When he saw that I had pomegranates on the counter, he pulled a chair over to stand on so he could help me break them down. He reached down into the water to swirl the crimson fruit and pulled up sample after sample while I worked. I looked at his face and remembered my chubby baby, my little muffin, sitting on the counter beside me four years ago, staining his shirt with pomegranate juice and not being very helpful at all.

My big kid helped me take the fruit out of the water to dry and carefully moved them into an old yogurt tub without letting a single one fall to the ground. He asked me questions about where the fruit grows, if we can grow them here, and made suggestions for where in our yard a pomegranate tree would be best. He is always full of questions and suggestions these days.

My sweet baby turns 5 this week and is having his first big birthday party with all his friends from school. As I was writing the invitations, he kept coming to the table to make sure his best friends, a pair of twin boys, would be coming (they will). It makes me very proud to watch him develop friendships and navigate the complexities of social life with such ease. It’s no wonder, I guess, that he turned out to be so outgoing… his mom is a bird who really likes to chirp.

Over the last five years, we have spent a lot of time together in the kitchen. The morning after we brought him home, I held him in the baby wrap while I cooked my breakfast. When he was 1, he would sit on the counter and smile his gummy smile as I explained what I was doing. When he was 2, he put his hands in everything and counted carrot sticks. When he was 3, he wanted to mix and measure and pour. When he was 4, he started peeling vegetables and spreading peanut butter. Maybe, now that he’s 5, he can get to work on the dishes.

My little muffin man helped me make some pistachio pomegranate muffins this weekend. These muffins are sweet and nutty, and the tart pops of pomegranate give them an unexpected texture.

Pistachio and Pomegranate Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, melted and cooled

1 cup sugar

¾ cup raw unsalted pistachios, shelled (plus ½ cup roughly chopped)

2/3 cup pomegranate arils

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup milk

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease or line your muffin tins with liners. This recipe makes about 20 muffins.

In the bowl of your food processor or high-powered blender, combine the sugar and ¾ cup pistachios and process until finely ground.

Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt, and pulse to combine.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla extract and almond extract.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth.

Fold in the ½ cup chopped pistachios and the pomegranate. Reserve just a handful of each to sprinkle on top of the batter.

Portion the batter into the liners, filling to about 3/4 full.

Top the muffins with a few pistachios and pomegranate for decoration.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating halfway, until the tops spring back when you touch them.

Cool completely before storing in an airtight container for up to 1 week.