Lemon Almond Ricotta Muffins

 This recipe comes from mysequinedlife.com.

Ingredients

1 3/4 c flour

3/4 sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 c ricotta cheese

2 eggs

1/2 c unsalted butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

3 Tablespoons lemon juice

1 3/4 teaspoons lemon zest

1/4 c sliced almonds, roughly chopped

For the glaze:

1/2 c plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Generously grease 10 cups of a regular 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk so all of the dry ingredients are evenly mixed together.
3. In a separate bowl, add ricotta cheese, eggs, melted butter, almond extract, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat the wet ingredients together well until light and fluffy. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. The batter will be pretty thick.
4. Scoop batter evenly into the 10 prepared muffin cups. The batter should come up to just below the top of each muffin cup. Evenly scatter sliced almonds over top of the muffins and lightly press them into the surface.
5. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and a tester (like a toothpick) inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let muffins cool in muffin tin for a few minutes, and then loosen the outer edges with a small thin spatula. Transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Once muffins are completely cool, add all of the glaze ingredients to a bowl and whisk until no lumps remain. I transferred the glaze mixture to a plastic bag, sealed, and snipped the corner off (you can use a piping bag if you have one). Drizzle glaze over top of the muffins and let harden before serving or storing.

Notes

• When combining the wet and dry ingredients, be sure to mix until just combined. I look for right when the dry flour disappears throughout the batter. Over-mixing can lead to an unpleasant and tough muffin texture.
• Nutritional info is an estimate including all of the glaze being drizzled equally over top of the muffins. Depending on your preference, you may use less than the full amount to glaze (or omit it completely), which would decrease the nutritional stats.

Nutrition

Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 299kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 6.8g | Fat: 12.6g | Saturated Fat: 6.9g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 273mg | Potassium: 76mg | Fiber: 0.9g | Sugar: 23.9g | Calcium: 65mg | Iron: 1mg

Small Batch Cinnamon Coffee Cake

Now that I have just one child at home, I have to find yummy recipes that produce smaller batches. This is a good one. It comes from Mybakingbliss.com.

Note: Ramekin (or muffin) size matters. The recipe creator made these in two 8-ounce ramekins which yields two larger servings. If using 6-ounce ramekins, split the batter evenly into three ramekins. If using 4-ounce ramekins, split the batter evenly into four ramekins. The smaller your ramekin, the quicker your cakes will cook, so check for doneness accordingly. (JW note: I used a muffin pan instead of ramekins, and the recipe made three good-sized muffins.)

Cake Batter:

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

4 tbsp unsalted butter softened to room temperature (or flavorless oil like canola or vegetable)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup whole milk at room temperature

3 tbsp brown sugar (I actually prefer regular sugar)

½ tsp cinnamon

Streusel Topping:

1 tbsp cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes

2 tbsp all purpose flour

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Spray ramekins (I used a muffin pan, making three muffins) with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter, sugar, egg, vanilla extract, and milk until combined. Fold in the flour, baking powder, and salt until combined. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon.
3. Pour half the batter into the prepared ramekins. Sprinkle brown sugar-cinnamon mixture evenly over the cake batter. Pour in the rest of the cake batter evenly over the brown sugar mixture in the ramekins.
4. Prepare the streusel topping: in a small bowl mix together the butter, flour, brown sugar and cinnamon until combined. I like to use a fork to cut the butter into the dry ingredients. Make sure to leave some semi-large chunks of butter in the mixture (that’s the key to a good streusel!)
5. Top each ramekin with the streusel mixture.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.