A Savory Muffin to Ward Off the Gloomies

Yesterday was a dreary day filled with gray skies and freezing rain.  Fortunately, I had planned for such a day and had all the ingredients to make a big pot of comforting vegetable beef soup (recipe here) and savory Parmesan muffins.

I don't know where I got the recipe for these muffins.  I have had it several years and I had jotted it down on a scrap of paper, so I imagine I pulled it from a magazine in the dentist's waiting room.  The muffins are pretty homely and ordinary to look at, but they make a great accompaniment to soup or even steak.  It's easy to halve the recipe, which is what I did yesterday since there were only the two of us.  Serve them hot!

Savory Parmesan Muffins

2 eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup olive oil

1 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon powdered or crushed dried rosemary

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon fresh garlic, finely chopped

  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a muffin pan.

In small bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and olive oil.  In separate, large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, rosemary, salt, pepper, and garlic.  Add 3/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, mixing until cheese is well distributed.  Add wet ingredients and mix until combined.

Spoon into well-greased muffin tins.  Sprinkle remaining cheese on tops.  Bake about 20 minutes.  Serve hot.

Makes 12 1/2-cup muffins.

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The other bright spot in a gray few days is this bunch of sunny daffodils the husband picked up at the grocery store. They were tight buds when he brought them home, but every one has opened into a happy little harbinger of spring to come.

Cinnamon Muffins

Here's a simple, quick muffin when you want a treat for breakfast or tea.  Mixes up quickly and bakes in only about twenty minutes.  Now this is certainly not health food, but maybe a bit better for you than a doughnut or store-bought muffin.  You can use skim milk and can even replace 1/2 cup of the flour with whole wheat flour.

These muffins are best hot from the oven, especially split open and spread with a little extra butter (mmmm), but they are also good after they cool.

Cinnamon Muffins

Slightly adapted from A Taste of the Treasure Coast by The Yacht and Country Club of Stuart, Florida

Muffins:

1/3 cup solid vegetable shortening (like Crisco)

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup milk

Topping:

3 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In large bowl, beat together shortening, sugar and egg.  Sift dry ingredients together and add to egg/sugar mixture in three parts, alternating with milk.  Mix well after each addition.

Line muffin cups with cupcake liners.  Fill muffin cups 2/3-3/4 full.  Bake at 350 F. for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden brown.   

While muffins are baking, melt butter.  In small bowl, mix together sugar and cinnamon.  When muffins are done, immediately dip tops in melted butter and then in cinnamon/sugar.

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