This month’s JFI theme chosen by charming couple
Bee & Jai is
Jackfruit. The gentle giant of the fruit kingdom with its enticing aroma and sweet scrumptious pods is all set to entrance us in a variety of mouth watering recipes in JFI array, thanks to
Indira.
The jackfruit tree itself creates ample interest in the way the fruits are borne on the trunk. Like pearls hidden inside the silky bed of an oyster, the firm, succulent pod is hidden inside a rough and tough outer green rind followed by yellowish sticky appendages which hold the pods in place. Cutting a jackfruit itself is an art. The fruit has to be carefully cut in layers so as to extract the pods intact. To avoid the stickiness of the interiors while cutting, oil is used as a lubricant on hands. My aunt Tulasi is the only one in the family who can cut a jackfruit perfectly. It was always fun to watch her cut the fruit and hand the pods over to our eager hands….We would gobble them up and keep asking for more…The seeds are another delicacy, when roasted over an open fire. Sometimes, they find their way into curries too..That I will save for another post.
For JFI, as usual I wanted to try something new and born was the idea of muffins. I might have come up with a better idea had I had access to fresh fruit, but I could only get canned fruit.
My hubby is a fan of muffins and I beg to differ. I always sense an eggy odor in muffins which puts me off. So, this was an experiment to make a muffin which is egg-smell free and ofcourse hubby dear would be happy too! 🙂 Onto the recipe now..
Recipe:
Makes about 20 medium sized muffins.
Jackfruit Pulp – 1 Cup
All Purpose Flour – 2 Cups
Baking Powder – 1 Tbsp
Egg – 1
Oil – 1/2 Cup
Sugar – 4 Tbsps
Milk – 1 Cup
Honey – 1 Tbsp
Salt – 1/4 tsp
Vanilla Extract – 1 Tsp
For the jackfruit pulp, roughly mash canned or fresh fruit. Whisk together egg, milk, oil, honey and vanilla extract, till well blended. Add the jackfruit pulp to the egg mixture and mix well. Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add the egg and jackfruit mixture to the flour and mix only till the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not overmix. Immediately fill muffin pans or muffin cup liners, till they are 1/2 or 2/3 full. Bake in an oven preheated to 375 degree Fahrenheit, for about 20 to 23 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool for sometime.
According to JoyOfBaking website, american muffins are supposed to have a symmetrical domed top, with a bumpy surface. They should feel light for their size and when cut in half the interior should be moist and tender with no tunnels.
I feel proud to say that my muffins turned out perfectly well! Like a perfect American muffin!
Please note that this recipe produces mildly sweet muffins. If you need sweeter ones, use a simple sugar glaze on top or sprinkle a little sugar while the muffins are hot.
