Light and Fluffy Weekend Cheese Muffins with Roasted Capsicum, Basil and Baby Capers

Homemade Savoury Muffins are at their best eaten on the weekend for an easy relaxing lunch. Are you feeling a bit peckish? As with most muffins the basic ingredients of flour, salt, cheese, oil or butter, eggs, and buttermilk, cream or sour cream need to be used with these, but then after that they are one of the most versatile baked goods on the planet. I made these this morning rather impulsively after I had baked a cake, using up bits and pieces left in the refrigerator.

They were delicious for an early lunch, a brunch really, and we'll eat them again for lunch tomorrow. How often do you find after cooking you are left with half a jar of capers or half a packet of grated cheese, and I had also roasted a couple of large red capsicums yesterday, so they went in as well. 

Other muffin variations could be as follows:

Spinach and ham 50 g coarsely chopped baby spinach leaves, 100 g chopped leg ham, 3 finely chopped spring onions. Add to the flour mixture.

Tomato and Olives  1/2 cup coarsely chopped pitted green olives, 1/2 cup small basil leaves, 125 g chopped semi-dried tomatoes. Add to the flour mixture.

Pumpkin & Fetta 1 cup coarsely grated pumpkin, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, 100 g crumbled fetta cheese. Add to the flour mixture. Sprinkle the mixture with 2 tablespoons of pepitas, and sage leaves tossed in a little olive oil just before baking.

Or mix up any of the above as well.

Thanks to the latest edition of the iconic Australian Women's Weekly for the idea to bake these muffins. When it arrives in the post each month, I rush to check out the recipes. My wonderful daughter gifted the subscription to me for my birthday. We don't receive much mail in the post anymore, do you? So, at the beginning of each month, the dependable postman delivers my Women's Weekly to our door. We've given him a jar of our honey in the past as a thank you.

Ingredients:

2 cups (300 g) self-raising flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (120 g) grated tasty cheddar cheese, coarsely grated

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

150 g roasted capsicum, chopped finely

3 finely chopped spring onions

2 tablespoons baby capers

1/3 cup (30 ml) extra virgin olive oil

1 cup (250 ml) buttermilk

2 eggs

1/2 cup (60 g) grated cheddar, extra for topping

1/2 cup small basil leaves

Method:

Makes 8-10 muffins , Cooking time, 35 minutes

Preheat your oven to 220 deg. C (200 deg C fan-forced)

Line 8-10 holes of a muffin tin with paper muffin cases. add the

Into a large bowl, add the flour, salt and cheeses.

Add any of your vegetable ingredients, e.g. capsicum, spring onion, and capers to the flour mixture now and mix through. This ensures they will mix well through the whole batter later on.

In another medium sized bowl, whisk the olive oil, buttermilk, and eggs.

Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture until they are just combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter or it will toughen up, however scrape your spoon a few times across the base of the bowl to catch any remaining flour.

The mixture can be lumpy.

Spoon the batter into the lined muffin pan holes and sprinkle the surface with more grated cheese or parmesan.

Bake the muffins for 25 minutes. Test by inserting a skewer and when it comes out clean, theya re ready.

Transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

I like to serve them with homemade Tomato Relish, Sweet Chilli Jam, or serve them with whatever your other favourite condiments are. They are also just delicious eaten on their own, still slightly warm.

 

Enjoy your Sunday,

Pauline