Gluten-free baking: Lemon coconut muffins

At work, our baker makes different muffins every day, and she always asks the rest of us what kind of muffins she should make. Last time, I suggested lemon coconut, even though I couldn’t eat them -- so I thought it was about time I make them at home!

Yield: approximately 18 small muffins

2 cups brown rice flour

1½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup margarine

1½ tsp vanilla

1/2 to 3/4 cup soy milk (unsweetened)

1/3 cup coconut (sweetened or unsweetened, your preference)

zest of one lemon

juice of half a lemon

- Mix together rice flour, baking powder and salt

- Cream together eggs, sugar, margarine and vanilla

- Mix soy milk into wet ingredients

- Add dry ingredients to wet and mix until just combined

- Mix in coconut, lemon zest and juice

- Adjust consistency with soy milk if needed

- Pour into greased or lined muffin tins

- Bake at 350 for approx 20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

These muffins turned out to be the most moist, gluten-free muffins I think I have ever made! I really enjoyed them, and four days later they were still soft and moist.

The muffins look a bit darker in colour than you would think a lemon coconut muffin would look, but this is due to the brown rice flour and brown sugar. I thought they could use a bit more lemon flavour, but my fiancé thought they were perfect. Keep in mind that I am a citrus freak, so feel free to adjust the lemon zest and/or juice to your liking!