variation on a loaf cake in cranberry, macadamia and white chocolate minor!

ok so you're probably figuring by now that the rosemary loaf cake went down a treat. in fact it went down such a treat that most of it disappeared shortly after it was made...i tried to swat off grabbing hands while it was still cooling as long as i could, otherwise it would have just crumbled away while knives were shamelessly used to (what i can only describe as) hack it apart. hungry stomachs often have no thought for the gentle procedure of slicing a cake and no concern whatsoever for the mess of cake crumbs and chunks they leave behind!

anyway, always one to experiment with something new, when i remade the recipe today, i wanted to try adding something different. so i left out the rosemary and instead added cranberries, macadamia nuts and white chocolate. i like that combination and have used it before in cupcakes. again it was super easy to make and with just the different ingredient being added at the end. smelled lovely in the oven and when it came out. took a bit longer than the rosemary loaf and i think i ended up leaving it in there for about an hour and 15 minutes.

the taste was fabulous...a charming melody of melted white chocolate, tangy cranberries and lovely crunchy macadamias. it all went together harmoniously with the moist vanilla flavour of the cake. this is definitely a recipe to experiment with more and try out some different combinations...i can feel the urge to make a nutella swirled one coming on...let the next symphony begin...

white chocolate, cranberry & macadamia muffins...what a mouthful!

i have loved macadamia nuts ever since i first tried white chocolate-macadamia nut cookies from Subway. a sinfully long and often waist-expanding relationship ensued! i love the taste of them...this probably sounds weird (and don't let it put you off them), but the texture reminds me of candle wax and interestingly enough, my hubby recently cooked chicken kapitan and the recipe called for 'candle nuts' and i remember thinking that they reminded me of macadamias.

macadamia nut
noun
1. small Australian tree with racemes of pink flowers; widely cultivated (especially in Hawaii) for its sweet edible nuts
2. nutlike seed with sweet and crisp white meat

so i thought i'd like to try them in some muffins. then began my search to buy the delightful nuts. i searched health shops high and low, supermarkets near and far to no avail. why, oh why, do they NOT sell macadamia nuts in Dublin! are we nutty enough? then i discovered a wee modicum of hope...a bag of macadamia nut and cranberry mix. when one can no longer be picky, one must snap up what they can! never one to reject the humble cranberry, i decided that they could go in to the muffin...after all, who am i to say that the cranberry is not deserving of a presence? once i had prepared the batter, i was surprised because it was very thick. i know that muffin batters are usually more dense than cupcake batters, but this stuff wouldn't even drop off the spoon (was i heading for rock cakes???) anyway, i finally got the batter into the cases and baked the muffins. result...very very scrumptious. it has certainly satisfied my craving for the macadamias, the cranberries added a nice tangy element to the muffin and the white chocolate just continued to ensure i do my utmost in the waist-expanding department!