Chocolate Chip and Macadamia Nut Muffins

“I don’t call it the best muffin, but it’s what we called the homemade savoury!”

There isn’t any odd combination, make your very own muffin into savoury varities! I made a nutty one! Yes, chocolate chips muffin with Macadamia nuts added into it. In fact, you may add any kind of nuts you like, even peanuts.. and that was what my “Master”, Richard, joked about in his baking class (chuckling)!

Ingredients
250 grams of self-raising flour
2 medium eggs
125 grams of butter, soften
150 grams of milk
100 grams of sugar
100 grams of Macadamia nuts, coarsely crushed and roasted at 160°C for 5 – 10 minutes till golden brown
200 grams of chocolate chip
20 grams of cocoa powder/ or chocolate powder
1 teaspooon of cinnamon powder

1 teaspoon of dark rum essence, optional

Utensil:
14 medium-sized muffin moulds (model 152), greased or simply line each with paper cup

Method
1) Combine flour, cocoa powder, and cinnamon powder, sift into large mixing bowl. Add chocolate chips and Macadamia nuts.

2) Mix eggs and milk together with electric mixer till just well will do. Add rum essence to enhance the taste, as desired.

3) Heat butter and sugar over low fire till butter melts. Stir constantly while heating to avoid burning. Heat off and leave aside to cool.

4) Add egg mixture into cooled butter mixture, and fold in flour mixture with clean bare hand in upward circular motions, until combine just well. Need not to over-mix the mixtures to avoid denseness in muffins.

5) Ladle batter into each greased muffin mould or paper cup till 80% filled. Preheat oven to 200°C for 15 minutes. Place muffin moulds at centre rack of oven, and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. When done, leave it to cool before removing from muffin moulds (together with muffin cup, if used).

My muffin counts about 310kcal per cup. Choose low fat skimmed/ fresh milk to shed a little more calorie intake!

Tips: To create softer and moist muffins, avoid over-folding the mixture.