Pear & Chocolate Muffins

Today I have a delicious recipe to share with you all - a bake which is perfect for enjoying on a cosy winter evening, with a cup of tea in front of a warm fire: pear and chocolate muffins!

As you know, my parents have a mini-orchard filled with fruity delights, and so we were hardly surprised when during our last visit home they bundled a bag full of apples and pears into our arms. I scratched my head for a while thinking of the best way to use the pears in baking, and then I stumbled across Martha Collison's recipe for pear and hazelnut muffins. I made a few small changes, grabbed the Galaxy Hazelnut Spread and whipped up a batch of these yummy, gooey delights.

I would definitely advise using big, chunky chocolate chips for these muffins - I like to simply snap squares of dark chocolate into quarters, and throw them in as they are for a good chocolatey hit. 

So here you are: a recipe which should be a firm favourite in the coming winter months...

Ingredients {Makes 12}

175g self-raising flour

1/2 tbsp baking powder

25g cocoa powder

50g caster sugar

2 eggs

75ml oil {I used rapeseed oil, but Martha suggests using vegetable}

50ml milk

100g chocolate and hazelnut spread {I used this}

2 pears. cored and cubed

50g chunky dark chocolate chips

Equipment

Muffin tin {I use a silicon one}

2 mixing bowls

Spatula {Mine's currently in the sale!}

Whisk

Skewer

Wire cooling rack

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180ºC/356ºF/gas mark 4. If you're not using a silicon muffin tin, line yours with paper muffin cases.

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and sugar together in one of your mixing bowls. In the other, beat together the eggs, oil and milk with your whisk, and once combined, stir in the chocolate and hazelnut spread.

3. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until no pockets of flour remain, and then stir in the pear cubes and chocolate chunks - the key with muffins is to do this until the ingredients are just combined, otherwise they will be missing that lovely, fluffy texture which we so know and love!

4. Spoon the mixture into your muffin cases, and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of each muffin comes out clean. 

5. Put the kettle on, make your favourite brew, and snaffle one of these beauties while they're warm from the oven - the chocolate chunks will still be oozing slightly, and the combination of melted chocolate and juicy pear is one which simply cannot be beaten...

Hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we did! If you whip up a batch, be sure to share your snaps with me on Twitter and Instagram {and maybe send me one for taste-testing...}