A mid morning snack was required for the busy creative team who met, bleary eyed on a Sunday morning, to discuss our latest artistic venture.
Healthy muffins were the go!
Bird seed (yes, bird seed), cranberry and pomegranate muffins, and blueberry and yoghurt muffins were the offerings. The “bird seed” refers to my current favourite seed mix from The Source Bulk Foods in Balmain: http://thesourcebulkfoods.com.au/. It’s a very interesting mix called kapai puku which I use in my home-made muesli, so I thought I would give it a go in muffins!
Ingredients – Base Mixture
1 and 3/4 cups plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bi-carbonate soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
2 tbs honey
Bird Seed, Cranberry, Pomegranate and Sour Cherry Mixture
2 tbs kapai puku seed mix
1/2 cup cranberry, pomegranate and sour cherry mix (available in packets from supermarkets)
Blueberry and Yoghurt Mixture
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
2 tbs low-fat yoghurt
Candied orange for decoration (optional)
Method
Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with muffin papers. Lightly spray papers with cooking spray. Expect to make 8 decent sized muffins.
Mix the dry ingredients for the base mixture with a spoon in a bowl until well combined. Divide into two bowls. In another bowl mix the oil, beaten egg, milk and honey.
For the birdseed muffins, add the birdseed mix to the dry ingredients in one bowl. Add half the liquid ingredients, stirring until barely mixed. Gently fold in the cranberries, pomegranates and sour cherries.
For the blueberry muffins, add the other half of the liquid ingredients, stirring until barely mixed. Stir through the yoghurt. Gently fold in the blueberries. Decorate the tops with candied orange if desired.
Spoon each mixture into the muffin papers. Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of a muffin comes out clean.
Remove from the oven – best eaten while warm!
The Quirk and the Cool 