Sweet Challah

This past week has gone by so fast. I couldn’t even believe that the weekend has come, and just as quickly, is gone. But you know what they say, when one is busy, one barely notices the time. I was defintely preoccupied at work. It was a pretty interesting week for me, to say the least. I wish I can engage you in an office gossip – but nah… LOL… you wouldn’t appreciate that in a food blog, would you now? ;oD

Anyways, I’ve always been a person who cannot sit still. I like to be busy. No, I thrive at being busy. I am always doing something even when I am sitting down. I’m the type who’s ever on-the-go and always ready to rock and roll, so to speak. I’m used to last minute changes and I adapt immediately to situations when need be.

The downside of this is that it isn’t easy for me to relax, and by this I mean, to just sit down and do.... nothing. I feel like there is always something important for me to do with my time. I have to deliberately slow down. Mr. J is very good at reminding me of this (thank God). I realize that I do need to take a break once a while. It is indeed important to take the time to appreciate the things around us, to enjoy and take in what we have at the moment, otherwise, we might miss out on a lot (and it might be too late when we realize that we did).

Anyways, enough about my rambling.



I love bread. Growing up though, I wasn’t so much of a bread eater. As you know, being Asian means that my house had more rice and noodles than bread. In the Philippines, the only meal served with bread is breakfast (pan de sal). Other than that, bread is more of a snack item to Filipinos than anything else.

However, my short stint in Europe years ago, and now being based in the U.S., have slowly changed me. I’ve come to eat bread with my meals more and I don’t crave rice as much as I used to. (Ugh. I can almost hear the gasp of some Filipinos who may scream “sacrilege!” )

I love to bake bread. Nothing compares to that sweet aroma that tantalizes our senses when baking at home. Unfortunately, with all the hustle and bustle of life, I rarely get the chance to bake them--- and I mean bake ’em in the old fashion way of kneading and manhandling the dough! Hehehe…. (It’s a good stress reliever, actually).



One of the breads that I love eating is Challah (pronounced “khal-lah” - you gotta make that gutteral sound too). Challah is a braided, eggy loaf of bread traditionally eaten by Jews during Sabbath, holidays and other ceremonies. It is very close to the French brioche.

I decided to make Challah for the first time. I buy it all the time so might as well try my hand at it. It came out good, didn't it? With a bit more practice, I'll have the braiding part down in no time.

Nothing beats home-made breads. They’re the best.

Sharing this home-made Challah to Lasang Pinoy Sunday: Bready Or Not. Lasang Pinoy (La.Pi.S) is a weekly food thematic photography meme, Filipino style.

This is also my entry to Homemade#2 Bread, an wonderful event by Ben. Hop over to there to check out all the wonderful creations by other home bakers.

Sweet Challah
from Cooking Light
1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 cup warm water (100°F to 110°F)
3 tablespoons honey
Dash of saffron threads, crushed
3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
3 cups bread flour (about 14 1/4 ounces), divided
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon cornmeal
1 teaspoon water
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon poppy seeds* (I used more than this amount)

Preparation
1) Dissolve yeast in 1 cup warm water in a large bowl; stir in honey and saffron threads. Let stand for 5 minutes. Add melted butter, 1 teaspoon salt, and egg; stir well with a whisk.

2) Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 2 3/4 cups flour to yeast mixture, and stir until a soft dough forms. Cover and let stand for 15 minutes.

3) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will be very soft).

4) Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 40 minutes or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.)

5) Punch dough down. Shape dough into a ball; return to bowl. Cover and let rise an additional 40 minutes or until doubled in size. Punch dough down; cover and let rest 15 minutes.

6) Divide dough into 3 equal portions. Working with 1 portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), on a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a 25-inch rope with slightly tapered ends. Place ropes lengthwise on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal; pinch ends together at untapered ends to seal. Braid ropes; pinch loose ends to seal. Cover and let rise 20 minutes or until almost doubled in size.

