Hazelnut plum muffins

This is really interesting combinations of flavours. Nutty, a little bit dry cake filled with plum jam. I like them very much and I think those who love nuts will be delighted. As usually they are very easy to make. The recipe comes from 'The Australian Women's Weekly. Muffins"

Ingredients for 12 - 14 muffins:

• 90g butter or margarine
• 370g flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 125g hazelnut meal
• 150g caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 250 ml milk
• 12 - 14 tsp plum jam
• 12 - 14 whole hazelnuts

Preheat the oven to 200C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Melt the butter and set aside.

Place the flour, baking powder, hazelnut meal, sugar in a big bowl and whisk them together.

Break the egg into a separate jug and whisk with fork. Stir in the milk.

Pour the milk mixture and melted butter into a bowl with dry ingredients. Mix all ingredients together until just combined.The batter is very thick at that stage.

Spoon about one tablespoon of the batter into muffin cases. Then make a well in each muffin and place one teaspoon of plum jam inside. Top with muffin mixture. Place the whole hazelnut on top of each muffin. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. 

 

Cool down a few minutes then enjoy with a mug of tea or coffee:)

 

 

Enjoy !

Sticky toffee date muffins

This is another delicious recipe of Ina Garten. Those muffins are soft, moist coated with sweet and sticky toffee sauce.We enjoy them very much I hope you will too.

Ingredients for 12 - 18 muffins:

• 225g pitted dates
• 450ml water
• 1 tsp soda
• 110g butter
• 90g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 vanilla extract 
• 300g flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp baking powder

To bake those muffins start with cooking dates.

Pour the cold water into a big pot add chopped dates. Bring to boil. Then leave to simmer for about 1 minute. Remove from heat stir in the soda. Be careful the mixture will bubble up. Set aside to cool down a little.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Cream the butter and sugar together in an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time. Al last add flour and salt. This will create very lumpy mixture. 

Now it is a time to add the date mixture. Pour half of the mixture into the bowl with the lumpy batter. Mix well then add the remaining date mixture. At last stir in the baking powder. This will make the batter to bubble up.

Pour the runny batter into prepared earlier muffin cases. Fill them up to the top as they don't rise much. Bake about 20 minutes.

While the muffin are in the oven prepare toffee.

Ingredients for toffee sauce:

• 110g butter
• 120g brawn sugar
• 80ml double cream
• 1/2 vanilla extract

Combine the butter, sugar, cream and vanilla in a medium size sauce pan. Bring  to boil then reduce to simmer gently for a few minutes until thickened.   

When muffins are baked remove them from the oven and poke with toothpick. Pour over them the runny toffee sauce.

Let them set then spread another toffee sauce layer over each muffin top.

 Enjoy !