SWEET THINGS

Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins with Lemon Curd

Soft strawberry muffins with cream cheese, lemon curd and a café-style finish.

MODERATE

35 MINS

12 MUFFINS

ABOUT THE RECIPE

Strawberry, cream cheese and lemon curd make these feel a little more café-counter than everyday muffin. The crumb stays soft and light, the strawberries keep things fresh, and that lemon curd centre does exactly what it should. Bright, creamy, and very easy to keep “checking on” in the fridge.

THE RECIPE

Ingredients

Wet Mixture

½ cup cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup white sugar

2 eggs + 1 extra egg yolk

½ cup canola oil

½ cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry Mixture

2¾ cups plain flour

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp fine sea salt

½ tsp cinnamon

Zest of 1 lemon

Filling

1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped

1 tsp plain flour, for tossing strawberries

Icing

200g cream cheese, softened

1 cup icing sugar, sifted and adjusted to taste

½ tsp vanilla extract

Pinch fine sea salt

To Finish

100g lemon curd

12 whole strawberries

Paper muffin cases

Method

Preheat you oven to 165°C. Line a 12-cup muffin tray with paper cases or generously grease with butter.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs and extra yolk and beat until well combined. Pour in the canola oil, milk and vanilla extract and mix gently until smooth and glossy. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and lemon zest.

Toss the chopped strawberries in 1 teaspoon of flour to prevent them sinking.

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. The batter should remain slightly lumpy. Do not overmix. Fold in the floured strawberries right at the end.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cases, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with moist crumbs attached.

Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once the muffins are completely cool, beat the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and salt until smooth and fluffy. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe a ring around the top of each cooled muffin, leaving the centre open. Spoon a generous dollop of lemon curd into the centre of each icing ring and finish with a whole strawberry on top.

SAMANTHA'S NOTES

Do not overmix

Flour the strawberries

Cool before icing

Toss the strawberries in a little flour before folding them through. This helps stop them sinking and keeps the berries evenly scattered through the muffins.

Let the muffins cool completely before adding the cream cheese icing and lemon curd. Store them in the fridge, then bring to room temperature before serving.

Fold the batter gently once the dry ingredients go in, and stop as soon as the flour disappears. A slightly lumpy batter gives you softer, lighter muffins.