Here’s a tip for you today. Slice a meyer lemon in half and set it aside your work space. Even though I have a terrible cold right now, I can still smell that unmistakable delicate floral fragrance. It’s so soothing and comforting as it perfumes the air – I should make myself a mint and meyer lemon tea……..
fresh mint and a slice of meyer lemon
We’ve all been in the grocery store when someone comes on the intercom system and calls for a “Clean-up in Aisle 5”. Some poor unsuspecting person has dropped a jar of pickles, they’ve crashed upon the floor and there’s a mess of pickle juice and pickles are strewn everywhere. We’ve all either been the perpetrator or witness to such a predicament. That’s only one sort of supermarket nuisance, however. On any given day you might find me in the produce aisle or, more happily at a Farmer’s Market, eyeing every single item out for enticing customers. You’ll see me touching gently and inhaling aromas as I deftly examine the wares. I’m probably a supermarket manager’s nightmare, yes I am. I’m probably the one who is being watched as a big nuisance. So, if you hear over the intercom system, “Nuisance in Aisle 5” instead of “Clean Up in Aisle 5, you can most rightly expect it could be me. I might be accused of over-sniffing the produce or worse yet, manhandling. Eeks. But, after all, I’m there to select exactly what I want. And, what I want are the most perfect items available – so touch, sniff and gently squeeze I shall do right up to the point of being forcefully ejected from the premises.
When it came to my Winter Citrus this year, my preferred outpost was Eataly. I made many a trek there to score some awesome mangoes and almost all of my hoardings of Blood Oranges and Meyer Lemons over the last several months. Last week, I was back again, sniffing the Meyer Lemons. They, as you well know, have the most unmistakeable of delicate floral notes I’m aware of. I just love them. And, I carefully selected a large “bunch” and scoffed them into my basket.
Today, I got into the kitchen again and, before they are all gone, rustled up these nice little muffins, which became my lunch. Don’t expect a pow, pow, pow in the kisser blast of lemon here – this is for those who want a very delicate essence.
THE MEYER LEMON-SCENTED CORN MUFFIN — adapted from Smitten Kitchen –
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cups cornmeal
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1 /4 tsp fine sea salt
8 tblsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 tsp almond extract
3 tblsp sugar
zest of one meyer lemon
1/3 cup meyer lemon juice
zest of one meyer lemon combined with 2 tblsp sugar with for fingertips so as to release essential oils
Preheat oven to 425F. Line 15 muffin cups with paper liners and set aside.
In a small saucepan combine the 1/2 cup cornmeal and the buttermilk and cook over low heat, whisking often until it thickens to the consistency of a batter that, when you scrape the whisk along the bottom of the pan leaves a line. Or, microwave in a medium glass bowl for 1 1/2 minutes, whisk and microwave again in 30 second intervals until it is thick and leaves a line in the bottom when batter is pulled away. Set aside to cool.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1 1/2 cups cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and meyer lemon zest. In a large bowl whisk together the cooled butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time and whisk in. Add the almond extract and the meyer lemon juice and whisk in. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix very gently with a rubber spatula until just combined. Make sure all flour has disappeared but do not over mix.
Scoop with an ice-cream scoop into the prepared pan, filling the cups to the top. Sprinkle with the meyer-lemon sugar.
Bake for 13-17 minutes or until the muffins are nicely browned and firm to the touch. Remove from oven and from the pan. Cool on a wire rack. Enjoy with fresh cream butter.
enjoy!
these are really so pretty