Monday, January 14, 2013

Apple Raisin Almond Muffins #MuffinMonday

Amaretto-soaked golden raisins are nestled along with chopped tart apples and almond slivers in a delicious muffin batter and baked to golden perfection.


Here’s the thing.  I’m not a big fan of pears (can’t bear the grittiness between my teeth - is it just me?) OR dates (except for in sticky toffee pudding where you don’t even KNOW that there are dates) and that’s what today’s Muffin Monday original recipe was all about.

So then I start to substitute.  What DO I like that is similar to pears.  Apples, of course.  And for the dates?  How about some raisins?  Yeah, golden raisins would be nice.  But that seemed so bland.  What about if I soaked the raisins in something?  Now we were talking!  So I soaked the raisins in Amaretto, which led me to add almonds to the batter as well.  As I told Muffin Monday organizer, Anuradha, when I sent her my link, these muffins evolved on their own!  And all I can say is, Good job, guys!  Now I am just gonna sit back and see what my dinner ingredients do.  Further bulletins as events warrant.

Apple Raisin Almond Muffins


Ingredients
3 1/2 oz or 100g golden raisins
1/4 cup or 60ml Amaretto
1 1/8 cup (tightly packed) or 235g light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups or 185g flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup or 60g butter, melted and cooled
1/4 cup or 60ml milk
2 eggs
3/4 cup or 50g slivered almonds, divided
2 small green (or other tart) apples

Method
Soak the raisins in the Amaretto for an hour or two or overnight if you are organized.


Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.  Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper cases or grease liberally.  (You may actually get more than 12 muffins out of this batter, depending on your cup size and your apple size.  My batter ending up being enough for 16 muffins.)

In a large bowl, mix together your flour, light brown sugar, salt and baking powder.


In a smaller bowl, whisk your eggs, butter and milk.

Drain the Amaretto that hasn’t soaked into the raisins into this bowl too and whisk again.


Peel, core and dice your apples.


Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just moistened.



Add in the raisins and two-thirds or about 1/2 cup of the almonds, reserving the rest for topping, and mix gently.



Fold in the apple pieces.  This is going to look like way too much apple and way too little batter, but it works.  Trust.



Divide the batter into the muffin cups.


Sprinkle the tops with the reserved slivered almonds.


Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.



Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes in the muffin tin and then remove to a rack to cool completely.


Enjoy!





8 comments :

  1. I think you did a spectacular job with this recipe! Love everything about it - amaretto soaked raisins, apples - Mmmm. And the almond topping - sheer perfection, Stacy! Happy #MuffinMonday! :)

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  2. Wow! I love the way you think! Amaretto soaked golden raisins?!? LOVE! I like golden raisins way better than regular raisins any day. I eat them in my oatmeal almost every morning. But now I think I'll be soaking them in Amaretto for something, maybe even oatmeal. But back to these muffins. I love what you did here. I like pears but I can definitely relate to what you're saying about the grittiness. But I love apples too and the almonds, the raisins... well, it all sounds so fantastic! Lovely job!

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  3. Hello there! I love everything about this post. The photos. The green. The directions so clearly imaged. The golden raisins and, let's not forget, the Amaretto! Thank you for sharing and doing such a great job with this post. Very appealing. A-peeling...Ha! Much Love, Fondly, Robin

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  4. Yes! Yes to this entire recipe!!! I'm leaning towards golden raisins over the regular so i love how you used them here. Another lovely one, Stacy!

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  5. Thanks, Anuradha! Hope you had a happy #MuffinMonday too!

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  6. I completely agree, Kate! I wasn't really a fan of raisins until I found the golden ones. They are just beautiful, especially soaked with Amaretto. :) Thank you for your kind words.

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  7. Thank you, Robin! And hello there to you! Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. Your kind words mean a lot to me.

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  8. Thanks, Lyn! I will eat the dark raisins but I find the golden ones softer and somehow more delicious.

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