Baking with the Seasons

Lemon muffins made with real lemon, chia seeds, and cottage cheese! The chia seed replaces the conventional poppy seed for a superfood punch filled with fiber, omega-3, and protein. Cottage cheese adds another little protein boost for a filling morning breakfast treat or afternoon snack. Zest and juice from real lemons pack this recipe full of lemony goodness!

I did a little research on how to get lots of lemon flavor into muffins using real lemons. The first time, I made this recipe without the zest and just a lot of lemon juice, and it just wasn’t enough flavor. Using zest is key! I used a very fine zest grater so the zest would mix better with the sugar and give my desired texture to the muffin.

I also found that grinding/rubbing the zest into the sugar helps get more of the lemony oils out of the zest for more flavor. I used the back of a spoon and pressed the zest thoroughly into the sugar until it was well mixed. The sugar becomes light yellow in color and smells like lemon. Then, combine it with a fat to absorb the flavor and incorporate it throughout the batter; I used Avocado oil (could also use olive oil) for a lighter muffin. Set aside the zested sugar and oil mixture.

In separate large bowl, add cottage cheese and blend with immersion blender until smooth consistency – try to break up most of the curds. (If you dont have an immersion blender, you could also do this in a regular blender and then just pour it into a mixing bowl.)

Now, the zested sugar and oil mixture can be poured into the bowl with the blended cottage cheese and stirred to combine.

Then, juice 2-3 lemons to get 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice. I bought this new manual juicer piece (pictured below) and it’s awesome! I got way more juice out of the lemons this way, and it separates the pulp and seeds really well. And it sits perfectly on top of a 1 cup Pyrex liquid measuring cup! (Affiliate Amazon link to manual juicer)

Next, add the lemon juice, milk, vanilla, and eggs into the mixing bowl with the cottage cheese mixture and stir together until well combined. Then, add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, turmeric (for color), and flour and stir until well combined. Finally, fold in the chia seeds.

Pour batter into greased muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes.

Lemon Chia Seed Muffins

• 2 Tbsp Lemon zest
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup oil (Avocado or Olive)
• 1 cup cottage cheese, blended
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 3 Tbsp chia seeds

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Zest lemons using a fine zest grater until you have about 2 loose Tbsp of zest.
3. In a small bowl, combine zest and sugar. Rub the zest thoroughly into the sugar using the back of a spoon. The sugar will become fragrant and light yellow in color.
4. Add oil to zested sugar and cream together. Set aside.
5. In separate large mixing bowl, add cottage cheese and blend with immersion blender until smooth consistency. (If you dont have an immersion blender, you can also do this step in a regular blender and then pour the blended cottage cheese into a mixing bowl).
6. Add your zested sugar and oil mix to the mixing bowl to combine with blended cottage cheese. Stir well.
7. Juice 2-3 lemons to get 1/4 cup lemon juice.
8. Add lemon juice, milk, vanilla, and eggs to mixing bowl and stir together until well combined.
9. Stir in baking powder, baking soda, salt, turmeric, and flour until well combined.
10. Fold in chia seeds.
11. Bake in greased muffin tins at 350 degrees Farenheit for 20 minutes.