About once a week I try to bake with my boys. I do try to cook as healthy treats as possible, so while this recipe does have chocolate chunks in it, it’s very low in sugar (only half a cup) and there’s no butter, just 1/4 of a cup of oil. As an alternative to extra sugar and butter, I used applesauce. You don’t actually taste the apple but it helps bring extra sweetness to the muffins while keeping them extremely moist.
Lemon Muffins of any description are a favourite of ours. I find that the inclusion of sour cream works really together with the other ingredients. It adds an extra element of sourness and moisture to the muffins.
This recipe can also been adapted to make delicious Lemon and Poppy Seed Muffins!
Chocolate Chunk and Lemon Muffins
Makes 12
Dry Ingredients:
2 Cups Plain Flour
2 Heaped Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Caster Sugar
Wet Ingredients:
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup Sour Cream
Finely Grated Rind from 1 Lemon
Juice from 1/2 Lemon
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2/3 Cup Apple Sauce
1/4 Cup Oil
1 Cup Chocolate Chunks (I broke round chocolate discs into a mix of halves & quarters)
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper wrappers. (or you could spray the tin if you would prefer not to user wrappers.)
2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. (I got Mr 3 to help me!)
3. Add all the wet ingredients to a 2nd bowl, beating well with a fork until well combined.
4. Fold the wet mix into the dry mixture, then fold through the chocolate chunks. The more lumpy the batter, the more character your muffins will have. If you over-beat then you will end up with smooth cupcakes instead of wholesome muffins.
5. Pour the mixture carefully into the prepared muffin tin, ensuring each hole has approximately equal batter.
6. Pop the tin in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, by which time your muffins should be golden and cooked through.
7. Remove from the oven, allow to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before removing the muffins to cool completely.
These muffins are easy to make (you don’t even need electric beaters) and best of all – they are lemony, chocolatey and yummy!
