Roasted Grape Muffins

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Heaven help us all. This weekend, I've been experimenting with roasted grapes and used them in both sweet and savory dishes. My favorite application was their use as an accompaniment to a roast pork, but I also came up with recipes for muffins and scones where the grapes are used in place of berries or nuts. Roasting the grapes heightens their sweetness and changes their texture. I really think you'll like them roasted. The first of my experiments was for the muffins I'm sharing with you tonight. Italians make cakes that use grapes and olive oil as ingredients. Those recipes were the inspiration for these muffins which are child-simple to prepare. They have a moist crumb, but the sprinkling of sugar they receive before going into the oven, gives the crust a crunch that plays nicely against their moist interiors. These muffins are not overly sweet and they are great to serve for breakfast or at a coffee or tea. I do hope you'll give this recipe a try. Here is how the muffins are made.

Roasted Grape Muffins...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1-3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar, divided use
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon light olive oil
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 to 2 cups roasted seedless red grapes (see below)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and position an oven rack in the center. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin pan or line cups with paper liners and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2) Place flour, cornmeal, 2/3 cup of sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk to blend thoroughly.
3) Combine olive oil, lemon zest, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla extract in a medium bowl and whisk until well-blended.
4) Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix only until there are no more streaks in batter. A few small lumps scattered throughout are O.K. Gently fold in roasted grapes.
5) Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin cups. Stir together remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle it over tops of the muffins.
6) Bake muffins for 18 to 20 minutes, or until tops feel firm and a skewer inserted into centers comes out clean. Transfer muffin pan to a rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Gently run a knife or spatula around each muffin to free it from pan, lift muffins out, and transfer them to rack to finish cooling (careful, these are tender while hot). Serve warm or at room temperature. Yield: 12 muffins.

Roasted Grapes:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Arrange grape clusters in a single layer on a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until skins are slightly crisp but grapes are still soft and juicy inside, about 15 minutes.

                    

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