Black Cherry Muffins #MuffinMonday

 

Cherry muffins are good, no matter what the season. Make muffins with the ones in cans and don't forget to add some of the cherry syrup for more flavor!

Today we had a baking session at my house which included savory cheddar muffins with a salami base, a dozen of Uncle Hector’s 100 Cookies (so called because there are 100 ways to make them) and then, finally, we baked a sweet muffin with canned cherries. You might think that all the baked goods were the best part, but actually, it was the chatting amongst the ladies. Such a delight to have friends around the small table in my cozy kitchen.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 can (425g or 15oz) black pitted cherries, in light syrup (drained weight 213g or 7 1/2 oz)
2 eggs
1/2 cup or 120ml milk
1/2 cup or 120ml light cherry syrup (from the drained can of pitted cherries)
1/3 cup or 80ml canola oil

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease your 12-cup muffin pan liberally with non-stick spray or butter or line it with paper muffin cups.

Measure your flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl and mix well.

Drain your cherries and save the light syrup.

Set aside 12 cherries for decoration and cut the rest of them in half.  This serves two purposes: One, it make the cherry pieces smaller and less likely to all sink to the bottom of your batter when baking, and two, it ensures that all the pits have indeed been removed. No one wants to break a tooth!

Add the halved cherries to the flour mixture and stir to coat.

Measure the milk, 1/2 cup or 120ml light cherry syrup and oil into a smaller bowl and whisk with the eggs.

Fold your wet ingredients into your dry ones until just mixed.

Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups and top each one with a reserved cherry.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown around the edges and a little on the tops.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Cool completely out of the pan on a wire rack.

Now invite some friends over for tea and coffee and share.

Enjoy!

Chipotle Cheddar Sweet Potato Muffins #MuffinMonday

Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce add a lovely smoky spiciness to these sharp cheddar muffins made with roasted sweet potatoes.

Chipotle peppers in adobe sauce are a great ingredient for adding flavor and spice to many dishes but though they come packed in small cans, I never seem to use the whole can for any recipe. So I pour the leftovers in a plastic bag and roll it up like a tube and pop it in the freezer. Then it’s easy to slice off however much you need for the next recipe. We loved these muffins so much that I'd open another can just to make them again.

Ingredients
1 whole roasted sweet potato (about 8oz or 225g)
1/4 cup or 60ml canola or other light oil
2 cups or 250g flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
5 1/3 oz or 150g extra sharp cheddar, grated
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup or 180ml milk

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your muffin pan by greasing it or lining it paper muffin cups.

Peel your sweet potato and mash it with a fork.

Add in the eggs, milk and oil and whisk to combine.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add in all but a generous handful of the cheddar and mix thoroughly.

Pour your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold them together until just mixed.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.  Top with the remaining grated cheddar.

Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the muffins are golden.

Allow to cool for a couple of minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Cheese in Ham Muffins #MuffinMonday

These guys are savory muffins, replete with cheese, baked in a ham cup. Nuff said. They might not cure what ails you, but they help.

This has been a shite week, as my British friends would say. No kidding. Bad news on several fronts. And while some people eat chocolate or turn to liquid consolation, I tend to bake and pray. And I try to understand why some things happen the way they do. To nice people. And why some nice people DO the things they do. When the decision is so obviously detrimental. So, as I said, I pray about it. For health, for understanding, for acceptance, for direction. And I bake stuff that I want to eat. Which means that this week, it’s a savory muffin. Can’t say I’m feeling a whole lot better, but at least I’m not hungry on top of that. How do you console yourself? All suggestions welcome.

Ingredients
1/8-1/4 cup or 30-60ml olive oil
12 slices thin cut ham, plus 1 more for garnish (I used the Oscar Mayer Delifresh stuff.)
2 cups or 250g flour
7oz or 200g strong and bitey cheese, divided
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup or 240ml milk
1/4 cup or 60ml canola or other light oil

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it liberally with the olive oil using a pastry brush.

Line each muffin cup with a circle of ham.

Cut the cheese into small chunks and set aside a good handful for putting on top of the muffins before baking. (Cut the rind off and discard, if there's a rind.) Cut the extra slice of ham into pieces.

In a large bowl, mix together your flour, the bigger pile of cheese, baking powder and salt, making sure that the cheese is well coated in flour and is not sticking together in clumps.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together your eggs, milk and oil.

Pour your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients stir until just mixed.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups, holding the ham up on one side with a finger while you spoon the batter in, if necessary.

Top each with the reserved smaller pile of cheese and a piece or two of ham.

Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are golden and a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for a few minutes and then run a knife around the muffin pan to set the muffins free. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

.

Coconut White Chocolate Muffins #MuffinMonday #CandyBarSeries

Start with a white chocolate bar crunchy with bits of coconut, add more coconut and coconut milk powder, then all the usual muffin ingredients like eggs and oil and flour. What you get is one delightfully coconutty muffin with bits of sweet white chocolate. Perfect for breakfast or snack time.

This week everyone is using Easter leftovers for recipes (myself included, if you count the savory tart I posted yesterday) but shocking through you might find it, I don’t have any leftover Easter candy. I did buy plenty, of course, but I made up gift bags for my girls while I was visiting the US and left almost all of it behind. My husband got a small basket – my Bread Bakers will appreciate this because I used my new banneton meant for proofing dough – and I imagine he’ll eat it all before long.

Yes, we do own Easter baskets. And, yes, I do crack myself up.

So I am dipping back into my secret stash of candy bars for these muffins, the fourth in what I am calling my Candy Bar Series, made with a white chocolate bar full, and I mean, so very full of coconut that there is no square millimeter of the chocolate that doesn’t have bits of coconut in it. I’m actually beginning to like white chocolate now. Alone it is cloyingly sweet, but with lemon and now coconut, it’s good. And it makes a tender, fabulous muffin.

