Spiced Raspberry-Filled Muffins
By: Nikki
Published: Wednesday, March 10, 2010 - 8:03am

Ingredients




1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
scant pinch ground ginger 
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking power
dash salt 
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup skim milk
12 frozen raspberries (one per muffin)
extra brown sugar and cocoa powder for muffin tops.

Preparation

1 Pre-heat oven to 350 F, and spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray (or line with paper muffin cups). 2 In a large bowl, mix together sugar and egg until creamy. 3 Add in the vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, melted butter. Stir until combined. 4 In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the mixture. BEFORE stirring, pour in the vegetable oil and milk, and then stir only until blended. 5 Place 1 tbsp of batter into each muffin cup. Take 1 raspberry, and put it in the middle of each batter filled cup, and press down slightly. Ensure the raspberry does not go all the way to the bottom. 6 Place 1 generous tsp of batter on top of each muffin cup, and use the spoon to ensure the batter is spread even over each muffin cup and fully covering the raspberries. (Each muffin cup should be just over 3/4 full.) 7 Sprinkle some brown sugar (about 1/8 tsp) over each muffin top, then sprinkle a dash of cocoa powder over each muffin top. 8 Bake for about 20-25 minutes, checking the muffins after 20 minutes to ensure they are not burnt. 9 They are done when the tops are slightly golden and dry, and when a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the muffin.

About


Here is a muffin recipe that I have been playing around with for quite some time. I love the taste of spices in baked goods! This recipe has a nice soft combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Sprinkling the brown sugar and cocoa powder on the tops prior to baking gives a nice light crumble on the tops, and gives an added tasty flavour! The addition of the frozen raspberry is a nice fruity surprise when biting into the muffin, and compliments the cinnamon flavour really well. This recipe makes 12 mini muffins, or 6 large muffins. There will be batter left over, about enough for 1 large-sized muffin if you want to make an extra one. Enjoy!