Lemon Poppy-Seed Muffins

Reasons why I'm really lucky:

1. I have really amazing friends.

2. All my friends really like to eat.

Here is Roz:

Here she is madly zesting a lemon:

She's zesting to make this beauty:

We had a rather exciting time, because our baking fest required an emergency to the grocery store for lemons, apples, poppy seeds and chocolate. We had a little too much fun at the grocery store. We sampled all the chocolate covered nuts and in the bulk candy section. And then we went home and made these.

Like I said, I'm lucky.

Lemon Poppy-Seed Muffins

For the Muffins:

2/3 cup sugar

grated zest and juice of lemon

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup sour cream

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 stick butter, unsalted, melted and cooled

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

For icing:

1 cup confectioners' sugar

2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Butter, or line with paper cups a twelve regular-size muffin pan. In a large bowl, rub the sugar and lemon zest togheter with your fingertips until sugar is moist and fragrance of lemon is strong. Whisk in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the sour cream, eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and melted butter together until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over dry ingredient, with whisk or rubber spatula, gently but quicklystir to blend. Don't worry about being through, lumps are better than overmixing. Devide batter evenly among muffin cups.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until tops are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer pan to rack to cools for 5 minutes, carefully remove muffins from tin and cool completely before icing.

To make the icing: Put confectioners sugar in a small bowl and add abotu 1 1/2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Stir with a spoon to moisten sugar then add additional lemon juice, a dribble at a time, to get icing that is thin enough to drizzle from the tip of the spoon. Drizzle tops in zig-zags over tops of muffins, or coat tops entirely, the better to get that extra zap of lemon.