Well, here we are at the verrrrry end of meyer lemon season and I’m just getting around to posting a recipe featuring this gorgeous citrus fruit.
Less tart and acidic than their light yellow cousins, vibrantly-hued meyer lemons are a hybrid of lemons and mandarins native to China.
They are readily available in grocery stores throughout the States during the winter months, and make a lovely bright addition to baked goods.
Meyer lemon zest and juice both make their way into these light ricotta muffins. Despite being 100% whole wheat, these slightly sweet muffins have a moist and delicate crumb… and are perfect for breakfast or as a between-meal snack.
Let’s take a peep at a muffin strip tease, shall we?
Yes, it’s sad when that muffin wrapper is empty, but given the light nutritional stats, you can feel just fine about reaching for another one…
Meyer Lemon Ricotta Muffins
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Keywords: bake bread breakfast snack vegetarian lemon winter
Ingredients (12 muffins)
- 1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 cup unrefined granulated sugar (I used evaporated cane juice)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 Tbsp grated meyer lemon rind (from about 2 medium-sized lemons)
- 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed meyer lemon juice (from about 2 medium-sized lemons)
- 1 large egg, (preferably organic), lightly beaten
- 2 Tbsp turbinado sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly oil a 12-cup muffin tin; set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the ricotta, water, oil, lemon rind, lemon juice, and egg.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add in the wet; stir just until moistened.
Divide batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups.
Evenly sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the batter-filled cups.
Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Nutritional Information per Muffin:
171.1 calories, 6.5 grams fat, 1.2 grams saturated fat, 2.3 grams fiber, 10. 4 grams sugars, 4.0 grams protein
NOTE: There were some issues with Tuesday’s post showing up in Google Reader, so those of you who read HFFL through Reader may have missed my Speculoos Cookie Butter Baked Oatmeal for One.
Trust me, you do NOT want to miss this one!
Check out the post here.
Mmmm want :)
Maybe I’ll add some blueberries to these!
Great idea! I was actually thinking the same thing the other day while eating one of these muffins ;).
Haha, you’re so cute with your muffin strip tease. :)
these look delish! I love lemon :)
These sound so yummy! Love this idea!
Your muffins look amazing! I never used ricotta cheese ina muffin. Great idea!!
Heehee muffin strip tease made me giggle. These sound fabulous! I love lemon and ricotta together, and I can imagine how these taste even better because you used Meyer lemons!
finally! haha, kidding. loving the muffin tease ;) they sound amazing, too!!
Wauw they look great! Do you think it’s possible to replace the ricotta with something else?
I suppose you could try to sub in Greek yogurt. I’d love to hear how the muffins come out if you do try that version!
Hi :) I have now baked these twice with low-fat greek yoghurt, and they turned out great both times :)
Great! I’m glad to hear the muffins came out with Greek yogurt (which I have on hand much more often than ricotta). I’ll have to try them with that substitution =).
Ooooh, these muffins look so yummy! I’m loving meyer lemons!
I wonder if there are any meyer lemons left in stores. Otherwise I’m sure they’d still be delicious with regular lemons. I love lemons + ricotta!! :)
[...] Modified from Healthy Food for Living [...]