For many chefs and cooks, baking started their odyssey into the culinary world. School-aged kids can be intrigued by the scientific process of measuring and the chemical reactions between ingredients when heat is added.
But baking is also emotive and has a calming effect. It can be as complicated or intimidating as you choose to make it. Our hardworking grannies achieved a lot with a large bowl and a wooden spoon.
This Christmas, a baking starter kit might include a digital scales, a large bowl, a good whisk and two baking tins. Firstly, a loaf tin for breads and loaf cakes (which can accommodate the occasional round cake recipe) and a muffin tin for cupcakes, fairy cakes, mince pies, sticky toffee puddings and muffins, of course.
American muffin recipes are usually proper “muffins” which developed originally as “quick breads” in small tins and they are surrounded by a bit of confusion as their history is somewhat intertwined with cupcakes. Muffins possess the WYSIWYG factor (what you see is what you get).
Cupcakes, being miniature cakes are a little less comfortable in their skin and are the glamour models of the genre requiring lots of frosting and embellishments. Muffin batters are “wetter” mixtures with oil, milk and even fruit juice added while cupcake mixtures start by creaming butter and sugar together. American muffins are entirely different to English muffins, which are less sweet, flatter, more like crumpets in shape, risen with yeast and cooked on a griddle pan.
Kids love these muffins and they are so easy I’ve seen a seven-year-old make them. Dried cranberries, a little tart, go well with white chocolate for added sweetness. By simply mixing everything with a wooden spoon in a bowl, this recipe can be whipped up in 10 minutes.
I think they are the perfect treat, especially served fresh out of the oven. Since freshly baked muffins are best eaten the day they are baked, I immediately freeze any extras and reheat them in the microwave for 30 seconds from frozen.
Cranberry and white chocolate muffins (makes 12)
Ingredients
75g dried cranberries
150g white chocolate, drops (divided into 75g and 75g)
300g plain flour
4 level tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
100g caster sugar
300ml milk
1 large egg, lightly whisked
60g butter, melted
Method
1. Soak the cranberries in a bowl of cold water for 30 minutes, then discard the water.
2. Divide the chocolate into 75g and 50g (for the melted drizzle).
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C Fan. Fill a muffin tray with muffin cases.
4. Into a wide bowl, sieve together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add in the sugar, half the cranberries and 75g of the white chocolate drops (keeping the rest for the drizzle).
5. Combine the milk, egg and melted butter.
6. With a wooden spoon or spatula, make a hollow in the centre of the dry ingredients and gradually pour in the liquid mixture, stirring until just combined (do not over mix the batter or it will make the muffins tough).
7. Spoon the batter into 12 muffin cases (you should have enough batter to fill them two thirds full) then press the remaining cranberries into the tops of the muffins.
8. Bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until risen, firm to the touch and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Leave the muffins in the tin to cool for a few mins and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. Melt the remaining white chocolate in a microwave in five-second bursts, stirring (or bain marie) and drizzle thinly over the tops of the muffins.
Variation: You can add any type of fruit or nuts to muffins. Zest of oranges, lemons and mashed-up banana will add flavour to most mixes. Frozen blueberries are also popular as they can be added straight from the freezer.
