Muffins: what flavour today?
I used to make muffins every morning at 6am. The cafe opened its doors at seven, and I needed to be ready with a fresh “grab and go” item for our regulars, scurrying off to work, too late or too busy to breakfast at home. Using a tried and true fruity muffin recipe, I whittled it back to basics and then on a daily basis varied the fruits, nuts, grains and spices to create an infinite variety. This is the only muffin recipe you will ever need.
Today I made muffins with grated fresh apple, dates, walnuts and cinnamon. My other half just scoffed three, one after the other, hot from the oven!
1: The Basic Muffin Batter Ingredients
2 ½ cups self raising flour
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
150g butter or 150mls vegetable oil
Then you choose from the lists below, fruit, nuts, grains, spices and liquid
Method : Preheat the oven to 200C Grease muffin tins and either line with a paper case or put a small square of baking paper into the base.
Prepare the fruit or veg you intend to use. Melt the butter. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, add the sugar and your choice from list a) and thoroughly combine. Make a well in the centre, add your choices from lists b), c) and e), the melted butter and roughly beaten eggs and mix. Slowly add enough liquid from list d) to make a batter of a similar stiffness as whipped cream. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins, sprinkle with topping, then bake until well risen and firm to the touch, about 20 minutes. Cool on a wire. Makes 12–18 muffins depending on the size.
2: The Muffin Flavouring Ingredients
a) Choose one from this list
½ cup almond meal
½ cup poppy seeds
½ cup rolled oats
½ cup psyllium husks
½ cup coconut
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
½ cup flour extra
b ) Choose up to 1 ½ cups from this list
½ cup chopped figs or dried apricots softened in ¼ cup boiling water
½ cup jam
½ cup Natural yoghurt
1 fresh apple, grated
Carrot, grated
Zucchini, grated
Banana, mashed
Pear, grated
Firm fruit puree eg, rhubarb, apple, plums
c) Choose one extra loose ingredient, optional
½ cup chopped nuts
½ cup chopped dried fruit sultanas, raisins, currants, craisins or chopped figs
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup raspberries
½ cup choc chips
d) Choose a liquid, or a combination of liquids, ¼ – ½ cup.
Milk
Fruit juice
Coffee
e) Choose aromatics
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
Zest of 1 lime
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon mixed spice
½ teaspoon cloves plus ½ teaspoon allspice
3: Muffin toppings ingredients:
Cinnamon sugar – 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 2 teaspoons castor sugar
Shredded coconut
Rolled oats
Finely chopped nuts
Flaked almonds
Combinations that I found work very well:
Chopped dried apricots, dessicated coconut
Carrot, walnuts, glace ginger, cloves
Mashed banana and choc chips
Blueberries, almond meal
Sultanas, oats and yoghurt
Poppy seeds, yoghurt, orange zest and juice
Cocoa and raspberries
Dried Apple, grated fresh apple, apple juice and oats
…………………………………………………………………………….What can you create?
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Please Pass the Recipe by Sandra Gay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
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I love the way you bake muffins every morning, what a warm, healthy and delicious breakfast ^^
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