Citrus muffins

July 12, 2012  •  Category:

 

I am naming these Marie’s cakes after my little niece who helped me make them; she is six and is passionate about baking.; in fact, Marie is already planning the name of her future restaurant.


She was eager to help every step of the way and asked a question every five seconds:  ” Tante Joumana can I break the egg?” , “can I taste the butter?” , ” can I try a little honey?” , “Mom does not buy honey for us” , “can I lick the dough?” , “can I pour it?” and so on, for about an hour or so.

The funny thing  is her mom is chronically worried her daughter is not eating enough and is constantly prodding her to eat more food when it is lunch or dinner time.

INGREDIENTS: 24 mini-cakes

  • 2 large eggs
  • 8 oz of  unsalted butter (250 g.); can substitute oil or a mixture of both
  • 2 eggs
  • 8 oz. of milk (200 dl)
  • rind of 2 large lemons  or oranges (2 tbsp)
  • 1 tsp of vanilla 
  • juice of a large lemon (can substitute any other citrus)
  • 1 1/2 cup of powdered sugar (180 g.)
  • 2 1/2 cups of AP flour (360 g.)
  • 2 tsp of baking powder
  • dash of salt
METHOD:
  1. Melt the butter in the microwave or over the stove. Mix the eggs with the milk, vanilla, lemon or orange rind,  lemon juice and lukewarm butter. 
  2. Mix with the flour and baking powder and salt. Do not overmix. Pour into mini-muffin pans and bake at 350F for about 12 minutes or until the muffins are puffed, golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out dry. Cool a bit then serve.

Frosting: 

  • 4 tbsp of ricotta cheese
  • 1 tbsp of lemon juice
  • lemon rind (2 tsp)
  • 4 tbsp of butter
  • 2 cups of powdered sugar
Mix all ingredients till creamy. 

Comments

14 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Oui, Chef says:

    What a gorgeous setting, and a perfect photo. Oh yeah, and the muffins look fab too!

  2. Velva says:

    I think little Marie knows exactly what she likes! Your citrus muffins look delightful.

    Velva

  3. leaf says:

    Gorgeous little cakes… and how great is Marie’s enthusiasm! 😀

  4. Jamie says:

    I love hearing about young children who are already passionate about baking! And her mom should let her be; it sounds like Marie is well able to take care of herself and will be both a happy baker and a happy eater. That said, these cakes are so pretty and sound so good. Today is a lemon cake day here as well but I’ll bookmark these to make another day. I love lemon sweets. I love the sound of the frosting, too.

  5. Jeannie says:

    That looks absolutely delicious and your niece sounds like a very adorable child:)

  6. Rosa says:

    What delicious looking muffins! I’d love to have one with a cup of tea.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  7. kouky says:

    au citron! je ne peux qu’adorer!! très belle journée!!!

  8. Mariana says:

    Just perfect! 🙂 It’s a must to try them. Send a big hug for Marie.

    Best wishes,

    Mariana

  9. Angie@Angiesrecipes says:

    Gorgeous lemon cupcakes! Beautiful presentation.

  10. Susan says:

    What a cute story. I think it’s wonderful that your little niece is so interested in cooking and baking already! Her mother need not worry – the pounds come on eventually – whether we want them too or not 😉

  11. Susan says:

    How rude of me! I forgot to say how delicious these little citrus cakes look. I would love the lemon flavor in them!

  12. Nasifa says:

    Hi, it looks really nice and can i make it as a cake instead of muffins? If so how much amount of ingredients will i need for 9 by 13″ cake pan? Thank you and waiting to see your reply soon.

    • Joumana says:

      @Nasifa: I have not made it as a cake but I think it would work; if you have a 9 by 9″ pan, that might work better; just eyeball it and go from there! (remember the batter should come up to about3/4 of the pan, not more, or it will overflow all over your oven floor.

  13. Kathy says:

    These little muffins look so elegant and delicious! How nice that you have a little helper who is so inquisitive!!

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