Lemon & Rosemary Cream Cheese Muffins - Dairy Free

Lemon combined with cream cheese and rosemary seems like an unusual combination. We were pleasantly surprised at how the flavors didn't overpower one another and all blended so well. If you do want to amp up the flavors, simply double the lemon zest and minced rosemary.

Winter is a great time to bake with lemons, and our favorite Meyer lemons are on the market. If you’ve never tried them, the flavor difference is life-changing. It's worth taking a minute to prepare the fresh zest instead of using bottled. 

“When life gives you lemons, make sure they’re Meyer.”

Rebel loves the top of a muffin best, so we got a muffin top pan. As a bonus, the pans are easier to prep and clean, and the muffin tops pop out of the pan quickly.

We originally wanted to try the Kite Hill nondairy ricotta cheese in this recipe, but Lee realized she only had the cream cheese on hand. Happily, the muffins turned out, but look for a ricotta version on the blog soon.

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Lemon and Rosemary Cream Cheese Muffins - Dairy Free

by Burnt Toast Food Blog February-8-2018

Just a hint of lemon and rosemary blend nicely in a dairy free muffin.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup margarine, dairy free at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest*
• 2 ½ teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice*
• 1 cup (8 oz.), nondairy cream cheese (such as Kite Hill)
• 1 tablespoon nondairy milk
• turbinado sugar
• *3 Meyer lemons (or 2 regular lemons)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.2. Line muffin pan with paper cups or grease with margarine.3. Cream margarine and sugar until fluffy and light colored. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemon zest and rosemary. 4. Whisk flour, baking soda and salt in medium bowl.5. Stir lemon juice into nondairy cream cheese.6. Add 1/3 flour mixture to lemon-rosemary batter. Alternate with 1/3 lemon juice-cream cheese mixture. Continue to add by thirds until completely mixed. Don’t overmix.7. Scoop into muffin tins. Brush tops with nondairy milk and sprinkle with sugar.8. Bake 18-22 minutes until tops are light brown and spring back when pressed lightly. (Bake 15 minutes for the muffin tops.)Notes: For more pop of lemon and rosemary flavors, double the amount of lemon zest and minced rosemary. You can bake these in a traditional muffin pan but we like them best when using a muffin top pan (whoopie pie pan).

Details

Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 22 mins Total time: 52 mins Yield: 12 muffins or 15 muffin tops