Apple cheese muffins

My muffin kick continues with this interesting recipe for apple and sharp cheddar cheese muffins. I love the combination of apple and cheese, in and of itself, so the idea of it in muffin format sounded scrumptious! 

Recipe

from 750 Best Muffin RecipesMakes 12 Glaze1/3 cup granulated sugar2 tbsp water2 tbsp unsalted butter1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice1/2 tsp ground cinnamonMuffins2 cups all-purpose flour1/2 cup granulated sugar1 tbsp baking powder1 tsp salt1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" pieces8 oz sharp (old) Cheddar cheese, cut into 1/2" pieces1 egg3/4 cup whole milk2 cups chopped peeled crisp-sweet apples, such as Gala, Golden Delicious or FujiPreheat oven to 375 F. In food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, butter and cheese. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and milk until well-blended. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just blended. Gently fold in apples. Divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups. Bake in preheated oven for 14-17 minutes or until tops are just turning golden. Brush the partially baked muffins with glaze. Return muffins to oven and bake for 9-12 minutes or until muffins are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then transfer to the rack to cool.Glaze: In a small saucepan, combine sugar, water, butter, lemon juice and cinnamon. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.

Musings

A few notes on preparation: As we don't tend to have whole milk on hand, I used 1/4 cup skim milk and 1/2 cup of heavy cream. We used  Gala apples in these muffins.I have to admit I was definitely worried when making this recipe. There was a lot of dry ingredients and not a lot of wet ingredients, so the combination was definitely not as runny as muffin batter often is. The flour mixture was just wet but not very much, so I was dubious as I scooped it into the muffin cups, sure they wouldn't turn out (I've had a few failed recipes of late). However, what a pleasant surprise they turned out to be! D and I both declared, upon first bite, that they were absolutely delicious! Moist and flavourful--sweet and tangy and a little bit salty. I couldn't believe how moist they were considering how heavy and dense the batter was. You could definitely taste the cheese this time, which isn't always the case in baked goods including cheese. I was surprised at how much baking powder was included (1 tbsp) and speculated that the large amount may have contributed to the lightening of the texture. It definitely goes on my list of awesome muffins!