7) Preheat oven to 375°.

8) Combine 1 teaspoon water and large egg yolk, stirring with a fork until blended. Uncover loaf, and gently brush with egg yolk mixture. Sprinkle evenly with 1/4 teaspoon poppy seeds. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack.

*NOTE: You may also leave the poppy seeds out, or substitute with sesame seeds, or maybe use sunflower seeds for that matter.

Mustard Flavored-Tuna & Veggie Tartlets and a Blog-anniversry

I have an impulsive nature. I always have ever since I was young. But I have to admit that with age comes restraint (I'd rather call it wisdom though). I’d like to believe that since I am now much wiser, hence I'm less impulsive.

Well, this blog is a result of such impulse. I didn’t plan on having a food blog, never thought of having one ever before in my life – although to be honest, I had already been browsing other food blogs for recipes and inspiration. But one day after entertaining some friends in the house, I wanted to take a picture of my husband’s creations, thus, the thought of starting my own food blog came to mind… and I acted out on it immediately.

And so, Spice Of Life was born in cyberspace around this time last year. Wow. Time indeed passes by so quickly. This is one of those rare times that my impulse yielded some positive results.



I am truly thankful that I have this blog. Despite the dedication and the hours that it requires, I do love sharing my passion with you. This blog had opened a whole new dimension of culinary exchange for me and have allowed me to meet some of the most talented, creative, fun and kindhearted people from all over the world. Albeit these friendships are virtual, nevertheless I feel that sharing a common love and interest in food and food photography have somehow forged a bond among us.

So, to all those who faithfully visit and for those who are just checking this blog out for the first time – THANK YOU. I do hope you’ll continue to come, and I look forward to learning from you in as much as I hope that somehow, I’ve inspired you to cook your meals at home through this blog.

To celebrate my blog's 1st birthday, I’ve decided to do a recipe that’s from one of the most favorite food blog that I visit regularly – Bea of La Tartine Gourmande. I distinctly remember this particular dish of hers, because I was attracted to its vibrant colors, not to mention that I love Tuna. It is a very pretty and nutritious dish…. and did I tell you that I love tuna? :o)

So to celebrate my bloganniversary, I have created Bea’s Mustard-flavored Tuna and Veggie Tartlets. The only minor thing I did to the recipe was to change up the flours. Her’s is a gluten-free version but since I have no gluten problem, I decided to use ½ cup wheat flour instead of quinoa, and ½ cup teff instead of millet flour. Thus, my crust came out darker than hers.



This is a very filling but healthy dish. I especially like the fact that you get the crust, tuna, cheese and veggies all in one bite! I’m glad that I tried this. If you want to, check out the recipe here

Bea, I hope that I’ve done justice to your beautiful creation.

I am also serving this dish to the Lasang Pinoy: Tri-colore. The three colors here being the green from the zucchini, red from the tomatoes and white from the cheese.

Lasang Pinoy (La.Pi.S.) is a weekly thematic food photography meme, Filipino style.

Involtini Of Beef

The South Beach Food and Wine Festival is going on right now even as I write this... and I couldn't go. I'm absolutely bummed out.

It is a 4-day festival taking place by the beach (U.S.'s Riviera, South Beach) which showcases the amazing talents of the world's most renowned wine makers, celebrated chefs and culinary personalities. It's the ultimate event to go for foodies and foodies at heart!

The truth is, it's not so much as I couldn't but that I didn't go - for valid reasons. The tickets for this event are a little expensive. With how the economy is going nowadays, it just doesn't seem right for me to be spending between $200-$400 (for the events I wanted to attend). Arrgghhh!!! I so wanted to go. A part of me is screaming and kicking like a child; but the wise part of me hushed the child down :oD While the experience and fun of meeting all those celebrity chefs whom I admire is arguably worth it, but fact remains - my going isn't a real need. It is just a want; something that I can do away with, or at least, put off for now. If there's any time to spend wisely, it is now. Besides, there's always next year, right?

