Breakfast Muffins!

Rise and Shine with these deliciously soft, fresh breakfast muffins! These citrus and white chocolate muffins are made with whatever citrus you have (orange, lemons, pink grapefruit) and a delicious zesty flavour topped with natural yogurt and honey. These Breakfast Muffins will have you hopping out of bed! This is a pushy recipe Dear Reader especially if you love zesty citrusy baked goods!

Breakfast here is a very simple affair owing to the fact that I don't eat it and Mr NQN likes fruit and yogurt so it's usually a combination of those to things. And I'm, not suggesting making these for a weekday breakfast but making these on the weekend when you have a bit more time and then keeping them ready for a quick breakfast makes it simple. I like to keep these unadorned without yogurt and fruit, heat them up in the morning and then dollop some yogurt, fruit and I also sprinkle a little toasted granola on top of these muffins too.

These muffins work with any citrus! I was given an enormous bag of oranges from my friend Valentina and I also had some grapefruit and lemon so in the vein of reducing waste I made these because I love using the zest because it is so beautifully fragrant. The white chocolate balances the citrus so even if you use lots of lemon it will still be beautifully zesty and sweet.

These breakfast muffins are SIMPLE: It's all done with a jug, bowl and a whisk! Just make sure to toss the white chocolate bits in the flour so that they don't all sink to the bottom but these are seriously foolproof muffins!

This Breakfast Muffin recipe is easy to double: I made 6 because there are only 2 of us and only one of us eats breakfast but you can easily double this to make 12.

If it isn't completely obvious I'm a feeder. That morning I gave Mr NQN one of these muffins to eat for breakfast around 9am and around 10:30am I heard the rustling of cellophane. One of my favourite clients is one.more chocolate and I often shoot things for them and then we keep what I've shot since I've touched it and they obviously can't sell it. I keep all of the items I've shot in a big box in the kitchen. Mr NQN is a huge fan of their chocolates and often rummages around the box for goodies. Despite his claims otherwise, he cannot control his love for chocolate and quite quickly a huge bag of chocolate will disappear with the crackle of the bag the only evidence that this is taking place. It has gotten to the point where I have to ration him on the chocolate because it will disappear and I won't get any.

So as soon as I heard the faint rustling my ears pricked up. I popped my head around the door, "Are you hungry?" I asked startling him. He put down the chocolate like a criminal caught thieving diamonds. He wasn't really hungry but he enjoyed them so much that we went a looking for more! I handed him another muffin that he happily downed. I mean it wasn't chocolate (but really, what is) but it came in a close second!

So tell me Dear Reader, do you have to be rationed on any food? Do you make more elaborate breakfasts on weekends?

Citrus & Yogurt Breakfast Muffins

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 25 minutes

Makes 6 muffins

• 125g/4ozs cake flour

• 75g/2.6ozs caster or superfine sugar

• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• Pinch salt
• 100g/3.5ozs white chocolate chips
• 1-2 tablespoons finely grated citrus zest (I like things zesty so I use 2 tablespoons)
• 60g/2.1ozs sour cream or natural yogurt (light works here too)
• 60ml/2.1ozs juice (orange, lemon or grapefruit)
• 50ml/1.7flozs oil
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• Natural yogurt, citrus slices and honey to decorate.

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 170C/340F and line a muffin tray with 6 liners. In a large bowl whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Then add the chocolate chips and zest and stir to coat these chips in flour.

Step 2 - In a jug measure the sour cream, juice, oil, egg and vanilla. Whisk to combine. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and mix until just combined (do not overmix). Scoop into the muffin cups and bake for 24-25 minutes or until the centre springs back when gently pressed.

Step 3 - Once cooled, dollop a tablespoon of natural or Greek yogurt on top and decorate with a citrus wedge and a drizzle of honey.

Pink scalloped plate and cup and saucer from In The Roundhouse