Orange Poppy Seed Muffins

These lovely light flavoured muffins are perfect for with tea and come together in just a couple of minutes.  The longest part of this recipe is grating the orange zest and waiting for them to bake.  I was tempted to add a glacé (royal) icing drizzled over the top but thought they were nice enough just as is.

Ingredients

½ cup sunflower oil
¾ cup caster sugar
2 extra large eggs
¾ cup milk
5 tsp orange  zest
2 cups self raising flour
½ tsp salt
7 tsp poppy seeds

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Line 12 muffins pans with paper cases.
3. Beat the oil and sugar together.
4. Add the eggs one at a time and beat in.
5. Add the milk and lemon zest.
6. Fold in the flour, salt and poppy seeds.
7. Divide the mixture between the 12 muffins pans and bake for 15  minutes.

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Nutty Wheat Banana Muffins

These moreish muffins are perfect for last minute tea time guests or a tasty breakfast when everything else breakfasty just isn’t quite cutting the mustard – simply throw a few ingredients at a bowel et voila, a taste bud tantalizing muffin in 20 minutes.  You could add some texture with chocolate chips or something healthier like seeds or nuts – these variations only came to me when I was taking them out of the oven so mine are just plain.  No matter as they are delicious as is with a light moist crumb.

Ingredients

500ml nutty wheat flour – you could substitute with any flour
200ml brown sugar
5ml salt
5ml baking powder
5ml bicarbonate of soda
2 bananas mashed
80ml oil
10ml vanilla essence
250ml plain yoghurt
1egg lightly beaten

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Prepare 12 muffins tins with paper cases.
3. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
4. Add the remaining ingredients and mix through.
5. Divide into the 12 muffin tins.
6. Bake for 20 minutes.

Modified Must Make Muffins

Remember the Must Make Muffins, well they have just got a whole lot nicer.  I omitted the sugar altogether and have added a cup of grated carrot and a cup of grated sweet potato.  The mixture still needs to stand in the fridge overnight and is seriously worth the wait and because of the added ingredients, you will easily get another 12 muffins from the mixture.  I bake six to twelve at a time and with the mixture waiting in the fridge, I can have fresh hot muffins from the oven every morning for breakfast.  Fantastic!

Ingredients

1½ cups brown bread flour
1 cup bran
1 cup oats
3tsp bicarbonate of soda
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp ginger
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped dates
2 cups grated apple
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup finely grated sweet potato
1 banana mashed ± ⅓ cup
2 eggs
4 tsp vanilla essence
¼ cup oil
2 cups milk

Method

1. Combine all of the ingredients, cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
3. Stir the ingredients and spoon into prepared muffin tins lined with paper cases.
4. Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Remember to submit your Christmas Menu by 30 October to stand a chance of winning a copy of my Cook Book.

Cranberry Muffins

The folks were recently here for a wee visit and brought loads of lovely cranberries with.  Naturally thoughts went down the road of what should we make with all of these lovely red jewels.  One can’t just eat them as is you know.  Mom said she felt like a light spongy muffin and I said I had just the recipe for her.  I was a teensy bit worried as I don’t believe my recipes are as good as Moms.  It turns out Mom loved these muffins – yippee!  So with that kind of approval, you can rest assured they are worth making.

Cranberry Muffins

Ingredients

1 cup cranberries
4 egg whites
110g butter
1 cup sugar
¾ cup milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp baking powder
1½ cups cake flour
¼ tsp salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Place the cranberries in a bowl and cover with boiling water.
3. Beat the egg whites until stiff and set aside.
4. Cream the butter and sugar.
5. Add the liquid alternating with the dry ingredients.
6. Drain the cranberries and add to the mixture.
7. Fold in the egg whites.
8. Divide the mixture into 12 prepared muffins tins and bake for 15 minutes.

