisk with a fork – do not beat the batter, it’s not supposed to be smooth. Using a spatula, fold in the blueberries.
Fill the prepared pans with the batter (¾ full). Bake the muffins until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan, over a wire rack, for 10 minutes then carefully unmold them, transferring to a wire rack.
Make the topping: in a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. While the muffins are still warm, gently dip the tops in the melted butter and then roll into the cinnamon sugar to coat. Place on a wire rack.
Serve warm or at room temperature.

* homemade buttermilk: place 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a 240ml-capacity measuring cup and complete with whole milk. Wait 10 minutes for it to thicken, then use the whole mixture in your recipe

Makes 12 – I halved the recipe above, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans and got 8 muffins

Pear and cranberry muffins with cinnamon pecan topping

Some people change their names, then something goes wrong along the way and they have to change them back to what they were before. It happens.

So you can continue to call me “The Apple Crazy Lady” even though I’ve been baking with pears nonstop (there’s still a lot to come aside from these delicious and very tender muffins). ;)

Pear and cranberry muffins with cinnamon pecan topping
from Fresh from the Market

Topping:
½ cup (55g) pecans, coarsely chopped
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Filling:
2 cups (about 2 small) finely diced peeled Bartlett pears – I used Williams
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons superfine sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Muffins:
2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (100g) superfine sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup (260g) plain yogurt
1 cup (110g) dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter and flour 16 muffin cups in 2 standard-size muffin pans.
Make the topping: stir all the ingredients together in a small bowl.
Make the filling: mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl until well combined.
Now, the batter: whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
Using the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla smooth. Beat in the egg. Add the flour mixture alternately with the yogurt, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and beating until the batter is well blended and smooth. Using a silicone spatula, gently fold in the pear filling and the cranberries into the batter.
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the muffins and bake until risen and golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes.
Cool in the pan, over a wire rack, for 5 minutes, and then carefully unmold the muffins, transferring them to the rack to cool completely.

Makes 16 – I halved the recipe, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity pans and got 10 muffins

Apple cranberry muffins and good/bad decisions

There are moments in life when we make certain decisions because they seem so right, but in the end they are incredibly wrong – I’ve watched “Water for Elephants” and I’m sure Christoph Waltz is feeling oh, so miserable right now. I don’t mean to be rude, but he should have known better: one does not choose Francis Lawrence over David Cronenberg – the horror, the horror – especially if they’re going to work with Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson. :S

Unlike Mr. Waltz, I am feeling oh, so smart: I decided to add dried cranberries to my apple muffins and that was a very clever thing to do. ;)

Apple cranberry muffins
adapted from the beautiful Nigella Kitchen

2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
2/3 cup (116g) light brown sugar, packed
½ cup honey
¼ cup (65g) plain yogurt
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
2 apples, peeled, cored and diced
1 cup (110g) dried cranberries
demerara sugar, for sprinkling
about ½ cup whole almonds, toasted

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a 12-hole muffin pan – 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity each – with paper cases.
Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a large bowl. In another medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, honey, yogurt, butter and eggs. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and lightly whisk with a fork – do not overmix or your muffins will become tough. Add the apples and cranberries and mix slightly. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and sprinkle each muffin with some demerara sugar (about 1 teaspoon per muffin). Place 3-4 almonds on top of each muffin and bake for 20 minutes or until risen and golden and skewer inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in the pans, over a wire rack, for 5 minutes. Carefully transfer the muffins to the wire rack and cool completely – or serve warm.

Makes 12

Rhubarb white chocolate muffins + a useful website

Having some rhubarb stalks left after making the compote, I needed a good recipe to use them, and something quick would be even better, since I had plans of watching a movie with my sister. There was a recipe for delicious-looking raspberry rhubarb muffins on "Flour" and adapted it a bit to get to the muffins you see on the picture – which were, indeed, delicious and super tender. :)

I found the rhubarb recipe really fast using “Eat Your Books” – I’ve been using this tool for over a month now and that has made my New-Year resolution of using my cookbooks more often a lot easier; I’m not getting a dime to tell you about the website – I just thought that many of you would find it as useful as I did. :)

Rhubarb white chocolate muffins
adapted from Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe

1 ½ cups + 1 ½ tablespoons (225g) all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2/3 cup (133g) caster (superfine) sugar
¼ cup + 1 tablespoon (70g) unsalted butter, melted
½ cup (120ml) whole milk, room temperature
½ cup (130g) plain yogurt, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
125g rhubarb, chopped
½ cup (93g) white chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line twelve 1/3-cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans with paper liners.*

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg and egg yolk with a fork. Add the sugar, butter, milk, yogurt and vanilla and whisk until well combined. Pour the liquid ingredients into the large bowl and mix lightly with a fork. Add the rhubarb and the white chocolate and mix, again with the fork – do not overmix the batter or you’ll end up with tough muffins. Divide the batter among the prepared pans and bake for 15-18 minutes or until risen and golden – a skewer inserted in the center of a muffin should come out clean.
Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then carefully remove from the pan and transfer to the wire rack to cool completely.

