A few trees in the park are already in full bloom, and with the warmer weather and fresh rains, it feels like spring made it, despite all odds. We didn’t travel this spring break, so it’s been nice to settle into a slower rhythm and focus on some deep work, like my Ayurvedic nutrition thesis and the proposal for my next cookbook on which I hope to make real progress in the next month.
In other news, after obsessing about it for a full year, I finally bought a countertop oven, hoping it would remove some of the friction that keeps me from recipe testing. When you live in NYC, your main oven naturally becomes storage for pots and pans. So every time I want to bake, it turns into a whole process. Pull everything out, wait for it to heat up, and then the apartment gets uncomfortably warm. Then you have to wait for it to cool and put everything back in!
Long story short, I tend to avoid baking, even though I feel pulled toward it often.
This little oven has completely changed that. It heats up in about four minutes, and I’m in business. The real win here, of course, is that I get to share recipes like this with you more often.
So, lemon-ricotta muffins. A bright combination that always feels right this time of year. I use nutty einkorn flour and swap butter for olive oil, which adds a light, slightly savory finish and keeps everything balanced. Hemp seeds blend in seamlessly, little green flecks that bring a quiet protein boost. Add blueberries if you like, and check the cooking note so they don’t sink to the bottom.
I’ve been enjoying mine with a cup of dandelion tea mid-morning.
Lemon-Ricotta-Hemp Seed Muffins
Makes 12
Ingredients