This festival is definitely an item in my bucket list, so I have to go even for just once. I do hope things will work out for me next time. Till then, I am keeping my fingers crossed, and praying that the economy will take a better turn in the next months to come.

I don't know about you but good food always lifts me up. And since I needed cheering up, I thought that this dish, Involtini Of Beef (or beef roll-ups), would do the trick. It is pleasing to the eye and tastes fantastic! What's more, it is not at all complicated to do. I actually find this quicker to do than, say, lasagna.

If you've been visiting this blog often, you'd notice that my recipes are simple and easy to do. So this dish is right up my alley. Much as I'd like to cook, but I don't want to be spending too much time in the kitchen and not have enough time left to spend with my loved ones. The latter is important too, you know.

I made this for Mr. J for his birthday and he totally liked it. This dish may be simple, but it obviously requires some effort (and love) and the end product is special -- very elegant.

So go ahead and try this dish. As Ingrid Hoffman says, "If I can do it, you can do it!".

I am sharing this dish to Lasang Pinoy Sundays (La.Pi.S): EATS A WRAP!. Lasang Pinoy is a weekly food photography meme, hosted by SpiCes.




Involtini Of Beef
(Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cups carrots, julienned (cut into thin strips)
1/2 cup red or yellow bell pepper (cut into thin strips)
1/2 cup zucchini (cut into thin strips)
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 (3 to 4-ounces each) beef scaloppini (from London Broil or Top Sirloin)
All-purpose flour, for dredging
1/2 cup dry white wine*
1 bay leaf
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup frozen peas
1-ounce thinly sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped

Directions
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the veggies, onion, and garlic and saute until the veggies are tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
4. Stir in the Parmesan.
5. Season beef with salt and pepper.
6. Using 2 tablespoons for each, divide the veggie mixture among the beef slices. 6. Roll up the beef slices to enclose the filling, tucking in the ends. Secure the rolls with toothpicks.
7. Heat the remaining oil and the remaining tablespoon of butter in the same large frying pan over medium-high heat.
8. Dredge the beef rolls in flour to coat lightly.
9. Add the beef rolls and cook until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes.
10. Add the wine and stir to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet.
11. Add the tomatoes with their juices and the bay leaf. Cover and simmer until the beef is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the beef rolls to a platter.
12. Remove the toothpicks, then cover the beef rolls with foil to keep warm.
13. Add the peas and prosciutto to the sauce in the skillet and stir until the peas are heated through and the sauce reduces slightly, about 5 minutes.
14. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.
15. Drizzle the sauce over the beef rolls and serve.

NOTE*: You may substitute wine with chicken broth, if preferred. As for the veggies, I didn't have zucchini on hand, so I just used carrots and green bell pepper and adjusted the amount accordingly .

Triple Chocolate Mousse

"Chocolate cures everything".

Not an entirely accurate statement, but it holds a tiny grain of truth. Chocolate may not solve any of our problems, but it does make us feel better. Why? Because chocolate has substances called phenylethylamine and seratonin. These are mood lifting agents found in our brain. Once chocolate is eaten, these substances are released to the nervous system by our brain enducing a rapid mood change: a feeling of well-being, increase of heart rate and rise in blood pressure. Simply put, chocolate is an "upper" - it physically invigorates us and lessens our inhibitions.

No wonder why the Aztecs of Mexico thought for chocolate to have aphrodisiac qualities. This may also explain the reason why chocolate has become the food for romance and love --the feeling that it evokes within us mimics that of being in love.

For this Valentine's Day, I prepared a special treat for my husband. Guess what?? It's chocolate, of course! (no-brainer there, huh?)

I made a Triple Chocolate Mousse... 3x the aphrodisiac power, what do you say? *wink*

Mr. J unfortunately had to work on Valentines Day, so this meant that we were not going out for dinner. Not that we wanted to anyway. We're both low-key people, and the crowd just serves to take away the appeal for us to dine out on Valentine's Day.

