Disclaimer: Kelly’s Jelly does advertise on this website; however, Kelly didn’t know I would be using her jellies in some of these muffins and I purchased her jellies at the local Vancouver New Seasons Market. There was no quid pro quo or whatever legal jargon might apply…
I was checking out Kelly’s website last week and while cruising her recipes, one caught my attention: Mini Donut Muffins. Kelly adapted a recipe at allrecipes.com to include her jelly in the center of the muffins. Her recipe got me to thinking about how I might adapt it further to include cheese.
This is what I did:
This was my first attempt making muffins from scratch and they were denser than I expected. However, that was a misconception on my part. In thinking about the why of the texture, I realized the recipe was re-creating “cakey” donut holes; therefore the texture and dryness were exactly what the original recipe promised… duh, my bad…
Ingredients:
The Muffins (makes 24 regular-size muffins):
1 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup (1 stick) Butter
1 1/2 Teaspoons Nutmeg
1 Cup Whole Milk, at room temperature (explanation below)
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder (FYI, I bought new baking powder and tossed the 1989 can I used in my last recipe… while I don’t ascribe to tossing herbs and spices every six months… 1989 is a little over-the-line…)
2 Cups Flour (I used Cake Flour which may have also contributed to the “cakey” texture… what a concept…)
The Fillings:
1/2 Cream Cheese Filling Recipe (use the filling part to make Cheese Danish; ignore the rest of the recipe)
6 Ounces Koko’s Coconut Gouda, cut into 1/2 ounces cubes (separate review of this cheese will be posted in the next few days).
A small dollop of jelly or jam (I never bothered to learn the difference; perhaps I should Google it… just a thought):
- Kelly’s Jellies:
- Pine-a-Peno
- Habanero Pepper
- Strawbanero
- Hello Dolly’s Homemade Preserves (A localCrawfordville, Florida favorite; however, you need an “introduction” to get your hands on these babies… luckily I did…):
- Blueberry
- Cranberry-Pomegranate
- Peachy Nectarine
The Finishing Touches:
1/2 Cup Butter, Melted
1 Cup Sugar
Preparations:
Preheat your oven to 375° F.
Spray your muffin pans with Pam or store brand of baking spray.
For muffins, mix sugar, butter and nutmeg in large bowl.
Add milk. (Tip, let milk rise to room temperature, otherwise the butter will start to congeal… a word to the wise)
Stir in baking powder and flour until just combined.
Fill muffin cups 1/3 full.
Top with jellies and cheeses.
Top with more muffin batter, leaving room for muffins to rise.
Bake 20-25 minutes until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Remove from pan and let cool.
Brush cooled muffins with melted butter and sprinkle generously on all sides with sugar.
Clean up the kitchen, or if lucky, let The Man clean up the kitchen… like that’s going to happen… I can dream…
Some after thoughts: the cream cheese and jellies were partially absorbed into the batter which did not give me the desired “finish”. They tasted amazing but I would have liked more of a gooey center – any thoughts on this are welcomed – please leave comments. Cooling the muffins also allowed the Gouda to cool; you might want to eat them warm instead when using a harder cheese.
Of all the combinations, The Man’s favorite was the Pine-a-Peno and Coconut Gouda which created a Pina Colada Muffin. My favorite was the Cranberry-Pomegranate and Cream Cheese combination.
Definitely, all were 4 Paws Winners.
Foodie Tip of the Day: Like grocery shopping, you might want to resist recipe cruising when hungry… just sayin’…
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