I'm going to count this week's Baked Sunday Mornings assignment, Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins, as one of the most unexpected delights from Baked Explorations. I wasn't particularly enthused about the recipe; I have never had pumpkin and cheddar together, so I didn't have any particular expectations for what the finished product would taste like.
I was glad to see that this is one of the easier recipes from the cookbook. You just whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, and brown sugar, and then make a well in the middle and pour in a mixture of pumpkin puree, sour cream, eggs, and melted butter. Once you incorporate the wet ingredients, you fold in shredded cheddar cheese (I used Seaside Cheddar, a sharp white English cheddar available at Whole Foods). You divide the batter into greased muffin cups, sprinkle the tops with more cheddar and some pumpkin seeds, and bake.
I could definitely smell the cheddar while the muffins were baking; it reminded me of the aroma of my cheddar-chive scones when they are in the oven. I used a microplane instead of a box grater to grate the cheese, and the cheese on top of the muffins was barely visible after baking. The recipe instructs you to serve the muffins warm, so Tom and I tried them shortly out of the oven. We were both floored at how moist, tender, and flavorful they were. I have to say that there wasn't much pumpkin flavor, but the cheese and black pepper were intensely fabulous. I happen to love black pepper, and the black pepper flavor was bold and aggressive (I think that most of the heat came from the pepper and not the cayenne, but it was a little hard to tell).
I immediately thought that these muffins don't seem like a breakfast food, but like the ideal dinner side for autumn; I think they would be perfect for Thanksgiving. I love, love these muffins. Warm from the oven, they are indescribably good.
Recipe: "Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins," from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Recipe available here at Baked Sunday Mornings.
I was glad to see that this is one of the easier recipes from the cookbook. You just whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, and brown sugar, and then make a well in the middle and pour in a mixture of pumpkin puree, sour cream, eggs, and melted butter. Once you incorporate the wet ingredients, you fold in shredded cheddar cheese (I used Seaside Cheddar, a sharp white English cheddar available at Whole Foods). You divide the batter into greased muffin cups, sprinkle the tops with more cheddar and some pumpkin seeds, and bake.
I immediately thought that these muffins don't seem like a breakfast food, but like the ideal dinner side for autumn; I think they would be perfect for Thanksgiving. I love, love these muffins. Warm from the oven, they are indescribably good.
Recipe: "Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins," from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Recipe available here at Baked Sunday Mornings.
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