So since he was at work the whole day, I had all the time to prepare our special Valentine's Day dinner. I kept our main course simple, with roasted pork tenderloin with veggies (which I will post later), but for dessert I took the extra effort.

I got the recipe for the Triple Chocolate Mousse from my friend, Kristel's bridal shower. For party favors, she gave away petite sizes of it along with the recipe (which I thought was neat). The mousse was to die for! That's why I promised to try to make it myself. And what better time to do it than on the day of romance???

This dessert is silky and rich, and one of the easiest mousse techniques to do. But, it does need time, at least an hour interval, for each layer to set.

But you know what, Mr. J is worth all my time and effort! Corny as it may sound, but everyday with him is Valentine's. I love him and I am so blessed to have him to share life, and chocolate mousse, with. :oD

Sending this treat out, first to Kristel - thanks for the recipe!... and to Lasang Pinoy Sundays (La.Pi.S): I LOVE FOOD. Lasang Pinoy is a weekly food photography meme, hosted by SpiCes.

Triple Chocolate Mousse
(Recipe is for a large group. You may cut the recipe in half for a smaller group, like I did)

Bittersweet chocolate mousse
6 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used 70% dark chocolate)
1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder
1/2 cup milk
1-1/4 cup whipping cream

White chocolate mousse
12 oz white chocolate, chopped
1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream

Milk chocolate mousse
10 oz milk chocolate, chopped
1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin powder
1 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream

To assemble:

1. For bittersweet mousse, melt chocolate in a bowl resting over a pot of gently simmering water (or use a double boiler)m stirring constantly. Add gelatin powder into milk and let sit for a minute. Heat milk (microwave is easiest) to just below a simmer and whisk into chocolate. Let chocolate mixture cool to room temperature. In the meantime, whip cream to soft peak and fold into cooled chocolate. Pour mousse into plastic wrapped-lined- 9-in square pan, spreading well into corners. Chill for at least an hour to set.

2. For white chocolate mousse - follow the same direction above, then spoon or pour gently over bittersweet mousse layer and chill for at least an hour to set.

3. For milk chocolate mousse - repeat the same process. Pour mousse gently over white chocolate layer.

4. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

5. To serve, invert pan onto a plate and peel of plastic. With a hot, dry knife, slice squares of mousse and lift onto plates with pie lifter.

6. Garnish with fresh berries, or chocolate shavings.

*NOTE: As you can see in the photos, I built my mousse in martini glasses, which I thought would make a nice presentation and would save me step #5 above. Half the recipe fills about 6-8 martini glasses, depending on the size.

Shepherd's Pie

This past week a couple of coldfronts hit South Florida. The temperature actually dipped to somewhere in the upper 30's Fahrenheit (about 3 degrees Celsius). Bbbrrrrrrr! It was C-O-L-D!

Those who are from northern USA, north America or Europe might find this laughable. Compared to the inches of snow and below zero temperature you get out there, 30's must be a heatwave for you. But for the true blue South Floridians (I'm not a native here but I grew up in a tropical island), 30's is definitely freezing! As they say, our blood is thinner.

I don't mind it being nippy once in while though. I welcome the change, especially the opportunity to take out my once-a-year winter-garb and layer on outfits, don chic coats or leather jackets, cute scarves, opaque stockings and wear those lovely high heeled boots!!! Afterall, it's always about fashion,isn't it? Next to food, that is. ;o)



When the temperature gets cooler, I always think of comforting food such as soups and stews. But this time around, I wanted something different, so I thought of one of my fave eats: Shepherd's Pie. Also known as "Cottage Pie", this English dish refers to a meat pie with a crust made of mashed potato.

Shepherd's pie is basically a casserole, traditionally made using ground lamb (hence, the name Shepherd, I think). But here in the US people commonly use beef instead of lamb. In my case, I went even further. I used ground turkey for my meat, to make the dish a bit more healthy. What I like about this dish (beside it being soooo good) is it's versatility. You can substitute the ingredients according to preference or availability. What more, this dish is even better the next day! If you'll have some leftovers, that is.