Must Make Muffins

Seriously, you MUST make these muffins.  They are fantastic!  I got this wonderful recipe from my Aunty Christine who seriously knows what she is talking about when it comes to baking.  The mixture needs to stand in the fridge overnight but it is well worth the wait and if you bake the entire mixture (24 muffins) they freeze beautifully too!  Once defrosted, they are as fresh as if they were just baked.  Oh and they stay fresh for days after baking too so these are perfect as lunch box fillers.  Alternatively keep the mixture in the fridge and bake 6 or 12 at a time.  Thanks again for the awesome recipe Aunty Christine. 🙂

makes 24

Ingredients

1½ cups brown bread flour
1 cup bran
1 cup oats
¼ cup brown sugar
3tsp bicarbonate of soda
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp ginger
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped dates
2 cups grated apple
1 banana mashed ± ⅓ cup
2 eggs
4 tsp vanilla essence
¼ cup oil
2 cups milk

Method

1. Combine all of the ingredients, cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
3. Stir the ingredients and divide amongst 24 prepared muffin tins lined with paper cases.
4. Bake for approximately 20 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

I have a fantastic recipe for Lemon and Poppy Seed Muffins but I am always up to trying a new recipe, especially if it is quick and easy.  I saw this recipe (originally a cake but you all know I like to make individual portions) over at The Hungry Mum.  When I try a new recipe, I always make it as stated.  The flavour of these muffins are spot on but I wasn’t entirely happy with the texture – they were a little heavy.  Take two with a slightly amended method, replace the butter with oil, add salt, one less egg et voila, a lovely light muffin which made for a lovely pudding with a scoop of ice cream.  Thanks Hungry Mum.  I hope you don’t mind that I amended the recipe.

Slightly adapted from The Hungry Mum

Ingredients

½ cup sunflower oil
¾ cup caster sugar
2 extra large eggs
¾ cup milk
5 tsp lemon zest
2 cups self raising flour
½ tsp salt
7 tsp poppy seeds

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Line 12 muffins pans with paper cases.
3. Beat the oil and sugar together.
4. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until foamy.
5. Add the milk and lemon zest.
6. Fold in the flour, salt and poppy seeds.
7. Divide the mixture between the 12 muffins pans and bake for 15 to 16 minutes.

Fresh Fig Yoghurt Muffins

Today’s recipe is not quite as exciting as yesterdays but it still got the double thumbs up, so I am very happy.  The muffins were remarkably light with a beautiful soft crumb and sticky top.  I am sure this would work equally as well with preserved or dried figs, just as the tart would but  I shall use the wonderful figs fresh on our tree for as long as I can.

Ingredients

500ml self-raising flour
250ml sugar
5ml salt
80ml oil
10ml vanilla essence
250ml plain yoghurt
1egg lightly beaten
4-5 figs (250ml) peeled and roughly chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until just combined.
3. Divide into 12 muffin tins lined with cupcake cases.
4. Bake for 20 minutes.

Apple and Cranberry Buttermilk Muffins

It’s a terrible thing getting a new oven – all you want to do is bake and bake some more.  Naturally, lots of these baked goodies would have to be something in cupcake form so back to Woolies I go – all in the name of experimenting you see.  Should we go sweet or should we go savoury – cater for both and decide later was a good choice and amongst the goodies that made their way into our trolley were apples and cranberries, which were used for these lovely moist muffins.

Ingredients

500ml flour
125ml brown sugar
5ml salt
5ml baking powder
5ml bicarbinate of soda
80ml oil
250ml buttermilk
2 eggs litghtly beaten
100g dried cranberries
1-2 apples grated (250ml)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl until just combined.
3. Divide into 12 muffin tins lined with cupcake cases.
4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Yoghurt Banana Choc Chip Muffins

I had 2 bananas and a packet of dark chocolate chips next to each other on the counter and had an idea to turn them into muffins – brilliant idea, they turned out perfectly – super light and moist.  I was so proud of my efforts that I called my friend Moira to come and photograph my creation.  These muffins are well worth making and come together in a cinch.  🙂

Thanks Moira for the beautiful pictures.

Yoghurt Banana Choc Chip Muffins

Ingredients

500ml flour
250ml sugar
5ml salt
5ml baking powder
5ml bicarbonate of soda
2 bananas mashed
80ml oil
10ml vanilla essence
250ml plain yoghurt
1egg lightly beaten
80ml dark chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and mix through.
4. Divide into 12 muffin tins lined with cupcake cases.
5. Bake for 20 minutes.

