Seriously, who does not love a muffin? I definitely do, though the ones made commercially and even by good bakeries tend to be unbearably sweet and the size of baby bear’s head. Today, I have this lingering back pain that gets worse as I sit and doesn’t bother me when I stand. So, this morning, after sitting at my desk started to hurt, I had to take a standing break. And since I was standing, shouldn’t I really be cooking? (I had to make myself lunch anyway, after all.) A muffin craving came over me, and I ransacked the pantry with the idea that the end result would be savory, nutritious, and tasty. This is the result. These hearty little guys would be an excellent accompaniment to soup for a light winter dinner.
Savory Quinoa & Corn Muffins
makes 12
1/2 cup raw quinoa
1 cup whole wheat pastry or all purpose flour
1 cup corn meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for greasing the muffin tin
1/3 cup grated onion
1 1/4 cup butter milk
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease a 12-cup muffin tin liberally with olive oil.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the quinoa, whole wheat pastry or all purpose flour, cornmeal, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Whisk to combine.
In a smaller mixing bowl, combing the egg, olive oil, onion, buttermilk, and cheddar and whisk until thoroughly combined.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until just combined. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 cups of the muffin tin, and bake for 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Hello, lunch. The texture, as you can see, is pretty interesting on these. The olive oil makes them lush and moist, but the quinoa remains a bit crunchy. If you prefer a crunch-free muffin, you can always just cook the quinoa before adding it to the batter.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I love quinoa! I will definitely be making these muffins.
Really enjoy your site. I’m wondering if it is not your back but rather your SI Joint that is giving you trouble? Worth googleing SI Joint pain to verify.
At any rate, feel better soon. Nothing worse than a sore back/SI Joint.
cheers,
vicki
http://victoriasisland.typepad.com
These look awesome. Hope to be able to make them vegan, any suggestions?
Thinking back to my vegan days, I think the best choice here for an egg replacement would be 1 tablespoon flaxseeds finely ground (like in a coffee grinder) and then whisked vigorously with 2 tablespoons of water. Soy milk plus a little lemon juice for the buttermilk, and you’d obvious omit the cheese or use a vegan cheese substitute if that’s your thing. Nuts would be a good addition in lieu of the cheese, too. Good luck!
Subtracted a little onion, added a little jalapeno, doubleplused the cheese, parboiled the quinoa. The crowd sez thumbs up.
What a great use for quinoa. I can’t wait to try these muffins alongside veggie chili. Great blog, btw, I just stumbled upon it.
Wooops, forgot to finish the name on that last comment.
Thanks for stumbling upon us! I hope you’ll come visit often.