There’s something about the oranges in winter. Its nature’s way I guess of providing an extra boost of Vitamin C to ward off those winter colds and flus and to boost our immune systems. The Navel oranges are just gorgeous at the moment and add such a wonderful flavour to baked goods. I just adore the taste of orange in the batter (I may or may not be guilty of licking the bowl on my own) and the smell that permeates from the oven while its baking. I made an easy Orange Cake a couples week before and needed some muffins for the kids, so while the oven was on, I created this flavour combination. (Not suitable for the kids for school because of the nuts but my son ate them at home with me).

This recipe is my basic muffin recipe with a few additions. That’s what I love about a basic recipe. You can add anything you like to it depending on what you’ve got. Keep those basic ingredients in the pantry at all times and use what you have, for example, a handful of sultanas, chocolate chips, grated or chopped apple and cinnamon, raspberries and white chocolate, apricot and coconut. The combinations are endless for muffins. Check out your local muffin store for flavour combinations and re-create them at home.


Date, Orange & Walnut Muffins

  • 2 cups Self Raising flour
  • grated rind of 1 orange
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped dates
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
  • 1/4 cup oil (I used Canola)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  1. Add all ingredients, mix lightly and pour into cupcake papers and bake in a 180 deg C oven for 15 minutes. 
  2. Makes a dozen large sized muffins, 18 cupcake sized muffins or 24 mini muffins.