Cherry Almond Muffins (small batch)

I saw a recipe the other day for Cherry and Almond Muffins which quite took my fancy. It was on a blog called Pretty Sweet Simple. 

They looked right up our alley, however I did not feel that we could eat 12 muffins between us, and I don't have a lot of room in my freezer.  

Todd is always complaining that I have our freezers filled to the hilt. What can I say?? Guilty as charged, but it has saved our bacon more than once.

You never know when a calamity is going to arise and having a bit of food storage to fall back on is pretty helpful under those conditions. When this Pandemic hit for instance. 

We were unable to go to the shops and it was really difficult to get a slot for online shopping. Having a bit extra (not hoarding) made all the difference in the world to us and kept us going until we could get a delivery slot worked out. 

So, with no room in my freezer, today I decided to small batch the recipe, making only six medium sized muffins. If you want the full size recipe, do check out the original recipe.

I also decided not to add the flaked almonds to the batter. I didn't see where they would add anything to the muffin. I could be wrong of course, but I made the choice not to add them.

I did add a few extra cherries, but not many as I didn't want soggy muffins. I used frozen pitted cherries, which I cut in half. 

There is always that temptation to want to add extra fruit, etc. when you are making baked goodies.  In most cases however, you will run the risk of ruining your bake.  Less is often more in many instances.

I was really suprised when I saw how tall they rose!  I think the initial baking at the high temperature is responsible for that. 

It gives them an extra boost. Just don't forget to turn the oven down after the initial five minute bake or you will have burnt muffin tops!  

The muffin top has always been my favourite part of any muffin, but in a case like that, I highly doubt it would be!

These are nice and moist.  They do run just this side of being a cupcake.  That's a risk when it comes to muffin making.  The difference between the two textures are very different things.

Cakes have a much lighter texture. You don't want many holes in a cake.  Muffins are denser and you do want lots of holes in a well baked muffin. These were very close to being cake-like, but thankfully still muffins.

There is yogurt in the muffins, which adds to their moistness and also helps to get that high rise, especially when combined with baking soda. 

Anything which is acidic in bakes, such as yogurt, sourcream, or buttermilk requires the addition of baking soda to help them rise.  Its a chemical reaction.

There is baking powder as well, but the acid from the yogurt  in these reacts with the baking soda to give you the perfect lift. 

Nice and tall.  It also helps to not overmix the batter.  Many people make that mistake and end up with tough flat muffins. You just want to mix until the dry ingredients are uniformly wet.

A few dry streaks are alright and lumps are absolutely permissable, quite acceptable, and absolutely desirable!

This is very different than making a cake batter when you want everything to be smooth and lump free.  Where extra beating actually puts air into the cake and helps to lift it.

Unlike cooking, baking is an exact science, that must be adhered to.  I hear so many people complaining when recipes don't work out.

In truth it is not the fault of the recipe, but  the result of their playing around with things too much. How often have I seen in different reviews.  I added this, and I took away that, and I did this and I did that, but they didn't work out.  This is a crummy recipe!!!  Not so!! This is a crummy baker!

Not the recipe's fault. Pure and simple.  Exact science.  Baking is an exact science without much room for play.  

So many people try to play around with baking recipes and then they wonder why they don't turn out, blaming the recipe, but really . . .  its them  . . .

I fancied these muffins up with a light dusting of icing sugar to serve, but you needn't do.  They are beautiful just as they are.  

Its a bit like wearing a petticoat with a pretty dress, however. You don't really need it, but it adds a special bit of something. A certain "Je ne sais quoi!"

Cherries can be quite a damp ingredient, so don't go overboard in adding them. I would think that any berry would also work well, like blackberries which are just now coming into season!  Things like that you can play with, but again, don't go overboard!

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