Vanilla poppy seed muffins with lemon streusel

 

Yesterday I added a new item to the full menu:  vanilla poppy seed muffins with lemon streusel.

These muffins have a big flavor on top and a mild flavor underneath.  By that I mean that the lemon streusel that tops this muffin is bold and full of flavor and texture, but the muffin underneath is flavored only mildly with vanilla, and also just a bit of lemon zest that is barely noticeable.  This balance of strong and mild flavor means that it works well both eaten plain or spread with butter and jam.  Any jam will do, but my preference for these is raspberry.  

The combination of raspberry and lemon is one that always resonates with me in all sorts of foods.  To me, they both seem to be strong flavors that work very well together since each tends to moderate the strength of the other, i.e.,  each balances the other but neither is cancelled out in terms of the fullness of flavor.

These muffins are made by first combining ingredients for the lemon streusel:  lots of lemon zest, sugar, light brown sugar, flour and melted butter.  Stirred until mixed and a bit lumpy, the streusel is made first and sits in a bowl waiting for the muffin batter.

For the muffins, whisk together flour, baking powder, poppy seeds and salt, and put aside.  In a separate bowl, sugar and lemon zest are rubbed together until very fragrant.  (Not as much lemon zest goes into the muffin as into the streusel.)  Then the sugar/zest is whisked together with eggs and a small amount of sour cream, not long, but long enough to combine thoroughly.  While whisking, slowly pour in melted butter and canola oil.  Then do the same with buttermilk (which helps to promote a soft crumb for the muffin), lemon juice (just a teaspoon) and vanilla.

Pour this liquid mixture over the dry ingredients and slowly fold it all together.

I love the act of folding ingredients. It's a gentle process, slow and meticulous.  I always marvel how different a batter can be that is mixed with a vigorous action (by mixer or by hand) versus one that is folded slowly by hand.  Some batters need energetic mixing.  But others must be folded in order to achieve a desired texture and softness.  In the case of folding, the ingredients are coaxed together, without forcing.  It must be done slowly and with deliberation.

After folding, you now have a mixture ready to go into the oven.  I measure out a specific amount of batter for each muffin.  That way each muffin cup is filled with the same volume, and so each one cooks to the same level of doneness.  Once the batter is in the cups, I smooth it out with the back of spoon, pushing it to the edges of the muffin cups so that they are flat and even.  Then I top each with a generous amount of the lemon streusel.  I don't press the streusel into the batter.  I just let it sit on top.  As the muffin expands as it cooks, the streusel takes the brunt of the heat on top which is just what it needs to give that slightly firm, slightly crunchy texture with lots of flavor from the butter and sugars.  The lemon zest comes through very well as it is not inhibited by the other flavors in the streusel, but it is affected a bit by the brown sugar, giving the zest some dusky flavor overtones.  

After 16 minutes in a hot oven (425 F), they come out and are immediately removed from the pan.  They cool to room temperature and are ready to eat.  These are big muffins, baked in jumbo-sized muffin cups.

Muffins are a great breakfast, a easy tidy snack, perfect food to share with others over conversation at a brunch, even great movie food, in my opinion.  They are a wonderful small food for whenever the mood strikes.

I hope you'll give them a try when they appear on an upcoming weekly menu.