* I did not use paper liners and unmolding the muffins was complicated because some of the chocolate chips stuck to the pan

Makes 12

Banana, chocolate and coconut muffins

Since you are not tired of my banana recipes, here comes another one, with a special help from good friends coconut and chocolate. :)

Quick to put together and delicious, these muffins are perfect for the rainy day/couch/TV combo – but I can assure you they taste great on a summer day, too. ;)

Banana, chocolate and coconut muffins
slightly adapted from here

2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (150g) caster sugar
1 cup (50g) sweetened shredded coconut
½ cup (92g) dark chocolate chips
½ cup + 1 tablespoon (127g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 ripe bananas, mashed with a fork
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F; butter a 12-hole muffin pan – each hole holds 1/3 cup batter.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix in the sugar, coconut and chocolate chips.
In a small bowl, whisk together the butter, bananas, eggs and vanilla. Pour over the dry ingredients and whisk lightly with a fork – do not overmix the batter, otherwise you’ll end up with tough muffins.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes or until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean.
Cool slightly in the pan, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

Makes 12

Ginger peach muffins

When it comes to Eddie Murphy’s movies there are only two I like, but the first bite into one of these muffins and “The Heat is On” popped in my head. :)

The ginger adds a fresh, delicious kick to these muffins and I was amazed by how well the flavor goes with peaches.

Ginger peach muffins
from Good to the Grain

Topping:
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2-3 small peaches, ripe but firm
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon honey

Batter:
1 cup (100g) oat flour
¾ cup (105g) all purpose flour
½ cup (70g) whole wheat flour
1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (44g) dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
generous pinch of salt
6 tablespoons (¾ stick/84g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
¾ cup (180ml) whole milk, room temperature
½ cup (130g) plain yogurt
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F; generously butter a muffin pan with a 1/3 capacity.
Grate the ginger into a bowl – some will be used for the topping and the rest in the batter.
For the topping: halve the peaches, remove the pits, then slice the halves into slices about ¼ in thick. Add the butter, honey and 1 teaspoon of the ginger to a medium-size frying pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the ingredients melt and begin to bubble, about 2 minutes. Add the peaches, toss the pan to coat them with the syrup, then remove from the heat and set aside.
Make the batter: sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, pouring back any grain or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter. In a small bowl, whisk well the butter, milk, yogurt, egg and remaining ginger. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined – do not overmix. Scoop the batter into 9 holes of the prepared muffin pan – the batter should be slightly mounded above the edge. Lay one or two slices of peach over each muffin. Fill the empty cavities of the pan halfway with water before placing it in the oven.
Bake for 24-28 minutes or until the muffins are golden and smell nutty – gently twist a muffin out of the pan to check it – and the edges of the peaches are caramelized. Remove from the oven, wait 2-3 minutes, then very gently remove the muffins from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack to cool – do that to avoid soggy muffins.

Makes 9 – I used a muffin pan of the same size and got 12

Christmas muffins

These muffins are delicious and I think they are a great idea for breakfast on Christmas morning; on top of that I thought you deserved a simple recipe – one that doesn’t require making custard, soaking and processing dates or waiting for hours for cookies. :D

Christmas muffins
slightly adapted from here

2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
½ cup + 1 tablespoon (112g) caster (superfine) sugar
1 ½ cups (390g) plain yogurt
1 egg*
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup (110g) dried sweetened cranberries
1 cup (150g) fresh pitted cherries, quartered
demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F; line twelve 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans with paper liners.
Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a large bowl, add the sugar and mix well. In a small bowl, whisk together the yogurt, egg and oil. Add to the flour mixture with the cranberries and cherries and mix with a fork until just combined – do not overmix.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pans, sprinkle with the demerara sugar and bake for 12-15 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer.

