Sunday 29 March 2020

Passionfruit and orange muffins and my CoVid19 playlist

A colleague said to me last week that we are only 20 or 30 minutes into a disaster movie.  Yes we have all seen disaster on the big screen but never felt it so keenly as now.  Everything becomes precious when we teeter on the edge.  I look at my food and try to work out how to make it last.  It does not do to be fussy in these uncertain times.

I wish I could tell you that I am making amazing meals at home but they are often grabbed in haste.  Having Sylvia at home from school last week, having 4 medical/dental appointments (quite a few already planned as check ups and a flu jab), means I am so pleased to have a weekend to relax and have some time to sort the house.

It is amazing to think that I made these muffins a week and a half ago.  It seems like a lifetime ago that the kids were at school and my workplace was open.  But already I was working from home and missing all the food we share at work and being able to nip out to shops at lunchtime.  I was craving freshly baked food.  These muffins were inspired by leftover fruit that I wanted to save.  Even then I was aware that I had to use my food wisely.  And I had bought a bag of passionfruit that we had forgotten.  Sylvia took some to school but a few showed spots of mould.  We also had a bruised orange, some leftover wedges of orange from Sylvia's lunchbox, and a decaying box of strawberries.  Some was beyond redemption.  I salvaged what I could.

Sylvia loves eggs for any meal so I made these vegan as I figured I should save the eggs for her.  They were based on a passionfruit and strawberry muffins that I made four years ago.  It seems like another lifetime ago, having energy for volunteering, sharing food, children playing together at a working bee!  I first turned to a bookmarked passionfruit teacake but it wasn't quite what I wanted.  I did get inspired by it to use some coconut.  These muffins were made late at night after Sylvia went to bed and eaten often at the computer while I worked at home.  Home baking is a great comfort.  I am now working up to baking hot cross buns!

Meanwhile I have been thinking about music for CoVid19.  So I will leave you with two lists.  One is a CoVid19 play list and one is a list of CoVid19 humourous versions of popular songs that have given me a laugh (because we need to laugh!).

My CoVid19 playlist
(that I would put on Spotify if I had an account!)
  1. From little things big things grow - Paul Kelly
  2. The fear - Pulp
  3. What about me - Moving Pictures
  4. Don't stand so close to me - The Police
  5. My wandering days are over - Belle and Sebastian
  6. Doctor doctor - Thompson Twins
  7. Changes - David Bowie
  8. It's the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine) - REM
  9. Regret - New Order
  10. All in this together - Ben Lee
  11. In between days - The Cure
  12. i will survive - Gloria Gaynor
  13. Dancing with myself - Billy Idol
  14. Subterraean home sick blues - Bob Dylan
  15. All by myself - Eric Carmen
  16. Fire and rain - James Taylor
  17. There is a light that never goes out - The Smiths
  18. Stayin alive - The Bee Gees
  19. I'm still standing - Elton John
  20. Here comes the sun - The Beatles

10 Funny CoVid19 videos of popular songs:
  1. My corona home (Kokomo originally by The Beach Boys)
  2. Coronavirus rhapsody (originally by Queen)
  3. I can't get no santiser (originally by Rolling Stones)
  4. Wash your hands (originally by Taylor Swift) 
  5. Imagine there's no bog roll (originally by John Lennon)
  6. Torn (originally by Natalie Imbruglia)
  7. Yesterday (originally by The Beatles) - 
  8. We didn't spread the virus (originally by Billy Joel)
  9. Somewhere over the rainbow (originally sung by Judy Garland)
  10. Stayin Inside (originally by the Bee Gees)
 More passionfruit recipes on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
Apple, passionfruit and macadamia muffins (gf) 
Purple passionate pine pom juice (gf, v)
Strawberry and passionfruit icy poles (gf, v) 
Strawberry passionfruit muffin (v) 
Tropical orange and carrot smoothie (gf, v) 

Passionfruit and Orange Muffins
Adapted from Green Gourmet Giraffe
Makes 12 mini muffins

2 tbsp chia seeds - plus 4 tablespoon water - soaked
3/4 cup milk ( I used soy)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 cup self-raising flour
1/2 cup wholemeal flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate (baking) soda
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
1/4 cup chopped strawberries (or more passionfruit pulp)
1/4 cup passionfruit pulp
1/2 cup orange juice (or more passionfruit)

Preheat oven to 200 C.  Grease a 12 cup muffin tins.

Mix chia seeds with 4 tablespoon of water and set aside.  Also mix milk and vinegar to curdle for about 5 minutes.  (I think I did the chia and milk mixtures together in a small mixing bowl.)

Mix flours, baking powder, bicarb soda, sugar and coconut in a large mixing bowl.  In the small bowl, mix chia mixture, milk mixture, passionfruit, orange juice and strawberries.  Pour wet ingredients into dry mixture and mix until combined.

Spoon into prepared muffin tins and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and a skewed inserted comes out clean.  Leave in tins for 5-10 minutes and then remove and cool on a wire tray.

NOTES: these are quite light and fruity.  They could be iced or frosted if desired.  I tried one with cream cheese on it and it was ok but I preferred the one I spread with peanut butter.

On the Stereo:
No Need to Argue: the Cranberries

6 comments:

  1. So true, its does feel like a disaster movies and its scary to see who makes it to the end :( A thought I don't even want to contemplate. MY craving has been for salad leaves! Good to make muffins from salvaged fruit - they look good. Surprisingly or unsurprisingly I too have found time to do some baking with what we have in the house - indeed comforting. My brother send me a couple of funny corvid19 songs to cheer me up, but i had not heard the Torn one and it did me chuckle esp the bok choy line! Like your list. I am off to listen to My wandering days are over by Belle and Sebastian.

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  2. The first sentence of your post sent a shiver down my back. Yes, likely in the US things are about to get worse. Like you, I too am making the best of what I have in my fridge and when it all runs out, I will venture out for food. So far grocery stores are open here. Life is so surreal right now.

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  3. Thanks for sharing, home baking really is the best! I do find myself staring into the fridge or cupboard sometimes wondering what I should "save for a worse time".. I swing between optimism that we are all gonna do OK and feeling like I'll run out of flour to bake my sourdough...

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  4. Passionfruit is one of my favorite flavors but it's never available where we live -- not the fruit, not the pulp, not the syrup... nothing. That is of course a minor gap when you see what's missing now! We knew we were spoiled but never really had to face it.

    Be Well... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  5. Passionfruit is one of my favourites! I'm glad you made these vegan, so now I don't have to veganise the recipe when I make them at home (assuming there's passionfruit to be found in the supermarket). The comment about the being at the start of a disaster movie feels so apt right now.

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  6. These muffins sound delicious. I like the corona videos - some people are so creative.

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