Mashed potato atop stewed ground meat and veggies? That's comfort food through and through!

I'm sending this dish over to La.Pi.S, Lasang Pinoy Sundays: LAYERED. La.Pi.S. is a weekly food photography meme hosted by SpiceS.



Shepherd's Pie

Meat filling:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 med onion, chopped
1 lb ground lamb, beef or turkey
1 tbsp flour
1 can diced tomatoes (14 oz), drained, juice reserved
1/2 cup beef or chicken stock/broth
2 tsps Worcesteshire sauce
½ cup frozen peas, thawed
2 med carrots, diced finely
1 red bell pepper, diced finely
1 sprig rosemary, chopped

Topping:
4 large potatoes (about 1-1/2 lbs), peeled and chopped
2 tbsp sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream (or subsitute chicken/beef broth for healthier version)
1 egg yolk
2 tbsps fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
Dash of sweet paprika

1. Boil potatoes in salted water until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain potatoes and pour them into a bowl.
2. Combine sour cream, egg yolk and cream (or broth). Add the cream mixture into potatoes and mash until potatoes are almost smooth.
3. While potatoes boil, preheat a large skillet over medium high heat.
4. Add oil to hot pan with beef or lamb. Season meat with salt and pepper.
5. Brown and crumble meat for 3 or 4 minutes. If you are using lamb/beef and the pan is fatty, spoon away some of the drippings.
6. Add chopped carrot and onion to the meat. Cook veggies with meat 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes.
7. In a second small skillet over medium heat cook butter and flour together 2 minutes. Whisk in broth and juice of tomato and Worcestershire sauce. Thicken gravy 1 minute. Add gravy to meat and vegetables. Stir in peas.
8. Preheat broiler to high. Fill a small rectangular casserole with meat and vegetable mixture.
9. Spoon potatoes over meat evenly. Top potatoes with paprika and broil 6 to 8 inches from the heat until potatoes are evenly browned.
10. Top casserole dish with chopped parsley and serve.

Imperial Asparagus

Friends, I have really been remiss in keeping my blog up to date. For this, I apologize. I didn't expect for the year 2009 to become as busy as I am now. But I'm not complaining. I like to be busy but I am in that period where I am still adjusting, trying to juggle my time in the hope of achieving a proper balance, so that I'd have time left to upload photos and write my blogs. So, please be patient with me.

I'm sure everyone agrees that food blogging is time consuming - the cooking, the photography set-up, shooting, uploading and then writing.. all these require a chunk of our time.

Then, there are times when your food has been photographed and uploaded, and yet you stare at the computer screen not knowing what to write about. Have you had that exprience? I'm sure you did. Isn't that frustrating?



Anyway, enough of my venting.

This week's Lasang Pinoy's theme is STEAMED. I have done Siomai (pork wanton dumplings) and Siopao (steamed buns) before so I can't post that here anymore. But, I do steam a lot - my veggies, especially. I prefer steaming because we all know that it is much healthier to do so, than blanching them in hot water. Steaming preserves more the vegetables' nutrients.

One of the favorite veggie I steam is Asparagus. I do like to roast them too, but since steaming is quicker, then I steam it most of the time. It is an excellent side dish to any entree you have, be it pork, fish or poultry.

As you can see here, I served the asparagus with roasted sweet potatoes ("kamote", as they're called in my native tongue) with caramelized onion, and chicken breasts simply roasted with extra-virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs de Provence. This is a meal that is straightforward, but healthy and satisfying.
This my entry to Lasang Pinoy Sundays: Steamed.
Lasang Pinoy is weekly food photography meme, Filipino style.



