How many courgettes are too many? A question I’ve been asking myself quite a lot over the past few weeks as I’ve found my kitchen overrun with plump little (or not in some cases!) ronde de nice courgettes. Lesson most definitely learned for next year, this variety is very easy to germinate, so maybe don’t sow quite so many.
These plump little rounds are an heirloom French variety that produce a high yield of fruits (hence the overrun kitchen), they’re vigorous & fast producing. Other than their curious roundness though, these are just like any other courgette in nature, they’re fine, tender & mild in flavour.
All of the key components that I look for when considering baking with any vegetable (yes, these really are the things I think about in my spare time). Needless to say this year, I’ve been doing an awful lot more of vegetable baking, I’m currently averaging about 1 new veggie based recipe a week so prepare yourselves over the coming weeks folks!
There have been days where courgette has formed a part of every single meal of the day from breakfast to dessert (we ourselves are probably on the edge of turning into round, rather plump courgettes ourselves!). When it comes to courgette for breakfast though, these humble little muffins have by far been the winner.
Light, moist & packed with both colour & flavour, these lemon & courgette muffins are delightfully fresh. Full of grated flecks of courgette which add a moist crumb & savoury hint, lemon zest adds a lively freshness whilst poppy seeds add a welcome crunch. Drizzle the whole lot in lemon icing & you’ve got yourself a perfect summer breakfast to start the day.
COURGETTE & LEMON MUFFINS
(makes 12)
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 50ml rapeseed oil
- 50ml yogurt
- 190g caster sugar
- Juice of x2 lemon
- Zest x2 lemons (reserve a little to decorate later on)
- 100g wholemeal flour
- 150g plain flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 200g grated courgette (excess juices squeezed out)
- 1 tbsp poppy seeds
For the icing:
- Juice of half a lemon
- 65g – 100g icing sugar (depending on how runny you like your icing)
- 1/2 tsp poppy seeds
Method:
- Line a 12 hole cake pan with muffin cases or grease well
- In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, oil, yogurt, sugar, lemon juice & zest
- Sift together all of the dry ingredients into the bowl & fold into the wet mixture until just combined
- Add the grated courgette & poppy seed to the bowl & fold these through until evenly distributed
- Carefully divide the mixture equally between the muffin cases
- Bake at 180°c for 25 minutes, until a beautiful golden brown
- Leave the muffins to cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing from the tin & placing on a cooling rack to fully cool
- Once cooled, make the icing by combining the lemon juice & icing sugar in a small bowl or jug until it is thick but still pourable in consistency
- Drizzle the icing over the tops of the muffins before sprinkling over the poppy seeds & remaining lemon zest
