This is a recipe by Evil Shenanigans that was featured in Foodbuzz’s Top 9 last week. I was excited.
Last week I received another batch of fresh Florida oranges from my coworker and had been looking for another recipe in which to use them. When this one showed up, I was pleased as punch. Nothing like oranges and chocolate to make my day a little better.
Because these were muffins and not cupcakes, it was unnecessary to use my beloved mixer; instead I used a little muscle and mixed the batter by hand. That being the case, this recipe will be dedicated to the slackers out there: just a reminder that you don’t need fancy equipment to make delicious food!
Om nom nom nom...
Slackers: You don’t need a whisk or mixer to make this recipe! Two bowls and a spoon should be enough. A rubber spatula is super helpful, though. ^_^
I ended up skipping the zest portion of this recipe, mostly because I still don’t have a grater or zester. Like I did with the orange chiffon cake I could have done some manual zest-ing with a knife, but I didn’t really feel like it. I figured some freshly squeezed orange juice would suffice.
I enjoyed making this recipe; it was very straight forward (though I did skip the zest-ing step). The batter wasn’t tough like cookie dough batter, either. It was relatively loose and easy on the arms (onoz, my poor poor muffin-loving arms).
No, you definitely don't see Christmas lights I haven't put away yet...
The muffins were good, but I’m not sure I could taste much of the orange. That’s probably my fault, though. Like I mentioned, I didn’t add the zest, plus I used dark chocolate chips instead of regular ones; it could be that the sheer chocolaty goodness overpowered the more delicate citrus flavor. Even so, the muffins were tasty. If or when I make them again I’ll just have to be sure I add the zest and go a little easier on the chocolate (if I can bring myself to do it).
This recipe gets a thumbs up. Try it out!
Dericious.
Mary Gezo
Formerly of both n00bcakes and !Blog, the two magically become one on Spatialdrift; expect some lazy baking and serious nerditude. Also, I love semicolons.
What kind of chocolate did you use? Orange usually works best with bittersweet.
I used dark chocolate, apparently not a good idea if I’m looking to be able to taste the orange. Next time I’ll follow your advise and use the bittersweet. I have enough oranges to make a few more batches anyway, may as well experiment!
Mmm, those look good! They must be super moist with the sour cream. I can see how the zest would make a difference when the recipe calls for a tablespoon. You should get a microplane someday because they’re awesome.
this looks so lovely..chocolate and orange makes such a good pair.
@Jessica – Yeah, I guess you’re right that 1 whole tablespoon of zest could have made a really big difference. I should get a zester thing I guess…*grump*
@blackbook – Glad you like! The more I tinker, the more I realize how much I like fruit + chocolate combinations. ^_^