Butternut Squash Muffins with Lemon Drizzle

Butternut Squash Muffins with Lemon Drizzle

The fruit and vegetables here in Baku are rather more seasonal than in the UK so we are learning to make the most of them while they are available. So yesterday Anthony bought a huge butternut squash - 3.5kg for about £1.50! 

After much time spent researching recipes and looking for the best way to freeze this delicious vegetable, I came across this Jamie Oliver recipe for butternut squash muffins. I particularly like the fact that they were dairy free and therefore suitable for some of my new friends here in Baku. 

As always, I did not quite manage to follow the recipe. I decided not to use the rather hard skin of the squash or the walnuts. I have not been able to find brown sugar in Baku so I substituted it for white granulated sugar (next time I will use honey).I also forgot the oil in a moment of absent mindedness but did not miss it in the final cake and I quite like the fact that without the oil, the muffins are almost fat free! 

I did follow the recipe for the icing but it was far too runny to stay on the muffins and by the time I had added enough icing sugar to achieve the right consistency, it no longer had the lemony flavour I was looking for to offset the sweetness of the cake. With a simple lemon sugar syrup they were delicious!

Here is my version of the recipe. Makes about 12 to 16 muffins

Ingredients

• 400g butternut squash (peeled, deseeded and chopped)
• 250g granulated sugar (I will use honey next time)
• 4 eggs (large)
• 300g flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons of baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of freshly ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 18O C and line the muffin tins with cases.

2. Blitz the squash in a food processor until finely chopped. 

3. Add all of the other ingredients and blend until just mixed.

4. Fill the cases 2/3 full. 

5. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. 

6. Allow to cool in the baking tray.

To make the lemon drizzle 

1. Warm the juice of two lemons with 4 tablespoons of sugar until the sugar has dissolved. 

2. Adjust sweetness to taste. 

3. Drizzle over the muffins when they are cool.