After Eight Birthday Muffins

Today is my birthday. It is tradition in our office to make (or buy) cakes to take into work, so this year I made After Eight Muffins. A bit of an experiment that worked really well, so I am sharing the recipe with you all...

Makes 11-12. You need a muffin tin and muffin cases.

Ingredients
255g Plain Flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
120g caster sugar
5 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg (I used medium, but large works fine too)
240ml milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
90ml (6 tablespoons) of vegetable oil
1/2 a box of After Eights

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 190/200 degrees, gas mark 5-6
2. In a large bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cocoa and then stir in the sugar.
3. In another bowl (or a measuring jug) beat the egg with a fork. Stir in the milk and vanilla essence. Then pour in the oil. Mix.
4. Pour this wet mixture into the dry and mix together until just combined and there is no dry flour. It will be lumpy, this is what you want. It should drop off the the spoon in loose globs, not pour like a ribbon (add more flour if it is too runny). I use a metal spoon, rather than a wooden spoon, for mixing as it is easier to get the flour from the bottom of the bowl.
5. Break 12 After Eight Mints into the mixture and stir in roughly. I found they broke into quarters fairly easily.
6. Fill the muffin cases 1/3 full of the mixture, add half an After Eight, then fill to approx 3/4 full. You should be able to make 11 or 12 muffins from this mixture.
7. Bake for about 20-25 mins, until the tops spring back when pressed. Mine were a bit gooey when they came out of the oven (it was the After Eights melting) but the top of the muffin was cooked and springy.
8. Eat. I bet they would be good with ice cream.

I had hoped I would have a picture for you, but I didn't have chance to take one

Instead you'll have to make do with a picture of my first Spring Shoot!