A RECIPE: Coconut muffins with lime curd

Ever since I produced these fabulous (if I do say so myself) cookies, I’ve become borderline obsessive compulsive about testing recipes with coconut oil. I get into little ruts like this on a fairly regular basis- like at breakfast for instance. Breakfast is the only meal of the day where I become infatuated with a particular thing and stick with it for six months to a year, unable to break the habit. That is until I’m forced to and then I, reluctantly at first move on to something else. For instance I have just broken the Total 2% yogurt with mango and blueberries phase and I’m now back to porridge dolloped with yogurt and sprinkled with grapenuts (sometimes berries). Every other meal of the day is different but breakfast is where I get stuck. And so I’ve digressed. Coconut oil is now consuming my every culinary thought and as I discover its versatility I’m becoming more and more infatuated.

Partially it’s the smell. Unscrewing a jar of coconut oil is like opening a bag of coffee to me. I just have to shove my nose inside and inhale like it’s the last breath I’ll take in all day. So, in lieu of my preoccupation with the use of coconut oil, this weeked I baked muffins. Lots of muffins. Lots of muffins that are now piled high in my freezer crying out for people to come over and eat so that they don’t fall out everytime that I open the door. It took me a while to come up with something that worked because I wanted to incorporate the lemon-lime curd I had in the fridge- initially with the idea that I would fill them with the curd. But it all became too tricky and so I stuck with spooning over the curd after the cooking (which is optional but highly recommended). Instead you could cut them open and spread with jam or honey. Enjoy and please pass on any suggestions for coconut oil that you have!
Coconut Muffins with Lemon-Lime Curd

This recipe is remarkably simple. You can literally whip them up in 10 minutes plus the baking time. Which means that they are ideal for impressing last minute guests- no excuses anymore. The outside is crispy and crunchy and they are perfect for slicing in half and toasting afterwards. For a more cupcake-like texture, substitute the baking soda for baking powder and add an extra 25ml/2 tbsp of milk.

Makes 6

Difficulty: Easier than you think

125ml/ 1/2 cup milk

85ml/1/3 cup coconut milk, in it’s melted form

1 egg

200g / 1 3/4 cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

75g/ 1/3 cup sugar

75g/ loosely packed 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Lime curd, to serve

1/ Heat the oven to 375F/190C/Gas 5. Line a muffin tin with baking papers or if you have a rubber muffin sheet, there is no need.

2/ In a bowl mix together all of the wet ingredients. In another large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and using a rubber spatular gently but quickly fold the wet and the dry together. This should not be mixed and should not be fully combined. It should look scraggly and if it doesn’t then you will have tough muffins and wish that you had read the directions properly the first time round.

3/ Fill the muffin holes with the mixture- I find that the best way to get nice evenly rounded tops is to use an ice cream scoop. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and a skewer come out clean when inserted into the center of one of the muffins. Cool on a wire rack, or serve immediately with lemon or lime curd spooned over the top. Or you can cut a hole in the top of the muffins, scoop out some of the filling and fill the hole with the curd before returning the muffin top.