Monday 22 February 2016

Honey Muffins

Jeanette is still going strong baking and making delicious goodness using local ingredients, and at the office we are loving this!  We are getting our daily bread... or cupcakes, to have with our first coffee before we kick off with work!


This fine Monday morning we were treated to some Honey Muffins!  Honey is one of the most precious ingredients in a kitchen and for good reason. In Jeanette's words, honey is the only natural food that has all the ingredients to support life, including water.  Not solely used in food, honey has also been used as a natural remedy to treat a variety of ailments.




Its prestigiousness also comes from the fact that it is a very limited product.  Pure raw honey availability depends on a healthy hive of bees foraging on the flora in their surroundings.  This year's biggest issue for our local farmers has been the lack of rainfall which of course affects the amount and variety of flora and therefore impacts on the amount of honey produced by the bees!

So whilst we pray and hope for more rainfall so as to be able to produce more pure local honey, below is the Honey Muffin recipe Jeanette has used thanks to www.simplefood365.com.  




 HONEY MUFFINS
______________________________________________________

PREP TIME  15 mins

COOK TIME 18 mins

TOTAL TIME 33 mins


Author: Tara Kimball
Recipe type: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Serves: 12 Muffins


INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1½ teaspoons vanilla
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  •  cup honey
  • 1 large egg


    INSTRUCTIONS

    1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
    2. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
    3. Mix the milk, vanilla, butter, honey and egg in a smaller bowl until well blended.
    4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mixing just until everything is combined.
    5. Divide the batter into a sprayed or lined muffin pan so that each cup is  full.
    6. Bake for 18 minutes, then remove to a rack for 10 minutes.


    More interesting information about pure honey can be found in two other Merill Local Product blogs: Let's Talk About Honey, Honey!  Part 1 & Part 2.

    Have a great week!!

    Steph




    Did you know...

    ...that there are different types of honey depending on the season it is harvesting in, because of the different flora available to the bees at the time?  Different season, different colour! At our speciality store we are currently stocked up on Autumn flora honey which is the darker shade and also some Thyme & Clover honey!  All very limited!!  Should you be interested contact us now - info@merill.com.mt or call us on 21411388.


    Some of the honey can also be tasted during our weekly Olive Grove experiences happening every Sunday! Click here for more information.



    Saturday 13 February 2016

    Oranges and Lemons: What to do when you have too many!

    Yesterday Simone, a friend of mine, asked me what can she do with a crate full of oranges. Good question, so I decided to dig further! 

    December and January are the months when we're blessed with bountiful citrus fruits, mainly oranges, lemons and tangerines. I also spotted huge grapefruits at the Farmer's Market in Ta' Qali. Apart from this market, fruit and veg mongers roaming around the streets would also offer a range of locally grown produce...always ask for local :)

    To answer my friend's question I resorted to my social media platform of choice, Pinterest, for inspiration. 

    So here are some interesting blogs that can help you process your favourite citrus fruit in a multitude of ways!

    Orange Muffins



    Lemon Cake (I tried this...it's divine)



    Candied Peel




    Orange Blondies




    Cranberry Orange Smoothy



    Citrus Syrups





    Enjoy the recipes!

    Jeanette

    Tuesday 9 February 2016

    Colours, patterns and imagination


    By Steph Camilleri


    This week we wish to shed some more light on our current collaboration with local artist and graphic designer, Stephanie Borg.  

    Her use of bright colours and patterns makes her work stunning and interesting, and her love for certain features of the local scene such as the typical Maltese doors and old tiles are seen in most of her work.

    She has creatively made her artwork available on items that can be used daily, widening her product range to include not just wall pieces but also wrapping paper, calendars, mugs, mouse pads, espresso cups and coasters.

    Stephanie has been collaborating with Merill for a couple of years now, including designing our new jams and pure honey tags. We have also combined her lovely items together with Merill products into our Eco Hampers.