APRICOT-VANILLA BEAN MUFFINS

Apricot-Vanilla Bean Muffins image

Tangy apricot muffins with sweet marzipan on top.

Provided by Stephanie Wiebe Meismer

Categories Bread Quick Bread Recipes Muffin Recipes

Time 1h

Yield 12

Number Of Ingredients 14

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter
1 cup white sugar
1 (7 inch) vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
2 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk
1 cup finely chopped dried apricots
3 tablespoons coarse sugar
2 ounces marzipan (almond paste)
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line cups with paper liners.
Beat 1/2 cup butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until mixture is light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla seeds. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl.
Sift 3 cups flour, baking power, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk to the batter, mixing just until blended. Fold in apricots.
Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups and sprinkle each muffin with about 1/4 teaspoon coarse sugar.
Blend together marzipan, 1 tablespoon flour, and 1 tablespoon butter. Top each muffin with a dab of the mixture.
Bake in the preheated oven until tops spring back when lightly pressed, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 347.3 calories, Carbohydrate 57.6 g, Cholesterol 55.1 mg, Fat 11 g, Fiber 1.9 g, Protein 6.2 g, SaturatedFat 5.9 g, Sodium 232.1 mg, Sugar 31.8 g