Peach Ricotta Olive Oil Muffins

Servings 12 muffins

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk I used 1%
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups diced fresh peaches
1 Tablespoon all purpose flour

Topping:

Turbinado or other coarse sugar
Sliced almonds

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together ricotta cheese, olive oil, eggs, milk, vanilla and almond extracts until well combined.
Add the flour mixture to the ricotta mixture and use a rubber spatula to gently mix it until just combined.
Pat the diced peaches dry with a paper towel, place them in a bowl and toss them with the tablespoon of flour until lightly coated. Then fold the peaches into the batter. (See notes.)
Divide batter evenly between 12 muffin cups filling the cups almost to the top. (See photos in post)
Sprinkle tops with sliced almonds, then sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar.
Bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees F, then, keeping the oven door closed, reduce the temperature to 375 degrees F and bake for another 8-12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from pan and either serve warm or move individual muffins to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store lightly covered at room temperature.

Recipe Notes

*If you'd like a sweeter muffin, increase the sugar to 1 cup. I like the balance of a lightly sweetened muffin with a sweet topping.

*To easily peel peaches, cut a shallow "X" on the end of each piece of fruit. Place peaches in a pot of boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove from boiling water and place in a bowl of ice water for a few second to cool down. Then remove from ice bath and peel by simply pulling the skin off. Skin should peel off easily.

*Be extra careful when cutting peeled peaches. They are very slippery. I always use a dish towel to hold them steady and always make sure my knife is pointing in a direction, that if it slips, it slips away from my hands.

*I chose to toss the peaches in a spoonful of flour to help reduce the risk of sinking. Sometimes I do this when I add fruit to muffins; sometimes I don't. I wrote about the Myth vs. Fact on this subject in my Blueberry Crumb Cake post. It's your choice to flour or not to flour. But, definitely pat them dry before adding them. You don't have go crazy patting them dry, just get rid of additional juice so that they aren't wet when you add them to the batter.