The Teaspoon: Poppy Seeds Muffins with Orange Blossom Icing

By Diana

Originally I was planning to make a seasonal recipe with lots of rhubarb and pink colours everywhere... As I didn't listen to a few of my friends with strong opinions against rhubarb, I began experimenting for the first time with the reddish celery-shape fruit/veg and went back to old times when I didn't follow any recipes -or advice- and just trusted my cooking senses... Not a good idea... The results, as expected were beyond awfulness... My husband trying to cheer me up has been eating the pitiful rhubarb muffins every afternoon between his study breaks since I am still in the denial stage and refuse to proudly throw them to the bin.

To make up my post for the blog this week I started again, this time with no rhubarb and tried poppy seeds instead and orange blossom which I absolutely adore. Georgette, my Syrian grandma, used to make a floating type dessert using this aromatic water and its smell brings back just good Sunday memories, perfect to recover from the rhubarb experience. So here you go, soft poppy seeds muffins with orange blossom icing, to enjoy in the rainy day while watching the Queen floating on the Thames. Happy Jubilee!

Ingredients

Yield: 6 muffins

50 g butter, melted and cooled

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg, beaten

100 ml single cream

1 vanilla pod, seeds only

75 g self-raising flour

1/2 teaspoons baking powder

50 g caster sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

For the icing

1 tablespoon orange blossom water

1 tablespoon lime/lemon juice

1 tablespoon hot water

200 g icing sugar (or enough to get an spreadable consistency)

Preparation method

Preheat the oven to 150C or 300F

Line a 6-hole muffin tin with paper muffin cases.

In a bowl combine the melted butter with the honey, vanilla extract, beaten egg, cream and vanilla seeds scratched from the pod.

In another bowl, bigger than the first one, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Stir in the wet ingredients from the first bowl into this dried mixture using an electric mixer until well combined. Add the poppy seeds at the end. Don't use the electric mixer but a wooden spoon to combine them well into the mixture.

Pour the mixture carefully into the 6 paper cases and bake for 40 minutes or until golden, raised and when inserting a knife in one of the muffins it comes out clean.

For the icing

In a small bowl add 1 tablespoon of orange blossom water and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Incorporate the icing sugar and mix well using a spoon until the mixture becomes spreadable. Add hot water if necessary but carefully that the icing is not too runny.

Once the muffins are ready allow them to cool down completely and then add about one tablespoon of the icing on top of each muffin. That’s it!