Lemon Ricotta Muffins

Lemon Ricotta Muffin

Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

These muffins are delicious. They are tender, moist, and lemony! These muffins are not only perfect for breakfast, but are also great with afternoon tea or Masala Chai. Since I don't normally line my muffin cups with paper liners, I am only able to bake up 9 muffins from this recipe. Recipe can be doubled to get 18 muffins.

Lemon Ricotta Muffins

7.9 ounces (224g) WHITE whole wheat flour (about 1-3/4 cups)

2/3 cup organic natural cane sugar (130g)

2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder (11g)

1/4 teaspoons salt

3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese (170g)

1/2 cup water (113g)

1/4 cup EXTRA LIGHT olive oil or expeller-pressed canola oil (48g)

Grated lemon zest from 1 large lemon (4g)

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (28g)

1 extra large egg, lightly beaten (57g)
1/2 teaspoon lemon oil OR 1 teaspoon lemon extract

1 tablespoon turbinado sugar (10g)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Position oven rack to the center of the oven. Spray 9 standard-size muffin cups with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, natural cane sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir well with a wire whisk. Set aside.

In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the ricotta cheese and water. Using a fork, smash up the ricotta cheese and the water until combined. Add the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg and lemon oil or extract. Using a wire whisk, whisk everything together until thoroughly combined.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add the entire ricotta cheese mixture. Using a pastry fork or a wire whisk, gently stir-fold the flour mixture with the ricotta cheese mixture just until the dry ingredients are moistened. The batter will be thick. Divide batter among 9 muffin cups. Sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar.

Bake for 18 minutes or until tops are lightly browned and a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in the pan and transfer muffins to a wire rack to cook completely.

 

Best to store muffins in an airtight container and place in the refrigerator. The muffins will become more moist as it sits out at room temperature of more than one day.

Yield 9 muffins

Quick Oat Ban and Banana Muffins
Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine

These muffins are wholesome, moist, light, tender and delicious on the day it is baked, but even more fantastic the next day.

1-1/4 cups WHITE whole-wheat flour (166g)
1 cup oat bran (107g)
1/2 cup organic cane sugar (95g)
1 tablespoon baking powder (15g)
1/2 teaspoon salt (3g)
2 extra-large eggs (112g to 114g)
3/4 cup whole milk OR unsweetened carton coconut milk (170g)
1/4 cup melted coconut oil (57g)
1 teaspoon pure banana extract or pure vanilla extract (2g)
2 medium-size riped bananas, cut vertically in fourths or sixths, then slice horizontally into chunks (282g to 286g)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted (57g)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, UNtoasted (57g)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Position oven rack to the center of the oven. Spray a standard muffin pan with nonstick baking spray or line with paper liners. Set aside.

In a very large mixing bowl, combine the whole-wheat flour, oat bran, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir well with a wire whisk until thoroughly combined. Make a well in the center with a rubber spatula and set aside.

In a separate small mixing bowl, beat the eggs with a wire whisk. Add the milk and whisk together until blended. Add the coconut oil and vanilla. Whisk together until blended.

Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Using a pastry fork or rubber spatula, stir/fold ingredients until most of the flour mixture is moistened. Add banana chunks and the 1/2 cup of toasted nuts. Using rubber spatula to fold everything together just until combined, but do not overmix.

Divide batter into 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with the remaining 1/2 cup of UNtoasted nuts. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for about 5 to 10 minutes. 

Remove from muffins from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store muffins in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator. Next day, warm muffins in  the microwave for 15 seconds or eaten at room temperature.

Yield 12 muffins

Whole-Wheat Dark Chocolate Muffins

Whole-Wheat Dark Chocolate Muffins

These muffins were adapted from a Chocolate Buttermilk Bread recipe I found on Pinterest. Because I substituted the all-purpose flour for whole-wheat flour, the bread did not bake up well. The batter was quite thick and the very center of the bread was a bit raw after baking. The texture of the bread was quite dense, but it tasted delicious and very chocolaty. My second attempt, I made some modifications to the recipe. After 20 minutes of baking, the batter was starting to overflow out of the loaf pan. I immediately removed the pan from the oven and transfer the batter to a muffin pan. Not knowing what will be the outcome of this, I did end up with delicious and not-so-appealing-looking muffins. My third attempt, I decided to just bake the bread off as muffins. The muffins does not have a high dome which I was not able to achieve, but it is moist, chocolaty, and delicious. I like to warm these muffins in the microwave for 15 seconds so the chocolate chips are almost melting when you bite into it. Even if you don't, these muffins will still be delicious eaten at room temperature.

1-1/2 cups WHITE whole-wheat flour (7.1 ounces)
1 cup organic natural cane sugar (7.4 ounces)
3/4 cup Hershey's brand Special Dark Cocoa (2.5 ounces)
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (6.6 ounces)
1 large egg (about 1.8 to 1.9 ounces)
1-1/4 cup buttermilk (9 ounces)
1/2 cup Greek yogurt (4 ounces)
1/2 cup EXTRA LIGHT Olive Oil (3.4 ounces)
1 tablespoon Nescafe brand Clasico Dark Roast Instant Coffee
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position twp oven racks to the upper third and lower third of the oven.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the whole-wheat flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt and stir well with a wire whisk until blended. Toss in the chocolate chips with a rubber spatula and make a well in the center. Set aside.