*I would definitely use 2 eggs if making this recipe again

Makes 12

Jam swirled muffins

There’s something you need to know: I’m addicted to the blackberry lemon jam used in this ice cream recipe – I’ve eaten it with crackers, poured over panna cotta... I just can’t get enough of it.

I thought the jam would go wonderfully mixed in muffin batter – I don’t mean to sound pretentious, but I was right. :D

Jam swirled muffins
adapted from Dorie's lemon poppy seed muffins

2/3 cup (133g) caster sugar
2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup plain yogurt or sour cream
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2/3 cup jam of your choice – if too thick, thin it with a little lemon juice (I used this recipe)

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F; butter or spray 12 regular size muffin pans.
In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add sugar and mix. In a large glass measuring cup or small bowl whisk together the yogurt, eggs, vanilla and melted butter until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and whisk lightly with a fork – do not overmix the batter, otherwise you’ll end up with tough muffins. Add the jam and whisk lightly, to keep the marbled effect. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans.
Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the tops are golden and a skewer inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack, cool 5 minutes, then carefully unmold. Let cool completely on the wire rack.

Makes 12 – I halved the recipe, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity pans and got 8 muffins

Cinnamon crumb muffins + and some movie spoilers

Even though “The Hurt Locker” is not part of my all time favorite movies list and the Oscars are never fair, I have to say that it was wonderful seeing Kathryn Bigelow winning the award – for being a woman and for winning it over James Cameron. :D

But I have to complain about something and if you haven’t watched the movie yet, please, go straight to the recipe:









***









How could she get Ralph Fiennes *sigh* and Guy Pierce killed so quickly? That was such a waste! You should have seen the look on my face while watching the movie... :S

That reminds me of this recipe: if I’m going to make cinnamon muffins, there will be A LOT of cinnamon on them – otherwise, why bother? :)

Cinnamon crumb muffins
adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours

Streusel:
½ cup (70g) all purpose flour
½ cup (88g) light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 tablespoons (70g) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits

Muffins:
2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
½ cup (100g) caster sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup (44g) light brown sugar, packed
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
¾ cup (180ml) whole milk
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Butter or spray the 12 molds in a regular-size muffin pan or fit the molds with paper cups. Place the muffin pan on a baking sheet.

Start by making the streusel: Mix the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add the butter and use your fingertips to rub it into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Set aside in the refrigerator for the moment.

Now, the muffins: in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the brown sugar, making certain there are no lumps. In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract together until well combined. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with a fork, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don't worry about being thorough--the batter will be lumpy, and that is just the way it should be.
Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Sprinkle some streusel over each muffin, then use your fingertips to gently press the crumbs into the batter.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold.

Makes 12 – I halved the recipe above, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans and got 7 muffins

Apple yogurt muffins

So I did what I told you I’d do: I’ve started baking more bread. And it feels great. But the absent minded here forgot to buy more yeast and used the last teaspoon in the sachet to make our Saturday night pizza. :(

Luckily I had some baking powder around – and a very lonely apple in the fridge. :)

Apple yogurt muffins
adapted from The Williams-Sonoma Collection: Muffins

2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
½ cup (100g) sugar*
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 ¼ cups (325g) plain yogurt
2 large eggs
5 tablespoons neutral vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Gala apples, peeled, cored and diced

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg and make a well in the center. In a small bowl or jug, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, oil and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, add the apples and mix with a fork until just moistened – do not overmix; the batter is supposed to be lumpy.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pans filling each cup ¾ full.
Bake until golden, 16-20 minutes, and cooked when tested with a skewer.

* these muffins are not too sweet, and in my opinion that makes them perfect for breakfast – add a bit more sugar if desired

Makes 12 - I halved the recipe above, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans and got 6

Rum and raisin muffins

I told you a while ago that my relationship with raisins had began to change – and I think there’s no turning back. Maybe that has got to do with the fact that they are drenched in booze... :)

These muffins turned out really tender and the rum flavor wasn’t overpowering; they are not too sweet, so add a bit more sugar if you feel like it.

First the cookies, now the muffins – next, ice cream. :)

Rum and raisin muffins
from The Joy of Muffins

1 cup (155g) dark raisins
½ cup (120ml) white rum
2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
½ cup (100g) caster sugar
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
6 tablespoons (84g) unsalted butter, cold but not too firm, chopped
1 cup (260g) plain yogurt
1 egg
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
icing sugar, to serve

Soak the raisins in the rum overnight.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F; line 18 muffin pans with paper cases.
Drain raisins, reserving rum. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a large bowl. Cut in butter until coarse meal forms – I rubbed it in the dry ingredients using my fingertips. Mix in raisins.
In a small bowl or jar, whisk yogurt, egg, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of rum until smooth. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients and pour in mixture. Mix with a fork just until incorporated. Fill muffin pans ¾ full and bake until golden, about 20 minutes.
Let cool and sprinkle with icing sugar.

