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Nonna's Lemon Almond Ricotta Muffins

These muffins are perfectly light and fluffy, with subtle flavors from almond and lemon. They make the house smell amazing, and it's such a great bite with morning coffee. Recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis.
Course Breakfast, tea
Cuisine Almond, American, Lemon, Muffins, Ricotta
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 12 servings
Author tanyabee

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar or more as needed for sprinkling
  • 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest from 2 lemons
  • 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/3 cup thinly sliced almonds

Instructions

  • Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl to blend.
  • Using an electric mixer, beat 1 cup sugar, butter, and lemon zest in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
  • Beat in the ricotta.
  • Beat in the egg, lemon juice, and almond extract.
  • Add the dry ingredients and stir just until blended (the batter will be thick and fluffy).
  • Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups.
  • Sprinkle the almonds and then the remaining 1 teaspoon of sugar over the muffins.
  • Bake until the muffins just become pale golden on top, about 20 minutes.
  • Cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

You'll just need a 12-cup muffin tin and two mixing bowls, one medium and one large, for this recipe, which starts when you combine all of the dry ingredients in the medium bowl, whisking until everything is fully incorporated. In the larger bowl, combine the sugar, butter and lemon zest with an electric mixer until the mixture gets light and fluffy. Next, you'll want to beat in the ricotta before adding the egg, lemon juice and almond extract and beating again. Finally, mix in the dry ingredients just until they're incorporated and there are no more white streaks of flour in your batter—overworking it could result in a tough muffin.
Divvy up the batter into muffin cups, sprinkle each one with almonds and a pinch of sugar, then bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.
https://giadzy.com/blogs/recipes/nonnas-lemon-almond-ricotta-muffins-giada-de-laurentiis