Cherry Cordial M&M Muffins (Baked)

[ Equipment: oven or slow cooker with temperature control. For more information about the terminology in this recipe, see Low Temperature Baking: A Journey of 3 Paths ].

One of my local markets cleared out its holiday candies at 75% off, and I purchased a couple of 9-oz. bags of Cherry Cordial M&Ms for 75 cents each! I have not put candies into baked goods before (not on VaporBaker anyway), but these were so delicious that I wanted a way to savor them in mouth longer than the second or two it took to chew and swallow them. I put them into muffins and flavored the batter to enhance the Cherry Cordial flavors.



Because the M&Ms are fairly heavy as an ingredient (about the size of peanut M&Ms), I chose a base recipe with a stiff batter to support them. The batter for Joy Of Baking's Buttermilk Berry Muffins could be described as either a very soft dough or a very thick batter with the buoyancy to float marbles. In low ovens, less moisture in the batter also means faster baking.

The main flavors in cherry cordial candies are cherries, chocolate and almonds (from the cooked cherry pits). Of the 3, the almond flavor is the most subtle, so I put the Cherry Cordial M&Ms in an almond batter. I changed out the vanilla extract for almond extract and added a portion of almond meal for flavor and to give the muffin texture more bite.

In this recipe, the M&Ms sit atop the batter. I did make a batch with the M&Ms inside the batter, but the candy shell on the M&Ms melted into a reddish mess. The candy shell contained the cordial flavors, which faded when the shell dissolved. Putting the candies on top of the muffins preserved the flavors better, but that portion of the shell touching batter still melted, surrounding each of the candies with a red or brown halo.

If Cherry Cordial M&Ms are out of season, substitute Cherry M&Ms or make the muffins with regular M&Ms. For a healthier alternative, try dried cherries stuffed with chocolate chips. Although not absolutely necessary, I recommend toasting the almonds, both the whole and chopped forms. Toasting enhances the nutty flavor, softens the meat and takes out the astringent taste. I toasted the almonds in the microwave (2 to 3 minutes on HIGH power). Toasting them in a slow oven (250F/121C) for 30 minutes will be as effective and possibly gentler on the flavor compounds.

This recipe makes 6 muffins. Ordinarily, I would have baked them in my larger 5.5-quart cooker-oven, because that's too many to fit in my 5-quart, but the latter has the advantage of an external temperature control. To maximize the usable space in the 5-quart so that I could squeeze in a half dozen muffins, I fabricated a new spiral trivet. The trivet is a coil of rolled up aluminum foil, about 3/8-inch thick.




In the picture above, the coil trivet loosely covers the bottom of the ceramic. At the center is an upside-down metal condiment cup, measuring 2-1/2 inches in diameter x 1-1/2 inches tall. 5 muffins sit on the spiral trivet. The 6th goes on the metal cup, and will bake a little slower than the others, but not by much. When the 5 muffins below have browned with golden edges, the 6th may need more time to gain some color, if desired. The 6-muffin capacity is well worth the minor inconvenience.

Makes 6 Muffins
- 240 calories per muffin
- Oven Temperature: 250°F/121°C

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/8 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons beaten egg (about 1/2 large egg)
• 1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/8 cup low-fat milk
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 30 Cherry Cordial M&Ms (see text for substitutes)
• 1/8 cup chopped almonds, toasted
• 6 whole almonds, toasted

1. Into a large bowl, sift the flour, almond meal, salt, baking soda and baking powder and whisk in the sugar to combine. Or mix dry ingredients and rub them between hands to break up lumps and combine.




2. In a small bowl, whisk the oil, milk, buttermilk, egg and almond extract until well combined.




3. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients to form a stiff batter, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Do not overmix. The more the batter is stirred, the smoother it will be, but the denser the texture will be due to the development of the gluten.



4. Divide the batter to fill 6 greased muffin cups (1/4-cup capacity). Sprinkle each with the chopped almonds.



5. For every muffin, press a single whole almond into the center. Then press 5 M&Ms around the almond.



6. Bake in a preheated 250°F/121°C oven for 30-35 mins. The muffins are ready when a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. They should be lightly golden around the edges. Remove to a rack and cool for 10 to 15 minutes.



7. Unmold and serve. Do not allow the muffins to remain in their molds for long, because the buildup of moisture will turn the sides and bottom of the muffins soggy. To dry off soggy muffins, put them upside-down in a dehydration oven set to 110-120°F (43-49°C) for a few minutes or until the excess moisture has evaporated.

