Winter baking with added sunshine: Tropical Fruit Muffins

I needed to find comfort in my kitchen this weekend away from the torrential downpours and wild windy weather, so I decided to do some uplifting baking to defy the elements.

Leafing through my food mags for inspiration I came across a series of recipes by Australian chef Bill Granger. Is it me or does he look like Darren Day? Anyway once I got past this unfortunate observation, his cooking is fresh, light and bursting with Asian flavours and tropical fruits.

I opted for his Passion Fruit, Banana and Coconut muffins which sounded like an incredible combo of flavours.

I’ve never cooked with passion fruits before. Sam was horrified by the gory appearance of the innards of the fruit when I cut them open, but was then instantly bowled over by their delicious fragrance. He really enjoyed scooping out the seeds and flesh – a fascinating experience for a curious five year old.

The recipes says it makes 12 muffins, but I got 20 out of my mixture. Keep an eye on them in the oven because mine started darkening on top after 25 minutes.

They taste absolutely divine. The sponge is flecked with the passion fruit seeds which gives the flavour a real zing dimension. The honey and banana offer a more mellow sweetness and the coconut finishes the mouthful with a satisfying chew. It would make a fantastic weekend breakfast treat with a really good cup of coffee. They’d also be lovely for a picnic or packed lunch.

They were a BIG hit with the boys. Sam wolfed two down as soon as they were cool enough to eat. Matthew came in after a few hours digging the allotment and instantly devoured one declaring it the best cake i’d ever made. Wow!

Arlo wandered around the house with his trailing crumbs everywhere and sharing it with the dog – they seem to have struck up a relationship based on food.

I boxed some up for Ken to say thanks for the curry – he was delighted. I’ve hidden the rest in my secret hidey-hole so we’ve got enough for our friends coming over to play. Let’s hope my boys don’t sniff them out in the meantime!

You can find the recipe on the Waitrose website