Orange and poppy seed muffins

Cup of Yum
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly butter a 12 cup standard muffin tin or line it with muffin liners.
2. In a medium to large sized bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and orange zest, breaking up any clumps of orange zest.
3. Add the orange juice to a 2 cup measuring cup. You should have about ¼ cup.
4. Add the milk to this same measuring cup to total 1 cup (8 ounces).
5. Add the eggs and orange liqueur to the measuring cup and whisk until uniform in color.
6. Add the cooled butter and wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix them together gently just until there are no more pockets of dry ingredients. Do not overmix the batter.
7. Use a large cookie scoop or ¼ cup measure to fill the muffin tin about three-quarters full.
8. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until the tops of the muffins have begun to turn golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.
9. Cool the muffins in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, then let them finish cooling on a cooling rack.
10. These orange and poppy seed muffins can be stored in an air tight container at room temperature for 3 to 5 days. Once cool, muffins can be frozen (without the glaze) in a freezer bag for 3 to 6 months.

Optional orange glaze

1. Put the confectioners sugar in a small bowl and add the orange juice and vanilla and whisk together.
2. For drizzling over muffins, you may need to add water, a teaspoon at a time, to get to a pourable consistency.
3. Put the cooled muffins on a baking rack over a baking sheet or piece of wax paper. Dip the muffin tops in the glaze or drizzle the glaze over the muffins in a decorative pattern. Let dry.