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Kiwifruit Muffins June 14, 2007 Gold kiwifruit are now a familiar sight alongside the more usual green varieties. Back in the 1970s Actinidia chinensis kiwifruit seeds from the Beijing Botanical Gardens, the Guangxi Institute of Botany in Guilin and from wild plants in South and Central China were gathered and planted at New Zealand’s Te Puke Research Orchard. The Zespri gold kiwifruit is the child of a mother plant from Beijing with yellow flesh and great flavour and a male plant from the Guilin family. In 1992, a single vine from this partnership was planted and for next five years Hort 16A, as it was known, was nurtured and evaluated for taste, colour, size, storage and shelf-life. In 1998, 4000 trays of Hort 16A were exported for the first time and people around the world had their first chance to savour a new, totally natural kiwifruit variety. The number of vines has grown and the delicious gold fruit are a welcome addition to the cook’s armoury. I sometimes set to in the kitchen at the weekends and mix of a batch of muffins for brunch. A bevy of beautiful yellow kiwifruit in the fruit bowl inspired today’s dozen. Keep the kiwifruit chunky so pockets of the golden flesh stud the muffins. If you find peeling the fruit is bothersome, simply cut them in half and spoon out chunks of the flesh.
Kiwifruit muffins 3/4 cup white flour Sift flour, baking powder and cinnamon into a bowl. Stir in the cornmeal, sugar, salt and sultanas. In another bowl whisk the eggs, milk and oil then stir in the kiwifruit. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet mix and stir until just combined. Do not overmix. Spoon into greased muffin pans and bake in a pre-heated oven at 200C for 18-20 minutes. Test with a toothpick to ensure they are cooked through. Makes 12.
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