Diva In The Kitchen: Ginger-Pear Muffins with Lemon Glaze

Hey there!  I'm back with another recipe!  I've been trying new recipes here and there and having fun with it.  This recipe is a little bit different.  I bought a cookbook called The Cornbread Gospels after a trip to Georgia to see my family.  I haven't used it a whole lot yet, but wanted to try more recipes from it.  It is a really interesting book to read because it has a lot of information about cornbread from all over the world and how cornbread differs by region, as well and cooking tips.

This recipe is a mix between a cornbread muffin and a cupcake.  If you don't like overly sweet treats, this may be the recipe for you.  It has just a little bit of sweetness and a lot of lemony-ginger goodness.  Mr. Diva and I couldn't really taste the pear flavor, but they were definitely moist. 

Ginger-Pear Muffins with Lemon Glaze

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil cooking spray
• 4 ounces fresh gingerroot, unpeeled, cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon corn syrup (optional) {I didn't include this}
• 1 cup unbleached white flour
• 1 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup oatmeal (rolled oats)
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest, preferably organic
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 ripe, flavorful pears, Bartlett, Bose, or Anjou, cored but peel left on, in 1/4-inch dice
• 1 batch Lemon Glaze (recipe below)

 Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Spray 16 muffin-tin cups with oil.

2.  Prepare the ginger by pulse-chopping it very fine in a food processor, pausing to scrape down the sides of the work bowl.  Place it in a small skillet, adding 1/4 cup of the sugar and the teaspoon of corn syrup, if using.  Put the skillet over medium heat and, keeping a close eye on it and giving the pan an occasional shake, cook just until the sugar has melted, about 6 minutes.  The mixture will be quite hot.  Remove from the heat and let it cool.

3.  Sift the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar into a large bowl.  Stir in the oatmeal.

4.  Whisk together the butter, eggs, lemon zest, and buttermilk in a small bowl.

5.  Combine the wet and dry mixtures with a few preliminary strokes, then add the prepared ginger and the diced pears.  Stir just a few more times, until the ingredients are barely combined.

6.  Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups and bake until golden and crusty, 15 minutes.  Let the muffins cool briefly, then pour the lemon glaze over them (it is quite thin and sticky and will be well absorbed by the muffins, making for extra-moist, very lemony muffins that will have you licking your fingers).

 Lemon Glaze

(enough for 16 muffins)

Ingredients

• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon, preferably organic
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup sugar

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  Lower the heat and simmer the glaze until slightly thickened, 4 to 5 minutes.  Let cool slightly, and use as directed above.

Enjoy!!