Almond Poppy Seed Muffins

I have a question for the ladies out there. Do you ever take your purse and dump it out? Dump every little coin, paperclip, hair tie and piece of trash out of it? Then pick through the contents, get rid of those things that are cluttering it up and placing your necessities neatly back inside your purse.

With the painter almost finished here at our house I have been thinking about what I have that is really necessary and what can be considered clutter. It’s as if I have “dumped” it out and I am starting over. Just thinking about the purge makes me feel invigorated.  Imagine if you will, how much better our lives would be if we applied “dumping the unnecessary” to ourselves.  How much better would we feel to get rid of the negative thoughts that are cluttering our minds every day?

These muffins are wonderfully moist and delicious. The finishing touches are not necessary, but I love the added crunch on top. I promised easy recipes, and that is still my goal. This week’s recipe is easy, but I’m not sure how many of you will have almond paste lying around. These muffins are well worth the trip to the grocery store though. This recipe is from one of my favorite cookbooks. One that is well worn with plenty of vanilla splashes and creased pages. Almond Poppy Seed Muffins is from Marcy Goldman’s The New Best of Better Baking.com. You may add one teaspoon of lemon extract and a little lemon juice for a fantastic lemon poppy seed muffins.

5.0 from 1 reviews

Almond Poppy Seed Muffins

 

Author:

Amye Melton

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Ingredients

• 1 c. sugar
• 4-oz. almond paste, minced
• ½ c. finely ground almonds
• ½ c. (4-oz.) unsalted butter
• ¼ c. canola oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. sour cream
• ⅓ c. milk
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2¾ c. all-purpose flour
• 2½ tsp. baking powder
• ¼ tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. poppy seeds
• FINISHING TOUCHES
• Slivered almonds
• Coarse Sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. Position the oven rack in the upper third of the oven. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend the sugar and almond paste together well, about 2 to 4 minutes. Add the ground almonds, butter, and oil and blend well. Fold in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and poppy seeds and blend, scraping the bottom of the bowl occasionally to ensure nothing gets stuck in the well of the mixing bowl. If the mixture seems too loose, add a touch more flour. It should be the consistency of thick cake batter.
3. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Top each muffin with some slivered almonds and sugar. Place the muffin cups on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake about 30 to 35 minutes, until the muffins are nicely browned and spring back when lightly touched. Let them cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning them out onto a rack to cool completely.

3.2.2708