Nutmeg Muffins

 

One of my favourite things is nutmeg.  I love the way it smells and I love the way it tastes.  It is a member of the sweet baking spices, and very fragrant, but its very unique, sweet, nutty and almost astringent flavour, enables it to be able to stand on its own, much more acceptably than the others.   In fact, its flavour is almost improved when used on its own. It is the fruit of a tree called Evergreen, which grows in Indonesia, and it is a spice which works well with both sweet and savoury dishes.

 

It is one of the major flavourings used in breakfast sausage and I always add a pinch of it to my cooked carrots. (Its my secret ingredient!)  Everyone loves my cooked carrots. It is also a vital component of my bechamel sauce.  It works majorly in  these beautifully fragrant and delicious muffins I am sharing with you today. 

 

The recipe uses 1 1/2 whole nutmegs grated.  I can no longer truly remember where I got the recipe from, as I have it handwritten in a small notebook of mine. I do believe however, that the original recipe might come from The Breakfast Book, by the late Marion Cunningham.  

 

At first glance one might think that 1 1/2 nutmegs is a whole lotta nutmeg, and it looks like a whole lotta nutmeg, but trust me when I say, it works beautifully!  There are NO other flavours added to these and it doesn't need them. No vanilla. No cinnamon. No nothing.  Just nutmeg.

 

You could use already ground nutmeg, but if you do, make sure it is a fresh jar. The really lovely flavour comes from the use of FRESH nutmeg, which is why I highly recommend that you buy some whole nutmegs and grate your own. It doesn't really take that long and is well worth the effort, both in smell and flavour.  1 1/2 whole nutmegs.  I looked up on line how much that would be the equivalent of and it says 3 tsp.  Mine looked like a whole lot more than that however.  So judge accordingly.

 

These are moist and delicious with full on nutmeg flavour.  You might think the flavour would be obnoxious, but in reality it isn't.  Its perfect.  I do not use papers. I like to bake them directly in a well greased pan. 

 

The edges get all crispy. I love that quality of a muffin . . .  these also peak very nicely. 

  

Just look at that beautiful highly speckled texture.   They are great served warm, with some butter and jam, but I like them just as they are with nothing added.  Just the warm muffin, and perhaps a warm cuppa something . . . or maybe a cold glass of milk.  Whatever floats your boat. 

  

I think these are a muffin you will truly fall in love with.  I had not made them for quite some time and I have to tell you, I fell in love with them again today.  So much so that I very naughtily ate not one but two.  True confessions. I will repent tomorrow.

 

 

*Nutmeg Muffins*

Makes one dozen

Printable Recipe

 

These muffins smell gorgeous when they are baking. You might think it is a lot of nutmeg, but trust me, they taste beautiful.  However if you are not a lover of nutmeg, you may not like them. I adore nutmeg. 

280g plain flour (2 cups all purpose)

140g sugar (3/4 cup)

1 TBS baking powder

1 1/2 whole nutmegs, grated (3 tsp)

1/2 tsp salt

1 large free range egg

72g butter, melted (5 TBS)

180ml heavy cream (3/4 cup)

180ml milk (3/4 cup) 

 

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Butter a non-stick 12-cup medium muffin tin really well. Set aside. 

Whisk together all of the dry ingredients.  Whisk together all of the wet ingredients.  Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients.  Pour in the wet ingredients, and stir together until just moistened without any dry streaks. Lumps are okay.  Divide equally amongst the prepared muffin cups. 

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes until well risen and a toothpick inserted in the centre of one comes out clean. Serve warm.  Store any leftovers in an airtight container. 

 

 If you don't like nutmeg, you won't like these, but if you do like it, you are going to fall in love with these beautiful muffins. I think it would be worth baking these and popping them into the freezer so that when the weather gets really hot a bit later on in the season, you have something tasty to enjoy that won't heat up the kitchen. Simply pop into a microwave and warm on high for about 30 seconds.  Bon Appetit!