Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Raspberry Surprise Muffins

This is an Alison Holst recipe, and one that I make frequently because I really like the combination of raspberry and coffee.

2 cups self-raising flour (or 2 cups plain flour & 2 teaspoons baking powder)
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
100 grams butter (3.5 ounces or 1 stick butter)
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon instant coffee
Rind of 1 lemon
½ cup raspberry jam
¼ cup sifted icing sugar (powdered sugar)
1 – 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Place flour, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a large bowl. Melt the butter. Dissolve the instant coffee in the milk and add the beaten egg and lemon rind. Add the liquids (butter and milk mix) to the dry ingredients. Fold together but don’t overmix.

Fill a 12 muffin pan with muffin cases. Half fill each case then make a tiny well in the center. Place a teaspoon of raspberry jam in the well. Divide the remaining mixture between the muffin cases, covering all the jam.

Bake at 200 C for 10 – 12 minutes. Once the muffins are almost cool, make the icing/frosting. Mix the icing sugar with just enough lemon juice to make a thin icing/frosting. Drizzle over the top of the muffins.

Serve with a cup of coffee and enjoy!

You might have seen this recipe on the loops recently.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
1 Coffee Mug
4 tablespoons flour(that’s plain flour, not self-rising)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
Small splash of vanilla

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don’t be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT! (this can serve 2 if you want to share!)

I decided to try the cake and hubby and I both enjoyed it for our dessert, served with yoghurt.
It’s quite a dense cake because there’s no baking powder, but it definitely rises. A little too well. If you make it, put a plate under your mug when it’s cooking in the microwave to save on cleanup. Also make sure you clean your plate and mugs straightaway because the mixture adheres rather well! I mixed the egg, oil and milk in a separate mug and added to the flour mix. Hubby and I also decided that one mug cake was enough for two.

I decided I’d try a variation:

Leave out the cocoa and chocolate chips. Grate in the rhind of half a lemon and add a handful of berries. I added raspberries because I like them but blueberries would work. Mix in the same way with all the other ingredients. Once your mug cake is cooked – squeeze half a lemon into a cup and mix in two teaspoons of sugar. Stir and spoon over your cake before eating. Serve with cream, ice cream or yoghurt. This was yummy!!

A third variation would be replacing the chocolate and chocolate chips with instant coffee and a few chopped walnuts.

Enjoy!!