Chocolate Muffins

When I saw The Ordinary Cook’s recipe for Mini Chocolate Muffins a short while ago I promised that I would make them the following morning; I did and had two for breakfast!  They come together in just a couple of minutes and took just under 10 minutes to bake – perfect.  The secret to these light, fluffy muffins is double sifting the dry ingredients and to “just” mix them into the wet ingredients.  You can make these into double chocolate muffins by adding chopped chocolate – sadly I didn’t have any on hand and the next time I make these, I will also add 2.5ml salt into the mixture.

slighty adapted from The Ordinary Cook

Ingredients


Dry Ingredients
125g plain flour

25g cocoa powder

5ml baking powder
2.5ml salt – not in the original recipe
Wet Ingredients
1 egg

50g sugar

25g butter melted

100ml milk
50g chocolate chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Sift the dry ingredients together into a bowl.  
3. In another large bowl mix together all of the wet ingredients.
4. Sift the dry ingredients over the wet ingredients and add the chopped chocolate.  
5. Mix very briefly until the mixture just starts coming together.  It must look as if you haven’t mixed it properly
6. Spoon heaped teaspoonfuls into 12 cupcake cases in a muffin tin.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes until firm on top or a skewer inserted comes out clean.
8. Cool the muffins on a wire rack.

Cheese Muffins

Just in case you are wanting something a little more savoury for Christmas morning breakfast, these Cheese Muffins will definitely do the trick and you they are an absolute cinch to make.  If you feel like being a little more adventurous, add some finely chopped spring onions into the mixture or a little fresh thyme.

 

Ingredients

500ml self raising flour
1ml salt
1ml pepper
1ml mustard powder
250ml cheddar cheese finely grated
310ml milk
15ml oil

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Combine the flour, salt, pepper and mustard powder.
3. Add the cheese and stir through.
4. Whisk together the milk and oil and add to the flour mixture until just blended.
5. Spoon into greased muffin tins and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until cooked through.

 

Submitted by:  Mandy Frielinghaus, Mauritius

Health Muffins

Before we all get carried away with all the yummy “unhealthy” recipes over the festive season, I thought I would balance things out with a healthy recipe.  These Health Muffins are a cinch to make and freeze beautifully so if you are impatient and want one or two form the freezer now, no problem, pop them in the microwave for a few seconds and voila, you are ready to go – jut don’t forget the ever important cup of tea, oh and this recipe makes 5 dozen muffins, which is great for teas with family and friends or even taking down to your nearest needy community as a treat.

 

Ingredients

2 cups boiling water
2 cups raisins
4 cups brown bread flour
2 cups oats
5ml salt
5ml ginger
5ml cinnamon
2ml nutmeg
¾ cup brown sugar
15ml baking powder
7ml bicarbonate of soda
3 eggs
75ml oil or melted butter
1 cup milk
20ml vanilla essence
6 cups grated apple

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Pour the boiling water over the raisins.
3. Mix all the dry ingredients.
4. Mix all the wet ingredients.
5. Combine all the ingredients and place in muffin pans and bake for approximately 15 minutes.

 

Submitted by:  Christine de Villiers, Port Elizabeth

Lemon and Poppy Seed Muffins

These have to be the best muffins ever – the crème de la crème of muffins.  THE muffin of all muffins, well for me that is.  They are light and spongy, slightly sticky on top, and make you hum with every bite and are perfect with a cup of tea.  I am actually thinking of renaming them Lemon and Poppy Seed Cupcakes and adding an icing glaze on top.  Just a thought for now.

 

Ingredients

125ml cooking oil
125ml sugar
2 extra large eggs
250ml natural yoghurt or buttermilk
125ml lemon juice
3ml grated lemon rind
60ml poppy seeds
500ml cake flour
3ml bicarbonate of soda
15ml baking powder
2ml salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
2. Beat the oil and sugar together.
3. Add the eggs and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
4. Add the yoghurt, lemon juice, rind and poppy seeds.
5. Sift the dry ingredients together and fold into the wet mixture – the batter should still be lumpy.
6. Spoon into greased muffin tins, filling each about two thirds full.
7. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes until golden brown.

 

Submitted by:  Mandy Frielinghaus, Mauritius