Makes 18 – I halved the recipe above, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffins pans and got 7 muffins

Carrot muffins

Wanna hear something sad? I baked a cake last week and while removing it from the oven the pan slipped from my hands – the cake immediately popped out of the pan, into the floor. There was nothing but crumbs that ended up in the garbage can. :(

I was absolutely devastated, but something cheered me up: my thoughts on “Julie & Julia” got published on a Brazilian magazine - I immediately felt like baking again. :D

Carrot muffins
from Donna Hay magazine

2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon (162g) caster sugar
pinch of salt
1 cup (260g) plain yogurt
2 eggs
½ cup (120ml) vegetable oil
finely grated zest of 1 large lemon
1 ½ cups (135g) grated carrot
icing sugar, to serve

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F; line twelve ½-cup (120ml) capacity muffin pans with paper cases.

Sift flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the sugar and salt and stir to combine. Set aside.
Place the yogurt, eggs, oil and lemon zest in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Add the yogurt mixture and carrot to the flour mixture and whisk just until combined – use a fork to mix and do not overmix; the batter is supposed to be lumpy.
Spoon the batter into the prepared cases and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and cooked when tested with a skewer.
Sprinkle with icing sugar to serve.

Makes 12 – I used 1/3-cup (80ml) muffin pans and got 12, too

Crunchy-top pear muffins

I have received several comments and emails regarding the better than brownie cookies I posted a while ago - the recipe worked out fine for some of you but not so much for others... I’m sorry to hear that and have updated the post with info on the chocolate I used and on cooling the chocolate + butter mixture for 5 minutes prior to adding the other ingredients - I hope it helps!

If you’ve had a hard time baking the better than brownie cookies, may I suggest these muffins? A stress-free recipe that will cheer you up. And even if you haven’t baked those cookies, make the muffins anyway – they are really good. :D

Crunchy-top pear muffins
adapted from Holiday

1 ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon (185g) all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
100g rolled oats
½ cup + ½ tablespoon (94g) brown sugar, both packed
2 eggs
1 cup (240ml) plain yogurt
½ cup (120ml) vegetable (light-flavored) oil
1 pear, peeled and diced

Topping:
¼ cup (44g) brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup (50g) unblanched almonds, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF; line six 240ml (1 cup) muffin pans with paper cases (or just grease well).

Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon into a large bowl, add the oats, brown sugar and stir together. Make a well in the centre.
Whisk together the eggs, yogurt and oil. Pour into the well in the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until just combined. Fold through the pear, being careful not to overmix. Spoon into the muffin cases.
To make the crumble topping, mix the brown sugar and almonds. Sprinkle over the muffin mixture and then bake for 20–25 minutes until golden brown.

Makes 6 – I halved the recipe, used 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans and got 7 muffins

Lime poppy seed muffins

If my blog were a soccer championship, the Lemon Team would be on their way to grab the Cup. But I felt that would not be fair to the other citrus I love so much – poor limes and oranges haven’t been around here in a while. :(

In order to balance the score, I used limes instead of lemons in these muffins – the recipe comes from the lovely and dear Lynne, who was also kind enough to ship me a box of goodies and poppy seeds (I can’t find them here).

Thank you, Lynne, for both the gifts and the wonderful recipe!
xoxo

Lime poppy seed muffins

2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ tablespoons poppy seeds
1 egg
½ cup + 2 tablespoons (124g) sugar
2 tablespoons lime zest
¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 ¼ cups (300ml) buttermilk
1 ½ teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 180ºC/350ºF.
In a large mixing bowl, sift and whisk together the dry ingredients.
In a smaller bowl combine the sugar and lemon zest. Rub them together until the sugar is slightly moist and fragrant. Add the egg, the butter, the buttermilk, lime juice and the vanilla. Mix well.
Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients, and stir with a fork just until moistened. Do not over mix. The batter will be fairly thick.
Divide batter evenly into 12 paper-lined or greased muffin cups. Bake muffins on rack in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until muffins test done.

Allow muffins to cool in pan for about 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Makes 12 – I got 11; my muffin pans hold 1/3 cup (80ml) batter each