Cheesy Olive & Herb Buttermilk Muffins

by di Feb 05, 2016 0 comments

Cheesy Olive and Herb Buttermilk Muffins

My attempt at not eating too much bread went out the window this week when the weather turned bad and I started making soup.
I was determined for the first two days and when I saw some recipes for savoury muffins I was done for.
Will power left me and I headed into the kitchen in search of a new tasty treat.

This recipe is a combination of a few recipes I found and can be made as a loaf, but for me and because if I make a loaf it WILL get eaten, I used muffin tins.
Portion control paired with the small amount of self discipline I had left won through.

These Cheesy Olive & Herb Buttermilk Muffins are the perfect accompaniment for soups, stews, pate's and cheeses.
They even work well on the side of a light salad for lunch.
If you want a great soup recipe here's a link to my Roasted Fresh Tomato Soup which is the perfect partner for these muffins.

Don't be put off by the Buttermilk side of things.
I changed the recipe to use milk and lemon juice which acts the same way as Buttermilk, but if you want to use the real thing just use the same amount plus 1 tbsp and leave out the lemon juice,
In North America Buttermilk is widely available but it's not something that you use a lot of unless doing a lot of baking so, to me, it's not worth buying a large container just to throw away.
I usually just do the milk/lemon juice thing and have no problems.

These muffins can be versatile little creatures. I kept it to "what it says in the tin" but you can add ham or other meats, you can play around with the cheeses and maybe add blue cheese and walnuts.
The list is endless, just don't be afraid and be aware the too much cheese will make your muffins heavy and rubbery.

So, get in there, empty your cupboards and make a batch of these little savoury muffins.
Treat your taste buds!

These Cheesy Olive & Herb Buttermilk Muffins are very versatile and will work well with a host of other savoury ingredients

I have even thrown in triangles of processed cheese!
Chopped up and rubbed (lightly) into the flour mixture they offer soft squishy pockets of melted cheese when warm

Roasted Fresh Tomato Soup is the perfect partner for these savoury muffins

Cheesy Olive & Herb Buttermilk Muffins

Ingredients:

170g Whole grain Flour
140g Plain Flour
½ tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Grain Mustard
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
60g Grated Parmesan Cheese
60g Grated Cheddar Cheese
50g Black Olives - seeded and chopped small
3 heaped tbsp Chopped Fresh Parsley
1 tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 tsp Chopped Fresh or Dried Thyme
2 Eggs
2½ tbsp Olive Oil
250ml Milk
1 tbsp Lemon Juice

The Mix:

Recipe for 9 large muffins

Mix lemon juice with the milk and set aside for 10 mins
Pre-heat oven to 160°c fan assist or 350°F
Grease and flour your muffin tin - spend time doing this well or your muffins will stick

Put flours into a large bowl, add bicarbonate, baking powder, salt, pepper, mustards, cheeses, olives, parsley and thyme and mix well - make sure everything is coated well with the flour
In a separate bowl whisk eggs with a fork the add in olive oil and combine
Add egg mixture to the milk and stir well

Add egg and milk mixture to the flour mix and stir with a fork to combine well - the mixture will be a bit battery but that's ok

Divide mixture between the muffin tins, place in the middle of your pre-heated oven for around 30 mins or until skewer comes out clean
Take muffins out of tins and allow to cool on a wire rack

Enjoy!

Drink This:

Depending on what you are eating these with your choices of what to drink are endless
Beer, especially dark beer, works especially well with cheesey breads as does a full bodied white wine

Food 2017:

Food 2017

Desserts, Puds & Bakes

Savoury Bakes

Cheese