Earlier this week my manager at work celebrated his birthday. Because the number of native North Americans now outnumbers the Scandinavians in our team, we have decided to follow our North American birthday traditions. In the US and Canada, the birthday boy/girl is feted by colleagues, often as a surprise. The colleagues come together and bring a cake, ice cream, sign a card, etc. In Iceland, and indeed here in Norway, the tradition is that you, on your birthday, bear the responsibility of providing some kind of treats for everyone! We North Americans find this incomprehensible. Why should you, celebrating a special day in your life (maybe even a depressing one if you’re hung up on aging) providing for others and making an effort? Without meaning to sound culturally insensitive and judgmental, it’s just backwards! Haha.

Thus, I decided to bake a few simple things. I made chocolate cake (the recipe was provided in this blog already), peanut butter cups, some soft, chewy chocolate cookies that were supposed to form a sandwich for a caramel filling (I ran out of time and energy and ended up making sandwiches using melted milk chocolate… not the same thing at all), and these kiwi-coconut muffins. I saw a recipe like this on a blog somewhere and decided to give it a try… it was unusual and they were all eaten in the end, but I do not actually know how they turned out.

KIWI-COCONUT MUFFINS

Preheat oven to 375°F/190°C

2 finely diced kiwis (about 1 cup—use firm kiwis that will not add too much moisture to the mixture)
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup coconut milk
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 large egg and 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon orange zest
3 tablespoons orange blossom honey
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup toasted sweetened shredded coconut

(3 tablespoons sweetened, shredded coconut can be used as topping, if desired. I did not use this.)

Spray muffin tins with non-stick spray or put paper liners in the tins.

Peel and dice kiwis. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt).

In another bowl, whisk coconut milk, melted butter, and eggs. Add the orange zest, honey, and vanilla extract, and whisk until just combined. Add to the flour mixture, and stir quickly until well combined. Fold in the kiwis and toasted coconut. Spoon the batter evenly into the molds.

Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with 3 tablespoons shredded coconut.

Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool for 5 minutes before removing each muffin and placing on a wire rack to cool.