13.1.08

cardamom vanilla pear muffins

debya got me all worked up at the notion of vanilla pear muffins this morning and i couldn't get them off my mind. she flatly refused to bring one up to me (so WHAT if it would have taken her an hour and a half to get here?!) and wishing for them to magically appear didn't work. or didn't work fast enough, whatever.
so i realized i'd have to take action. not really up for traveling to the coffee shop where she found them, heights coffee lounge in brooklyn, i figured the only way to sate my craving was to make them my damn self.

i started with a pretty basic pear muffin recipe from recipesource and then veganized and tweaked the ingredients a little bit, adding the vanilla and cardamom. they came out really good, but fell just short of perfect. i might consider reducing the cardamom next time, but i'm not sure. it spices them up nicely, but overwhelms the pear and vanilla a little bit, i think. i'll probably also reduce the liquid a touch. my pear was pretty juicy and the muffins ended up a little more moist than i would have preferred. they were pretty cakey, but i'd have liked them a little more toward the scone end of the spectrum. regardless, they were kind of awesome and totally scratched the itch that debya started when she brought it to my attention that such a delicacy as vanilla pear muffins could exist.
added bonus: i now have breakfast sorted for the week!


cardamom vanilla pear muffins
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup soymilk
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup vegan margarine, melted & cooled
1 medium pear, shredded (1 cup)
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom

preheat oven to 425F.
sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
incorporate shredded pear into flour mixture, tossing to combine.
mix together soymilk, applesauce, and margarine. add vanilla.
gently stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients. don’t overmix!
spray muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with muffin liners. fill cups 2/3-3/4 full. bake at 425F for 20 to 25 minutes, until tops are browned. remove from muffin pan immediately and serve warm.

9 comments:

Steffi said...

oh my. these sound and look like muffin perfection. yeah I know I'm a simple girl.

s.wade said...

damn, pear vanilla sounds like two great tastes that taste great together.

IsaChandra said...

Replace the cardamom with ginger and I think you'd have something. Besides the herpes that I know you have.

amy said...

would "whoever knowed it growed it" work as a comeback for that? because that's what i'm going to have to go with.

ginger is too plebeian for these muffins. cardamom was the way to go.

Eve Love said...

reducing the cardamom!!!?? is there something like too much cardamom?

mmmhhh... pear, vanilla and cardamom...
I'll just wish for them to magically appear for the next hours. or i'll try your recipe.
thanks so much for sharing!

Liz Ranger (Bubble Tea for Dinner) said...

okay, that's the muffin recipe I've been waiting for. those sound damned exquisite (and nice crumb, too!)

IsaChandra said...

Update ur blog layz.

Anonymous said...

I just made these tonight, and they're wicked awesome! I can't help but feel like I'm eating pancakes, though, 'cause I always put a bunch of cardamom in mine. But delicious!

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