Cherry and Coconut Muffins

Sweet and juicy cherries are in season right now and I absolutely love them. They do create a bit of a bloodbath when you try to stone them so I tend to don a pair of disposable rubber gloves to avoid the old purple finger look which isn't very flattering.  I decided to bake a batch of muffins using these purple juicebombs and some sweet dessicated coconut - they're ultra simple to make and take just 20 minutes to bake.  This recipe makes 18 muffins or you can turn it into a 2lb loaf for a teatime treat.

In fact, Aldi are selling them for 79c a punnet so run like the clappers and grab some now! 



Cherry and Coconut Muffins

225g Caster Sugar
225g Butter, very soft
225g Plain Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
4 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
200g Dessicated Coconut
250g Cherries, stoned
9 Cherries, stoned and reserved

Preheat your oven to 180c/Gas Mark 4 and line your muffin tins with 18 paper cases.

In a large bowl, mix the sugar, butter, flour, baking powder, eggs and vanilla extract together until well combined.

Fold in the coconut and cherries, mixing well - the batter will turn a beautiful shade of lilac with the cherry juice.

Place a large tablespoon of the batter into each muffin case, top with the 18 reserved cherry halves and bake for 20-25 minutes until cooked.

Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool fully.  They'll keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container.