Lemon Almond MuffinsContinuing on the lemon theme from earlier this week, I pulled out a recipe I used to make quite often for Lemon Almond Muffins. I think Mom recorded this one while watching a cooking show many years ago.
It's almost unfair to call these little babies "muffins", as they are more like little cakelets (is that a word? If not, I think it should be). Dense and moist, these are unusual muffins. You'll notice the batter is different from any muffin you've made, as it is very dense and looks almost like bread dough when it comes together. This could be because there are no eggs in this recipe, plus it calls for cream of tartar, so the texture is quite different. You'll also note there is no salt in the recipe, but I use salted butter and find it works well. Be sure to not overmix the batter as you'll end up with tough muffins (that made me giggle...).
You can use two teaspoons to put the batter in muffin tins, but I find the tops look a little prettier when you use a medium sized ice cream scoop.
This is a lovely recipe to prepare as company is about to arrive. The fragrance of warm lemon and almond will permeate your house and create a welcoming, comforting atmosphere...and a hungry group of guests!
Lemon Almond Muffins
2 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 c. melted butter
1/2 c. milk
1/8 c. lemon juice
1 tsp. almond extract
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 c. slivered almonds (optional)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease muffin pan. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and cream of tartar. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine melted butter, milk, almond extract, lemon juice and zest.
Make a well in the dry ingredients and add liquid mixture, stirring gently with a fork until just moist. Do not overmix.
Fill muffin cups to about 3/4 full. Sprinkle tops with slivered almonds, if desired. Bake 20-25 minutes or until edges turn brown and tops of muffins spring back when touched. Remove from oven and cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then remove muffins from pans and place on rack to cool completely, or serve when still warm.
Lisa these might be the best muffins I ever ate. Great texture, more like a tender scone than a muffin. They didn't puff up like a typical muffin and were less uniform in shape, but texture and flavour are amazing. LOVE them and will re-make these many times. I didn't use almonds and glad I didn't - I like the very tender, somewhat cakey texture of these muffins and wouldn't want to be biting into nuts. I bet a few blueberries would work fine too, but the flavour just plain was fantastic. Great recipe suggestion.
ReplyDeleteI'm so pleased to hear you liked them!
ReplyDeleteHave made these 3-4 times now and everyone loves them Lisa. FYI, I'm using a larger ice-cream scoop and I make 8 muffins, which in my oven cook exactly 25 minutes to perfection. I glaze them lightly and again, people seem to like that. I probably use about 1/3 cup of sifted icing sugar, and I just squeeze in a bit of the leftover lemon - just enough to mix up the icing sugar until it's gooey enough to drizzle over the muffins. A couple of drops (not more) of almond extract is nice too. Once the muffins are baked I let them sit 5 minutes in the muffin tin, then put them on a small round rack over a dinner plate and drizzle the glaze over them so it runs down the sides. I don't "coat" them, just give them a drizzle. Very nice extra bit of moist flavour, and as I said, everyone seems to love these.
ReplyDeleteA great tip - thanks!
ReplyDelete