CHOCOLATE ORANGE MINI MUFFIN MADNESS

The other day I invested in a mini muffin tray in order to make some mince pies for work (in September! I know!). Obviously I had to use it for it's true purpose of making mini muffins first (you know just to test that the trays work!) and with an orange sitting in the fruit bowl acting as my inspiration, these mini chocolate chip and orange muffins were born. Chocolate orange is one of those flavor combinations that just works however you utilize it and these babies are no different. They are little nuggets of tasty goodness!

Chocolate Orange Mini Muffins

 110g Softened Butter

65g Golden Caster Sugar + 2 Tsp Extra

2 Whole Eggs

110g Plain Flour

1 And A 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder

100g Chocolate Chips

Juice Of 1 Large Orange

1. Start by placing your oven onto 200 degrees (180 fan) and greasing each of the holes of your mini muffin tray.
2. Beat together the butter and 65g of sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy before adding in the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until they are well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour and baking powder and then add it to the first bowl and gently fold everything together until combined and no streaks of flour are visible.
4. Add in the chocolate chips and fold them through until evenly distributed in the muffin batter.
5. Dollop in around 1 tbsp of the cake batter into each of the muffin tray holes, tap the tray on your work top to remove any air holes in the batter and then place into the oven for around 20 minutes until the muffins have risen, look golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean as a whistle. 
6. Whilst the muffins bake, squeeze the juice from the orange into a bowl and mix it together with the remaining 2 tsp ofcaster sugar. When the muffins are ready remove them from the oven and prick them gently with a skewer or fork to create little holes in the top of each one. Don't go made you don't want the muffins to be obliterated with holes all over them.
7. Brush the muffins with the sugary orange juice and then leave them to cool in the tray before removing and placing on a wire rack. 

Now I'm not a fan of fiddly icing, I prefer just to slap it all over a cake but if you have the skills you could pipe each muffin with a bit of chocolate frosting to finish them off. If your like me though you can still enjoy them naked in all their teeny tiny splendor. The brushed orange juice makes the muffins all moist and Morris's and the flavor compliments that of the chocolate chips so much that if your not careful you may of devoured about ten of these bad boys in no time without even realizing. Embrace the madness and treat yourself to these bite sized superstars next time you get your bake on!