Michelle Darmody: How to bake savoury muffins — and the mistakes to avoid
Michelle Darmody's savoury muffins
A large amount of people do not eat enough vegetables in their diet, and it can be particularly difficult to get children to eat their share.
Adding some vegetables to these muffins is a handy way to have a relatively healthy snack to hand. I find them particularly useful when traveling with children.
They are easy to pack and can be eaten at an airport, at a picnic table or in the back of the car if needs be.
The main recipe uses onion and sweetcorn but there are plenty of variations that you can try.
I like to add a tablespoon of sweetcorn kernels as it gives a nice mixture of colour and texture to the muffins, but you can also add some grated carrot, grated courgette, liquidised spinach or some diced sundried tomatoes.
You can also try these muffins with different varieties of flour, I sometimes use half spelt and half wheat flour. It is a way off adding another gain into our diet.
There are varieties of self raising spelt flour available; if you cannot find one, sieve a teaspoon of baking powder in through the spelt flour.
This recipe can also be turned gluten free quite easily. Be sure to use gluten free baking powder as well as flour when making them.
Savoury muffins
These delectable muffins combine feta cheese, spinach and warm nutmeg for a healthy treat
Servings
12Preparation Time
15 minsCooking Time
18 minsTotal Time
33 minsCourse
BakingIngredients
1 small red onion, diced
a dash of olive oil
50g melted butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
250ml milk
275g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground nutmeg
75g cheddar cheese, grated
2 tbsp sweetcorn kernels
Method
Place 12 bun cases into a bun tin and set aside. Preheat your oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6.
Heat the olive oil over a low heat and add the thinly diced onion. Fry it for a minute then place a lid on top and sweat the onion until it is completely translucent. Set aside to cool.
Stir the butter, milk and egg together until combined, set aside.
Sieve the flour, nutmeg and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the cheese and stir. Pour in the wet ingredients and combine well then add in the onion and the sweetcorn.
Scoop the batter between the twelve bun cases and place the tin into the centre of your oven. Bake for about 18 minutes until the tops are golden.
Once cool enough to handle place them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
If you are in a rush, you can make the batter beforehand and have it in the fridge, either scooped into the bun cases or in a bowl and scooped when needed. Chilling the batter also adds a nice lightness to the muffins.
Take care not to over mix the batter, as this will lead to your muffins becoming tough. The gluten in the flour gets over worked and the end result is not pleasant. Sieving the flour helps as it is lighter and easier to mix after it has been sieved. I also use a wooden spoon or spatula rather than an electric mixer for this recipe. There is less chance of over mixing this way.
If you are adding other vegetables like courgettes or carrots it is best to grate them and then squeeze out any juice, the same way you do for spinach. Discard the liquid and stir the vegetables in with the cheese.
You can sprinkle an extra handful of grated cheese over the muffins before popping them into the oven for a salty, crisp topping.
These muffins freeze well. Freeze them in an airtight container and you can then defrost individual muffins as you need them.
You can also make these muffins perfectly well without paper cases. Lightly oil the inside of each hole in the bun tin and then proceed to scoop in the batter.
Cut 75g streaky rashers or pancetta in small cubes. Fry them lightly in a pan and allow them to cool before stirring them into the batter after you add the cheese.
Gently swirl two tablespoons of sun-dried tomato paste into the batter after the cheese has been added. You just need to swirl it rather than stirring it completely. This will create a rippled effect as well as give a lovely tomato flavour.
This recipe creates lovely green muffins. Liquidise 180g of fresh spinach and add this to the batter. Gently squeeze it between your hands to remove any excess liquid before adding it.
Chop a small handful of chives and add these as well. In this variation, I leave out the red onion and if you prefer you can use feta instead of cheddar cheese.
