Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Tangerine Cream Dreams~



Browsing delectable Food Blogs this week I happened upon Peabody's Pepita Crunch Muffins.
I didn't have Pepitas..but I had my sweet almonds from Christmas..I had the cream cheese..and loads of little clementine/tangerines..


So I stirred up a small 1/2 batch today and they really are quite good.



Here is Peabody's recipe..


Orange Cream Cheese Muffins with Pepita Crunch

Pepita Crunch
1 large egg white (reserve yolk)
2 TBSP plus 1 tsp granulated sugar
½ cup pepitas

Muffins
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
zest of ½ a small orange
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature, broken into 3-4 pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 cup superfine sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, slightly firm
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk (reserved from Pepita Crunch)
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Pepita Crunch:
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a rimmed cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg white and 1 TBSP of the granulated sugar. Add the pepitas, tossing to coat well with the egg/sugar mixture. Pour into the prepared cookie sheet and spread evenly in a single layer. Sprinkle 1 more TBSP of the sugar over the pepitas. Bake for 7-8 minutes, stir the pepitas with a fork, and bake another 7 minutes. Remove from oven, stir the pepitas , sprinkle with the remaining 1 tsp of sugar, and bake for another 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Break up any clusters with your fingertips and set aside.

Making the Batter:

Increase oven temperature to 375F.
In a food processor, process the cream cheese, orange juice and orange zest, in three 10-second intervals.
In a large bowl, thoroughly whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
Cut butter into 1-inch pieces and place in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the machine and add the cream cheese mixture, and mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the superfine sugar in a steady stream, then blend in the eggs, the reserved yolk, and the vanilla. Reduce the mixer to low speed and add flour mixture in 3 additions, mixing just until blended after each addition.

Scoop muffins into a prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with 1 TBSP of the Pepita Crunch. Be sure to use any sugar that remains in the pan.
Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until the muffins are golden brown an the tops are springy to the touch. To ensure even baking, toward the end of baking time, rotate the pans top to bottom and front to back. Remove from the oven and place on rack to cool.

Orange Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
5 TBSP fresh orange juice
1 ½ tsp light corn syrup
Combine sugar, orange juice and corn syrup. Whisk until smooth and pour over muffins.

Adapted from Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins and More by Carole Walter



I used the sugared almonds I already had..and fresh clementine/tangerine juice and peel.


PS Did everyone see La Tartine Gourmande's darling new Lulu?Makes you smile as wide as the screen.

11 comments:

  1. You have that way of making a muffin so elegant and so beautiful! I love the pictures!

    Lulu Gourmande is adorable :)

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  2. good morning nana, muffins to kick off the new year, they look very festive under wraps! hope you and fun last night, i know you had a special date~

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  3. Monique, you've made muffins elegant. ... The little ribbon is such a sweet touch. WOW!

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  4. Positively delightful Monique!

    Brilliant idea to use your fabulous almonds, too! xo~m.

    Happy New Year & love, peace, happiness & prosperity to you and your wonderful family throughout 2009 and beyond. xo~m.

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  5. I just peaked at Lulu - so sweet ;)

    The muffin recipes looks wonderful, Monique. Thank you for sharing. I love pepitas and clementines are a winter favorite of mine. Copying and pasting!

    Great photography!

    Happy New Year, Monique! Health and happiness to you and your family.

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  6. Happy New Year Monique!!! That muffin looks so pretty - almost too pretty to eat :) Glad I found your blog - you have the most amazing pictures that I enjoy everyday.

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  7. Happy New Year. The muffins look magnificent!

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  8. Monique - thank you for the recipe but most especially the beautiful presentation - I don't do a lot of special presentations, but sometimes I do! I have a special girls weekend (my cousins) coming up next month and so I'm saving this one! Thank you!

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  9. How did you do the papers for the muffins. Precut? Parchment? Did you bake the muffins in these or wrap them after? It looks so lovely and I am trying to work on lovely, not for everyday but more often. Glad I found you.
    I love the chefs hat and what a thoughtful gift from your daughter. And you have some beautiful photos. Working on that also.

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  10. Good morning~
    Hi Amber ..you can get the tulips cups quite a few places..

    http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/product.asp?pn=PP0563&bhcd2=1230901212
    Has them..I bought chcolate and white..they are parchment-like..the whites do tend to discolor a bit but still very nice..any drops of batter etc..and I would recommended not using high temp. baking to keep the whites as white as you can:)

    Thy come well packaged in a pastry/ cake size box.
    Thanks for your comments..

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  11. Bea's Lulu is sweet. Those muffins look great as well...far better photographed than mine.

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