How to Make Aniseed Fig Muffins

If you love the taste of aniseed rings but are not looking for an overly sweet treat, these aniseed fig muffins may be just what you’ve been searching for. These muffins have a rich flavour that makes them ideal for a relaxing Sunday brunch or as an afternoon pick me up. They can be eaten warm, but they also taste fantastic when they are allowed to cool, and the flavours have fully developed.

Ingredients:

·         To make ten regular size muffins, you will need;

·         One egg,

·         230 millilitres of milk

·         60 millilitres of vegetable oil

·         Two teaspoons anise extract

·         300 grams of flour

·         100 grams of whole wheat flour

·         Three teaspoons of baking powder

·         Pinch of salt

·         30 grams of sugar

·         Three teaspoons of anise seeds

·         120 grams of chopped dried figs

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 190ºc and prep your muffin tins, either by lining with paper cases or greasing.

Whisk the oil, milk, anise extract and egg together in a jug. In another bowl sift the baking powder, salt, and flours. Add in the sugar and anise seeds, stirring well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, stirring briefly so everything is combined. Fold in the fig pieces, so they are well distributed.

Bake your aniseed and fig muffins for approximately fifteen minutes, testing with a skewer to ensure that they are baked through.

Serving Suggestions:

These aniseed fig muffins are wonderfully versatile, so you can serve them in a number of ways. If you are in the mood for a savoury treat, then you can still enjoy these muffins. The fig and aniseed flavours will complement several varieties of cheese, so you can create a delicious savoury platter. A sharp, soft goat’s cheese or a rich blue cheese would really accentuate the delicious fig flavours in these muffins. This serving suggestion will work particularly well if the muffins are still slightly warm from the oven.

 If you are more in the mood for a sweet treat, you can ice and decorate them. Just use a basic butter icing or glaze to top the muffins and use aniseed rings to decorate. If you are feeling particularly decadent, why not use dark chocolate aniseed rings. Fig and chocolate perfectly complement each other, enhancing the subtle aniseed flavour for a fantastic sweet delight.

If you are planning on serving these muffins to both adults and children, you can be a little more creative with your decorative ideas. Scattering the top with chocolate aniseed rings will really appeal to kids, but adults will appreciate the flavour combination. If you are aiming for maximum appeal, why not top with a chocolate ganache before dotting with aniseed rings.

If you would like to incorporate aniseed rings into your baking creations, speak to us. Funworks has a massive selection of sweets and candy including regular and dark chocolate aniseed rings. Our team of sweet enthusiasts would be happy to assist you with any queries and we can also arrange for bulk orders, so you will have plenty of chocolate aniseed rings for all your baking ideas and experiments.