Calamansi Poppy Seed Muffin,Citrus Kale and Quinoa

Calamansi Poppy Seed Muffin This is a recipe for a simple muffin, loaded with citrus flavors from calamansi and poppy seed. Great for breakfast or as a snack. Have you ever heard of calamansi? Well, I did by chance…years ago, I was looking for a dwarf orange family tree, and bump into this nice tree which at the time looked like a mandarin orange tree. After a few months I noticed that the fruits were tiny, they looked like the little cuties, but much smaller. I thought that the farmer made a mistake when placing the tag…It was then that I looked carefully at the tag…it said calamansi or calamondin. After a lot of search in the internet I learned that calamansi is a cross between mandarin orange and kumquats, which are slightly elongated. This fruit is very popular in Philippines and Malaysia and grow throughout Southeast Asia. These little orange like fruits are like orange, starts off as a green and turns orange-yellow as it matures on the tree. Apparently you can use it either way, green or orange-yellow. The juice is tart, like lemon, although much more fragrant. I have been using calamansi to marinate chicken, pork…the same way I would use lemon. This time I decided to bake some muffins and substitute the lemon juice for calamansi juice. They came out nice, they had a hint of an exotic aroma…but one thing I would change next time baking these muffins it to add a bit more of the calamansi juice. This is a super simple recipe, no need for any especial gadget…just a couple of bowls and spatulas…I hope you will try this recipe one day. Ingredients: ⅓ cup sugar 2 tablespoons calamansi freshly squeezed juice 120 g all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ⅛ teaspoon baking soda ⅛ teaspoon salt 6 tablespoons yogurt (I used non-fat, but feel free to use any kind) 1 egg ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled 1 tablespoon poppy seeds Method: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Fit mold with 9 medium size paper muffin cups. In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another large bowl, whisk the melted butter, yogurt, eggs, vanilla and calamansi juice together until well blended. Pour the flour mixture over the wet ingredients and, with the rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don’t worry about being thorough, do not over mix. Stir in the poppy seeds. Scoop the batter into the muffins cups. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a wooden stick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature, or freeze for future enjoyment If you enjoy this citrus dessert, you might want to check on Tangerine Chiffon Cake or Lime Pudding Cake. Did you know that calamansi like all the other citrus is rich in vitamin C? In spite of the orange color, the fruit is very sour, although the peel is sweet, resembling a kumquat. Thank you for stopping by Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week! Citrus Kale and Quinoa In spite of many people already feeling Fall, we are still enjoying summer. As a matter of fact, part of July and August were so overcast here that we thought that this year we would not have summer at all…luckily, summer is finally here at the South Bay. We have been spending a lot of time walking at the beach and enjoying the weather…with that being said, I am still in the mood for salad. This is the first time that I made salad with kale. I usually make kale chips or add to soup….after seeing so many kale salads, I decided to eat it raw, and I felt in love with it, although I must admit that my husband did not care much for it. He is a little biased because he never liked kale and after baking loads and loads of kale chips he finally started to accept them…maybe after more batches of kale salad, he will acquire the taste for it… Since kale is kind of chewy, I decided to add quinoa so the texture of the kale could be masked by the soft and nutty flavor of quinoa. And citrus dressing was a natural way to break the bitterness of the kale… Ingredients: 1 bunch of kale, I used the curly ones 5 to 6 tablespoon orange champagne muscat vinegar, I used the one from Trade Joe’s ½ red quinoa (or regular quinoa) 2 tablespoons olive oil Dry cranberry to taste Salt and pepper to taste 1 can of Mandarin oranges Roasted sliced almond Method: Cook the quinoa according to the instruction on the package. Once cooked, let it cool and place in the refrigerator for approximately 1 to 2 hours. In the meantime, remove the kale leaves from the ribs and torn the leaves into small pieces (1/2 inch). Wash thoroughly and spin it dry. In a bowl, add the orange champagne muscat vinegar and using your hands, gently squeeze the kale leaves until tilted. Place in the refrigerator for 15 to 30 minutes. Remove the kale leaves from the refrigerator and add all the ingredients but the toasted sliced almond and Mandarin oranges. Mix until all the ingredients are well mixed. Place in serving bowl and sprinkle with the toasted almond and Mandarin oranges. If you enjoy this simple and quick recipe of kale salad you might want to check on Kale Chip or Quinoa Salad with Mint recipe. Did you know that kale is super rich in vitamin K? Vitamin K is crucial for the body function but one has to be cautious since too much vitamin K can interfere with some anticoagulant medications. Moreover, kale contains oxalate which affects the absorption of calcium, therefore avoid eating calcium rich food with kale. Thank you for stopping by Simple Recipes [dot] Me and have a great week!.

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