Pear and Hazelnut Muffins

Good morning, everyone. I know, it's been a while. But during the last few weeks, I either didn't have time for baking or the photos I made of my cakes did not live up to my expectations so I decided not to post them. When it comes to my food pictures, I've become quite a perfectionist. So I often find myself sitting in front of my computer, looking at the photos for ages, comparing and post-processing them until I feel comfortable with the result. Sometimes, the first few shots I take are just perfect and sometimes, it just doesn't work the way I wanted it to, no matter what I try… I am quite happy with the outcome of today's photo session, though. I felt like baking something with pears. Pear still is my favorite fruit and combined with hazelnuts or almonds it yields, at least in my opinion, the most comforting and heart-warming baked goods. These muffins would be wonderful for breakfast or as a snack in the afternoon.

Recipe
(from here)

Yield: Theoretically, 12 muffins (I got 17)

2 small-medium firm pears
85 grams butter, melted and cooled slightly
125 grams natural cane sugar, such as Turbinado, light brown or granulated sugar
240 ml buttermilk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
75 grams rolled oats
125 grams all-purpose flour
60 grams whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom, which I replaced with 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, which I replaced with 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
120 grams toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
85 grams bittersweet chocolate chunks (optional, I left them out)

Heat oven to 220°C. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin tin or line it with papers.

Peel (if you so desire, can be skipped) pears, then halve and core them. Grate pears on the large holes of a boxed grater into a large bowl. Stir in melted butter, sugar, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla until combined.

In a separate bowl, stir together the oats, flours, baking soda, baking powder, spices, salt, all but 1/2 of the coarsely chopped hazelnuts, and chocolate chunks, if you’re feeling extra indulgent. Gently fold this dry ingredient mixture into the wet batter until just combined; do not overmix.

Fill muffin cups almost up to the top and sprinkle with the reserved hazelnuts. Place muffins in oven and immediately reduce the heat to 190°C. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of muffins comes out batter-free.

Cool muffins in pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Muffins will keep for 2 days at room temperature in an airtight container.