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cups or 190g flour
2 1/8 oz or 60g coconut milk powder
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
1/2 cup, packed, or 60g freshly grated coconut plus extra for decorating
3 1/2 oz or 100g white chocolate coconut candy bar
2 eggs
3/4 cup or ml milk
1/2 cup or 120ml canola or other light oil

Method
Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and either grease your 12-cup muffin tin or line it with paper liners.

Chop your candy bar up into bits.

In one big mixing bowl, combine your dry ingredients: flour, coconut milk powder sugar, grated coconut, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.

In another small bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk and oil.

Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until just combined.

There should still be some dry flour showing.  Separate out 12 pieces of candy bar to put on top the batter when baking.

Fold the rest of the chocolate into the batter.

Divide the batter between your 12 prepared muffin cups.

Top with a sprinkle of fresh coconut and one piece of white chocolate bar.

Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for a few minutes. Take the muffins out of the pan and continue cooling on the rack.

Enjoy!

What’s your favorite candy bar? Which candy bar would you like to see made into a muffin?

Carrot Muffins with Cream Cheese Glaze #MuffinMonday

These delicious carrot muffins have all the flavor of tender carrot cake but are made with the two-bowl method traditional for muffins and are topped with generous lashing of sweetened cream cheese. 

A great Easter breakfast or brunch idea
With Easter Sunday less than a week away, you might be looking for a great breakfast or brunch recipe so I thought I’d share my muffin take on carrot cake since carrot muffins are perfect for the occasion. These little guys could also serve as dessert, although they are less sweet than actual carrot cake - a plus for those who have been eating their fair share of Easter candy.

How to make your family happy first thing in the morning
The night before I want to serve muffins for breakfast, I like to mix all my wet ingredients together, cover the bowl with cling film and pop it in the refrigerator. Then I mix all of my dry ingredients in a bigger bowl, cover with cling film and leave at the ready near the oven. When I get up in the morning, I turn the oven on to preheat and prepare my muffin pan. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Mix and bake. The glaze can be made ahead of time as well and refrigerated. This prep ahead method particularly handy on holidays or even on busy school mornings when everyone is trying to get out of the house on time. After all, muffins are fabulously portable.

Or mix and bake them right away. If you've been craving carrot cake, that might be the best plan.

Ingredients
For the muffins:
8 oz or 225g carrots – weight before peeling and cutting off stem ends
2 cups or 250g flour
3/4 cup or 170g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup or 115g butter, melted and cooled
2/3 cup or 160ml milk

For the cream cheese glaze:
1/4 cup or 65g cream cheese spread, at room temperature
1/4 cup or about 30g powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 teaspoons milk

Method
Peel your carrots and cut them into short lengths. Discard the green stem ends if any. Boil until tender then drain. Mash with a potato masher until fairly smooth.  Set aside to cool.

Preheat your oven to 350°f or 180°C and prepare a 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it or lining it with paper muffin cups.

In a large mixing bowl, combine your flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

In a small bowl, combine the eggs, melted butter, cooled mashed carrots and milk.  Mix thoroughly.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just mixed.

Divide the thick batter between the muffin cups in your prepared pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the glaze, mix the cream cheese spread with the powdered sugar, vanilla and one teaspoon of milk. Stir well. Add the second teaspoon of milk if necessary to get a good drizzling or piping consistency, depending on how you want to apply it. Make it thinner for drizzling, thicker for piping.

When your muffins are cool, drizzle or pipe on the cream cheese glaze. I used a plastic bag with the corner cut off.

Enjoy!

Pin it!

Orange Poppy Seed Muffins #MuffinMonday

Fresh orange juice and poppy seeds make beautiful sunshiny muffins that everyone will want to wake up to eat! They also make great snacks. 

As I mentioned yesterday while serving up Irish lamb stew in this space, I am in chilly Rhode Island for the week - my last Spring Break! My baby girl will graduate from Rhode Island School of Design this May. She has been sweet enough to invite me to come each year since she started at RISD, so this is the last scheduled spring break that affects my life and holiday planning. Which makes me both sad and proud. 

This year, all of her close friends are also staying in town, working hard on their degree projects, so I have put myself in charge of sustenance starting with homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches the other night and orange poppy seed muffins today, delivered to their studios as they worked. 

I am later than usual posting the muffins because tonight we ate eggplant Parmigiana and garlicky green beans so I was busy cooking that and scooping them up from studio to eat. It's 9 p.m. as I write this and they've gone back to work! Future meals on the menu include vegetarian crispy tacos and lentil burgers.

If you know me at all, you know I am in hog heaven cooking for girls again! These orange poppy seeds muffins were a special request, one I was only too happy to oblige.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g flour
2/3 cup or 130g sugar
Zest of one orange plus extra for decorating, if desired
2 tablespoons poppy seeds plus extra for decorating, if desired
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup or 180ml orange juice
1/3 cup or 80ml extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup or 60ml milk

Optional glaze:
2-3 teaspoons fresh orange juice
7-8 tablespoons powdered sugar or as much as needed to reach your desired thickness.

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin tin by spraying with non-stick spray or lining with muffin papers.

Combine your flour, sugar, baking powder, poppy seeds and salt in a large mixing bowl. Grate in your orange zest.

In another smaller bowl, whisk together your eggs, orange juice, oil and milk.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stir until just mixed.

Divide your batter between the 12 muffin cups.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pans and then remove to continue cooling on a wire rack.

To make the glaze, put your orange juice in a small bowl and then add the powdered sugar a tablespoon or two at at time, stirring well in between, until you reach your desired consistency.

Spoon a little on top of each cool muffin.

Then sprinkle with  extra orange zest and poppy seeds, if desired.

Enjoy!