If all things go according to plan, I’m going to start selling a few of my baked goods at a local business here in Brooklyn. It’s not going to be much, but I’m excited. I love baking but I need people to eat all of this stuff! So, this works out really well for me and hopefully makes people smile as well. All that said, I’m currently putting together a list of baked goods that travel well, sit pretty and taste great.
Today I made lemon poppy seed muffins. I hope to make these regularly for this new adventure. It’s simple and I don’t think I’ve ever met a person that doesn’t like lemon poppy seed muffins.
I should mention that the original recipe was taken from The Food Network. All I did was tweak the process.
What you will need
- Muffin tins (regular sized or miniature)
- Mixer (not necessary but easier!)
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (room temperature if possible)
- 4 teaspoons poppy seeds
- 1/2 cup milk
Mom It Down!
Preheat oven to 375.
Place the unsalted butter into your mixer. Let that sit for a bit so it’s easy to spread.
Grease your muffin tins.
In a separate bowl, add flour, salt and baking powder. Give that a quick mix. Set aside.
Add sugar and zest to the butter in your mixer. Beat that up until it’s creamy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating between each one. Remove bowl from mixer. Add the poppy seeds.
Measure out 1/2 cup milk. Add flour in three stages adding the milk in between. Stir it up, but be careful not to over mix.
Fill muffin tins at least 2/3 full.
Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
Overcoming Obstacles
I used a canola spray on my muffin tins. It was much quicker than having to butter each one. They popped right out—simple and without a mess.
Also, my eggs were not at room temperature and they turned out just fine. But, next time I will plan ahead and let them sit out. But just an FYI: they will work cold if you’re in a hurry. ;]
Variations
Vegans! These can easily be made vegan. Just use an egg substitute and substitute soy milk for cow’s milk.
I’d also like to try a version using orange zest. In time. In time.
As always, please let me know if you have any suggestions and/or comments.
put the sugar in a blender, add the lemon zest, and pulse a few times. give it a stir, then repeat.
if all goes well, you’ll extract a lot more oil/essence out of the lemons. the trick works really well when powdering sugar for angel food cake too. just make sure you don’t pulse for too long — the heat can make the sugar bind into clumps, but they’ll break down in a sifter quickly.
Congrats on the new baking adventures ahead! That sounds like something you will really, truly enjoy, and what more can a girl ask for? :-)
Thanks, Milissa. Yeah, it’s not a HUGE deal or anything, but it does mean I can continue baking every week, you know? I bake all the time, at least once a week (I’m also making many of these recipes over again, like pancakes, bread, etc) So this gives them all a home.
Jonathan: I’ll give that a go! Although, it means messing up another item! I can do it. heh
Well, its just sugar in a blender ( or food processor ). It literally washes clean with a quick water rinse — which is why I do it myself, my sink is too small to clean more than 1 appliance a day !
I should also say, it smells wonderful.
I love making lemon poppy seed muffins!
I add a little bit of wholemeal flour to mine and I glaze them with a really thin layer of icing made with icing sugar and lemon juice.
I make the glaze really runny and then dip the muffins in and twist them upwards so they don’t drip.
The glaze is quite see through when its dry but it gives the muffins a really tangy crunch.
Congratulations, I hope your baking sells like hot cakes! :)
I finally got a KitchenAid mixer for Christmas! Yay! I can finally start trying some of your recipes.
Question: what attachments for the mixer are worth getting, and which ones aren’t?
Pascha: Get this one (Paddle attachment, very common. Probably came with?)
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-K45B-Replacement-Frustration-Free-Packaging/dp/B00005LD47/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1262090873&sr=1-16
This one: (For bread):
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-K45DH-Dough-Replacment-KSM90/dp/B00005LD48/ref=pd_sim_k_1
This one for beating (cheesecakes, etc):
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-K45WW-Replacement-Frustration-Free-Packaging/dp/B00005LD49/ref=pd_bxgy_k_img_b
I also have this one for ice cream:
http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KICA0WH-Cream-Maker-Attachment/dp/B0002IES80/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1262090978&sr=1-5
Hope this helps! And YAY! You’re going to love it.
You totally remind me of the lady in Julie & Julia. You could go through a baking cookbook, one new recipe a week :)
michele & pascha-
i’d strongly suggest looking for ‘vintage’ replacements beaters if you can — yard sales, ebay, etc. kitchenaid has been making cheaper and cheaper accessories over the years. the older ones are super sturdy, the newer ones tend to corrode and chip enamel. i’ve heard of dough hooks breaking too.
its sad how brands just cheapen themselves with age. i’m still p***ed that pyrex hasn’t been made with borosilicate glass in years.
I hear ya, Jon, but mine have been going strong for over 5 years and they are put to use several times each week. I haven’t had any problems with mine. None. Zero.
A tip? Don’t ever put them through the dishwasher. I just learned that! They chip and stuff in the dishwasher. Always wash them by hand.