SIMPLE DARK CHOCOLATE MUFFINS

Since Friday has become my official baking day, I feel very disjointed and erratic when I am unable to stick to this commitment. I was feeling this way last Friday afternoon, and decided that I just had to bake before rushing off to work at 4pm. Having bought dark chocolate chips the previous day (as a very naughty snack for myself), I resolved to put them to better use by baking dark chocolate muffins. As I was on a race against time, I ransacked my pantry for ingredients and made the simplest muffins I could think of.  Modest and simple muffins though they may look on paper, they actually tasted quite splendid! Sometimes simplicity is paramount.   

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup good quality (such as Cadbury) cocoa powder
• 2 cups self raising flour
• 2 eggs
• a dash of vanilla essence 
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2/3 cup skim milk, plus 2 tablespoons extra
• cooking oil spray

COOKING 

1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius fan forced. Lightly spray a 12 hole muffin pan with cooking oil spray. 

2. Mix together flour, cocoa, sugar and chocolate chips in a large bowl. Make a large hole or well in the middle of the bowl. In a jug, whisk together milk, vanilla essence, oil and eggs until combined. Pour liquid mixture into the well and using a mixing spoon, gently stir until ingredients are just combined. Take care not to overmix. If the batter is looking too dry, add a few tablespoons extra of milk (as I did). Spoon mixture evenly into the 12 prepared muffin holes. 

3. Bake muffins for around 25 minutes or until batter is cooked. A good way to test this is to insert a skewer into the centre of a muffin; if the skewers comes out clean, the muffins are cooked. Stand in muffin pan for around 10 minutes, then gently remove the muffins from the pan and leave on a wire rack until cooled. 

x E