Imperial Asparagus (serves 4)
2lbs of green or white asparagus, steamed
3 tablespoons of butter
3 tablespoons of flour
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
dash of hot sauce or ground cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper
pinch of sugar

1. Trim the asparagus and peel the stalks to the tips.
2. Steam asparagus for 5-7 minutes (depending on how you like them. I like them crunchy still so I don't leave them that long)
3. Make the sauce. Melt the butter in a heavy based pan, in medium high heat.
4. Lower heat heat and stir in the flour. Stir with a wire whisk, for 1 minute to cook the flour a bit.
5. Gradually add the white wine and the stock. Stir until smooth then place over a low heat. Bring to the boil stirring constantly, until sauce thickens.
6. Add the cream and a dash of ground cayanne pepper, if preferred.
7. Now add the salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar, to taste.

Note*: My sauce didn't come out white because I cooked it in the same pan where I cooked my chicken, so I can have the chicken flavor in it. But if you've have guests, you might want to cook the sauce in a clean pan, so your sauce can come out white as it should be. Also, I added cayenne pepper because I wanted the kick. And lastly, I also added a dash of sweet paprika on top, as garnish.

Whole Wheat Fruity Breakfast Muffins – Lasang Pinoy Sundays

I’ve been sluggish as of late. No kidding. My mind isn’t just functioning right, and I feel so slow that I even mix-up dates and times.

Last week, I had a conversation with my husband about stuff to do and I got confused for a while because I actually thought that the next day would be Thursday, when in fact, it was going to be Friday! I was 24 hours behind, imagine?! Tsk, tsk. My brain must have needed to re-charge so bad after all the frenzy during the holidays.

But not to worry, I’m getting better now. This past weekend, I took it all slow and chose not to think of those things that “needed” to be done. I gave myself a break, as my husband lovingly suggested.

As to holiday food left-overs, I don’t have any to speak of. For starters, I didn’t have a gathering in our house. We went to our friend’s family (like we always do every year) and so whatever we brought home from the party was gone. But, I do have lots of fruits. Remember my last post when I told you about our family's tradition of doing 12 (others do 13) different fruits for the New Year? (check my post here). Yep, I still have most of the fruits in that basket and they’re getting ripe by the day. I don’t want to have to throw them away, especially considering that nowadays, every dollar in our pocket really counts.

So in order to use up my fruits, I came across this muffin recipe which I modified a bit to include more fruits in it. That’s how I ended up with this whole wheat fruity muffin. I actually just threw them all together, crossed my fingers and hope that it’ll come out ok.

And they did. Mind you, this muffin is whole wheat, so remember, the texture is not the same as the regular ones. But the muffins came out moist and fruity, of course. My hubby says, “they’re actually good”. :o)

I am sharing this recipe with Lasang Pinoy Sundays: Left Overs - weekly food photography meme, Filipino style.


Whole Wheat Fruity Breakfast Muffins
1 cup organic wheat flour *
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
½ cup butter
½ cup raw sugar (turbinado)*
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 pc apple, diced
1 cup blueberries
1 cup cranberries
½ cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1-1/2 cups apple juice

* You may substitute with all purpose flour (APF) and granulated sugar, respectively. When using APF, lessen the apple juice by 1/4 cup.

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. In medium bowl add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Mix well.
3. In your stand mixer (or handheld) with paddle attachment, cream the butter and the sugar until they’re fluffy. About 5-8 mins at medium speed.
4. In the meantime, in a separate bowl, mash the bananas, and add the rest of the fruit, as well as the apple sauce.
5. Add the flour slowly to the sugar-butter mixture. Make sure that your mixer is in LOW setting or you’ll end up wearing the flour. :o)
6. Then add the apple juice. Mix briefly, just until everything is incorporated.
7. Then gently fold in fruits using spatula.
8. Fill well-greased medium sized muffin cups up to 2/3 of filling.
9. Bake for 20-25 mins or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
10.Let cool before taking them out of the cups.

Suggestion: You may make a glaze for the muffins, such as lemon. But as for me, I prefer it without.