Orange-hazelnut muffins

This Monday morning is the official start to our summer vacation!  Second grade has officially wrapped up for the little one and he is eager and more-than-ready to enjoy the leisurely summer days ahead.  We have a few short camps and activities on his schedule but plenty of time left to just chill and be.  (Wish me luck!)

I've got breakfast on my mind because now that summer is here and we don't need to make it to school before 8:15am, there will be time to experiment with breakfast and to have pancakes on weekdays!  We all enjoy muffins and I'm always on the lookout for a new recipe.  I'll even have time to make them fresh in the morning (though I personally prefer muffins as a midday snack or even as dessert).

Muffins are great because, in the majority of cases including this one, they are just so easy to put together.  Since I'm not a big fan of most icings or buttercream, muffins are also perfect for me since I can just focus on the cake.

These are orange-hazelnut muffins, a recipe I slightly adapted from the latest July issue of Cooking Light.  I love hazelnuts and anything with orange zest so these flavors called out to me.  Plus, they are a breeze to make and healthy with hazelnut meal (I'm all for healthy fats like the kind from nuts), just a touch of sweetness from honey, and a bit of milk and canola oil in the batter.  

The original recipe calls for agave nectar but I used honey instead.  I wish I was a fan of agave but I'm not.  I admit I've only used agave once so maybe I need to give it more of a chance but I just find the flavor too strong.  I think maple syrup would also be a good, easy substitute here too.  

This recipe makes 12 mini muffins but I opted to go for a small batch of 4 regular size ones instead for our breakfast.  Call them muffins or snack cakes, they are fragrant with the nuttiness from hazelnut meal and the fresh flavor and aroma of orange zest and a bit of fresh juice.  They are moist though without butter in them, I wouldn't call them rich, which is not necessarily a bad thing.  The texture is a bit like a corn muffin actually.  Again, not a bad thing.  I think these make a great breakfast muffin or a light snack.

Recipe:

Orange-Hazelnut Muffins
Adapted from Cooking Light

- Makes 4 regular size muffins or 12 mini muffins - 

1.5 ounces hazelnut meal (about 6 tablespoons)
2.5 ounces cake flour (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons 2% reduced-fat milk
1 1/2 tablespoons honey (or agave nector or maple syrup)
Zest of half an orange (or the whole orange if you like it like I do)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  If making regular size muffins, line 4 cups with paper liners (I like to fill the empty cups about halfway with warm water).  If baking mini muffins, line with 12 paper liners.

Whisk hazelnut meal, flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, whisk the oil, milk, honey, orange zest, juice, and egg together.  Add the dry mixture to the wet and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. 

Divide batter into the lined muffin cups.  Bake until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the muffin comes out clean, about 14-15 minutes for regular size muffins and 12 minutes for the mini.  Remove the muffins from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.