In a separate small mixing bowl, lightly beat the egg with a wire whisk. Add the buttermilk to the beaten egg and whisk together until blended. Add the olive oil to the egg mixture and whisk together until blended. Lastly, add the instant coffee and vanilla. Whisk together until blended.

Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture. Using a pastry fork or wire whisk, stir/fold in ingredients until all mixture are moistened. Switch to a rubber spatula to complete folding all ingredients until blended, but not to overmix. 

Divide batter into 15 muffin cups lined with paper liners or sprayed with nonstick baking spray. Bake for 30 minutes. Let muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes and turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Keep muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Warm muffins in the microwave for 15 seconds or let it sit out at room temperature.

Yield 15 muffins

Chocolate Chip-Coffee Muffins

Chocolate Chip-Coffee Muffins

Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

The first time I baked these Chocolate Chip-Coffee Muffins from Cooking Light, it turned out to be the ugliest muffins I ever baked. They were dry and very dense. I knew these muffins would be a disaster once I mixed together the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. The muffin batter was the consistency of a cookie dough. I continued to bake these muffins anyway just to see what would be the outcome. When they were done baking, they were really small, ugly, dense, and dry. I couldn't understand how these muffins got such outstanding reviews. I wanted to throw them out immediately, but I decided to taste them first. Surprisingly the muffins were moist on the inside, but very dense. Had a good chocolate flavor, but lacked the coffee flavor. They were very dry on the exterior, but remain moist and dense brownie-like on the inside. These muffins had potential and with a few of my own modifications, the muffins are now light, tender and very moist with great chocolate/coffee flavor. Another plus... it's 100% whole wheat.

2 cups WHITE whole wheat flour (241g ounces)

2/3 cup unrefined natural cane sugar (130g ounces)

2 teaspoons baking powder (8g)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (96g ounces)

1 large egg (53g) 

1 cup carton UNSWEETENED coconut milk (227 ounces)

5 tablespoons coconut oil or butter, melted (71g ounces)

1 teaspoon coffee bakery emulsion or coffee extract

3-1/2 tablespoons NesCafe Clasico Dark Roast Instant Coffee (15g)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Position oven rack to the center of the oven. Spray 11 standard-size muffin cups with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.

In a large-size mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir together with a wire whisk until well combined. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips and make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Set aside.

In a separate medium-size mixing bowl, lightly beat the egg. Whisk in the next 4 ingredients, one at a time, until well blended. 

Add the coffee mixture to the flour mixture. Using a pastry fork or wire whisk, gently stir and fold the flour mixture with the coffee mixture until just until dry ingredients are moistened and finish folding with a rubber spatula just until incorporated. Do not over mix. Batter will be quite thick.

Divide batter among 11 muffin cups.

Bake for 18 minutes or until muffins feels firm on the top when lightly touched.

Let muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Yield 11 muffins

Zucchini Muffins

Zucchini Muffins
Adapted from Simply Recipes

I have to agree that these are the best zucchini muffins ever. What I love about these muffins, they are pack full of zucchini. They also have a lot of walnuts and raisins that adds sweetness, crunch and texture to these muffins. Just as I do with most recipes, I modified a few ingredients to suit my healthy way of eating, like replacing all-purpose flour with WHITE whole wheat flour and replacing butter with EXTRA LIGHT olive oil. I like my zucchini bread spiced up tasting like a pumpkin bread or a carrot cake, so I added a few more ground spices to this recipe. I seem to detect an unpleasant "metallic" aftertaste from the amount of baking soda the original recipe called for so I reduced the amount of baking soda and replaced the difference with baking powder which worked out perfectly.

3 cups WHITE whole wheat flour (12.6 ounces)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
3 cups slightly packed grated fresh unpeeled zucchini (about 13.7 to 14.1 ounces from about two large-size zucchini)*
1-1/3 cups unrefined natural cane sugar (8.9 ounces)
2 extra-large eggs, beaten (3.8 to 4.0 ounces)**
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup EXTRA LIGHT olive oil or expeller-pressed canola oil (3.4 ounces)
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (4.0 ounces)
1 cup dark raisins (5.0 ounces)

*ZUCCHINI: If you don't have enough zucchini, no worries. Just add enough grated peeled carrots for the difference in weight.
**EGGS: You don't have extra large eggs, just add enough EXTRA LIGHT olive oil to make up the difference in weight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position two oven racks to the upper third and lower third of the oven. Spray 15 muffin cups with nonstick baking spray (2 muffin pans). Set aside.

In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Whisk everything together until thoroughly blended. Set aside.

Grate the unpeeled zucchini using the large holes of a box grater. DO NOT need to squeeze dry the grated zucchini. Set aside.

In a separate large-size mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract until light and creamy. Sugar will somewhat dissolved, but not completely. Whisk in the olive oil until blended.

Using a pastry fork, stir in the grated zucchini. Then add in all the flour mixture. Gently stir/fold the flour mixture with the pastry fork until almost combined.

Using a rubber spatula, fold in the walnuts and raisins until thoroughly combined, but do not over mix.

Divide batter among 15 muffin cups. Place the muffin pan that is entirely filled in the upper third rack and the other pan that is partially filled in the lower third rack. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes; then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Best to store muffins in an airtight container and place in the refrigerator. The muffins will become more moist as it sits out at room temperature of more than one day. Reheat muffins in the microwave for 15 seconds.

Yield 15 muffins, approximately 291 calories per muffin