Picture Of

Chocolate Raspberry Cake

Very nearly everything I cook or bake is based on some sort of craving that I have had at one point or another. I also have been making and freezing muffins to eat every morning for a quick breakfast. After a rather unappetizing batch of muffins (strawberry-almond-oat … they were pretty dry) I craved something bursting with tangy lemony flavor. Something moist, bright, and pretty. I decided I wanted to make Lemon Raspberry Muffins. I haven’t seen too many recipes for these, nor have I had them before, but I have seen the lemon-raspberry combination in desserts and it sounded good. I used a recipe that I clipped out of Food and Wine a while back and modified that. It turned out to be everything that I hoped it would be. Tart, moist, and tangy. Sweet, bright, and still delicious the day after baking!

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups flour

3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons white sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoons salt

1 cup raspberries (fresh or frozen)

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Glaze

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup sugar

Lemon Sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan. Whisk together the dry muffin ingredients in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, oil and lemon zest. Then whisk in the lemon juice. Toss the raspberries with the flour (I used frozen berries) then add the wet ingredients to the dry. Stir gently with a rubber spatula until just blended. Do not overmix.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes until a cake tester inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean (a few crumbs are okay). While the muffins are baking, mix the 1/2 cup of sugar with the lemon peel in a small bowl. Set aside. Then, in a small saucepan stir together the 1/4 cup of sugar and the 1/4 cup of lemon juice. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a simmer and simmer until it is slightly thickened. The syrup should measure about 1/4 of a cup.

When the muffins are out of the oven and have cooled 5 minutes, brush them with the lemon glaze, then gently dip/roll the tops in the lemon sugar. Let cool on a wire rack. To freeze, let cool completely. Then, wrap individually in plastic wrap and place muffins in a large freezer bag and freeze. To defrost, microwave on the defrost cycle until soft and warmed.

Related : Raspberry
Related : Chocolate Raspberry Cake Recipe