Coconut Dulce De Leche Scones (Baked)

[ Equipment: oven or slow cooker with temperature control. For more information about the terminology in this recipe, see Low Temperature Baking: A Journey of 3 Paths ].

Feb 17, 2011: Revised recipe adds coffee bean powder and molasses, and omits the egg yolk in step 5 (the yolk reappears in step 10 in the egg wash).

Denser than a cake, these scones lean more towards the tender texture of a batter bread than the rich texture of a traditional scone. Dulce de leche caramel and milk hydrate the scone dough in place of cream, with the dark brown sugar accentuating the caramel flavors. The candy store pairing of caramel and coconut only needed a bit of heat from ginger and cinnamon to perk up the flavors.

The base recipe was Cooking Light's Classic Scones. After the dulce de leche and brown sugar, I re-portioned the ingredients for a 7-inch cake pan, increased the amount of baking powder, added baking soda to counter the acid from the brown sugar, molasses and the dulce de leche, took out the vanilla for spices and a hint of coffee. I made versions with whole egg and egg white only and think the egg-white-only have the crumbly texture more like a standard scone. (Substitute 2 tablespoons of beaten whole egg for the egg white for more cake-like scones.) Dulce de leche is easy to make from sweetened condensed milk, but I already had cans of dulce de leche in my food bin, waiting for a food project.

Although I didn't change the amount of fat, I opted to replace 1/3 of the butter with vegetable oil. The one version I made with 100% butter came out a little dry, a common occurrence in LTB cakes made with all butter. The cut or rubbed butter gives the scones that flaky-like texture and enhances the milky ingredients. The coffee bean powder is standard canned coffee (medium roast) very finely ground in a spice grinder. In concert with the brown sugar and molasses, it reinforces the smokey, earthy qualities of the dulce de leche caramel.

When low-temperature baking anything much larger than a cupcake, the release of steam has to be controlled so that whole scone round bakes evenly. The vented foil pan cover slows the cooking slightly at the edge of the pan while accelerating the cooking at the center. The perforation pattern in the foil is that same as that first tried in my slow-rise no-knead focaccia. The height of the risen and baked scone round is about 1 inch, and the cake pan should be taller than that to allow steam to circulate. The cake pan in the pictures is about 3 inches tall.

Makes 8 scones
- 175 calories per scone
- Oven Temperature: 250°F/121°C

• 1-1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon coffee bean powder (see text)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar (packed)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup dulce de leche
• 1/8 cup low-fat milk or low fat-fat coconut milk
• 1 large egg, separated
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1/4 cup baker's coconut (shredded, sweetened)
• 1/8 cup chopped walnuts

1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, spices, coffee bean powder and baking powder until well combined.



2. Slice butter into small cubes and add to flour mixture. Cut butter into the flour with a pastry blender or fork or rub the butter and flour between the hands until crumbly and uniformly distributed.



4. In a small bowl, whisk the dulce de leche and milk until smooth and combined like a sauce. If the dulce de leche is too stiff, microwave it for a few seconds to soften it.



5. Then whisk in the egg white, molasses and and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.



6. Stir the dulce de leche liquid into the flour until it forms a soft dough. If the dough is too dry, mix in a little more milk or some of the beaten egg.




7. Add the baker's coconut and knead the dough briefly (5 to 8 seconds) until the coconut is evenly distributed.



8. Grease a 7-inch springform pan or cake pan with removable bottom. Cut out a 7-inch diameter circle from wax paper or parchment paper and place in bottom of pan. Grease the top of the paper.



9. Put dough into pan and press dough out evenly to cover the bottom of the pan.



10. Score dough with knife to form 8 wedges. The score marks will fill in during baking, but a faint outline should remain as a slicing guide. Mix the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of water to make an egg wash. Brush the scones with the the egg wash.



11. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts. Lightly press the walnuts in the dough.



12. Cover the top of the pan with a sheet of aluminum foil and secure by tying it around the rim with string. With a knife or scissors, cut out a 2-inch hole in the center of the foil. Then, with a 1/8-inch wood skewer, punch 12 holes, evenly spaced, about half way between the rim and the center hole.



13. Bake in a preheated 250°F/121°C oven for 50 to 60 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a thin wood skewer through the center hole into the scones. It's ready if the skewer comes out clean. The center should firm, the surface dry and the edges a golden brown.



14. Cool and unmold.



15. Slice and serve.