This recipe was inspired by my Twitter friend and brilliant chocolate-baking blogger Choclette. Each month Choclette and fellow baker Chele host We Should Cocoa, a chocolate-themed baking challenge with a selected ingredient. For April 2011 the ingredient was marzipan. I wanted to create a muffin that echoed the traditional Simnel cake with marzipan at its centre, and to lift the chocolate with warm, cosy spices. I also wanted a fun presentation: my smallest biscuit cutter is a heart shape, so I cut marzipan hearts that would hide inside the muffins. The result I called “Hidden Hearts” — they work well for Valentine’s Day and would take a splash of Amaretto if you fancied it.
Chocolate muffins with marzipan & spices recipe
Prepare a 12-hole muffin tin and preheat the oven to 190–200°C.
Ingredients
260g plain flour (I used half white, half wholemeal) 2 tsp baking powder ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda ½ tsp salt 75g caster sugar 50g unsweetened cocoa 1–2 tbsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground cardamom 1 tsp ground nutmeg (freshly grated is great) 1 egg 250g milk 1 tsp vanilla extract 85g vegetable oil (or 85g melted butter) 150g marzipan 150g dark chocolate (preferably high cocoa content)
Method
Sift the dry ingredients together into a bowl and mix to combine. In a separate bowl beat the egg and add the milk, vanilla and oil (or melted butter), mixing well. Roll the marzipan on a lightly floured surface to about 5mm thick and cut into shapes that will sit comfortably inside the muffin cases — hearts are my choice. Break the chocolate into chunks; you can crack the unopened bar on the worktop or chop it into pieces.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined — a few lumps are fine. Spoon about a tablespoon of batter into each muffin case, place a marzipan heart on top, then cover with more batter, dividing it evenly among the cases. Press 2–3 chocolate chunks into the top of each muffin. Save and snack on any leftover chocolate.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until the tops feel firm when lightly pressed. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin so the marzipan remains nicely hidden inside.