And here we are again, a new year, a new start, an opportunity to undo all the less than nutritionally dense treats we’ve consumed all in the name of celebration and festivity. READ MORE
Anyone who knows me well, knows I LOVE cheese. I always choose the cheese board after dinner. I am often to be found nibbling on slithers of cheese straight from the fridge. I am a cheese fiend. Cheese would be my last supper. And Comté is up there for me; in my top cheeses. It’s creamy, nutty and moreish. And has a fabulous name. I can channel my inner French woman. (And for anyone wondering how you pronounce it, it’s ‘com-tay’ – I am always the girl who asks for the correct pronunciation so tend to pass the news on). READ MORE
Drink and dial. Do you remember the days? Or drink and text? I recall deleting some numbers from my phone, save I call them at an inopportune gin related moment. READ MORE
I made these to be sold at the school sports day. We’re raising money. Well, we’re always raising money aren’t we? It’s what Mums do. READ MORE
There’s nothing I hate more than a January diet. Apart from dry January bores. For I am a January baby, forever condemned to live out my days attending birthday celebrations where friends toast me with an orange juice. So, in the spirit of ignoring any abstinence I offer you these sunshine granola breakfast muffins. They’re lemony and light and soft. Perfect for breakfast. And they’re not fried in any way, so surely they’ll pass the January diet police?
I made a lovely video with the Scoff folks to show off how to make these muffins. You can see the vid on my YouTube channeland also the Scoff one. You can watch it below too.
Lots of great recipes like this in my book, Recipes from a Normal Mum, out now… on Amazon, at Waterstones, WHSmith, The Book Depository and many smaller outlets.
Last January: Lemon & blueberry loaf, my Bake Off cherry Bakewell inspired cupcakes, plus Sesame bread sticks
Two years ago: Love cupcakes, White chocolate, lemon and macadamia cake and a perfect wintery Roasted celeriac, carrot and parsnip soup.
Three years ago: Bake me not chocolate cake, Jelly and ice-cream meringue roulade, Good flapjack and Banana, butterscotch and fig traybake.
Four years ago: Treasure hunt ice-cream, Rhubarb and ginger chutney and Carrot cake.
Granola breakfast muffins
Makes 12
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6 and line a 12 hole muffin tray with cases. Mix together the dry ingredients (including the granola) until well combined. Mix together the wet ingredients and set aside for 5 minutes. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. (Don’t over stir as this can result in a tough muffin!) Pour the mixture into a jug to make it easier to fill the cases.
Pour the mixture gently into the cases and sprinkle a little granola on the top. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes until well risen and brown. Cool out of the tray on a wire rack. Can be eaten warm or cold!
Can I admit I am slightly scared? I am getting very big and very pregnant now and whilst the birth looms large in my head it’s not that which spreads fear across my shoulders, serving them to rise up. Nope. It’s that I won’t be doing much of this anymore. Much sitting at my desk, staring into the garden whilst the boys are at school and playschool, typing away, writing up blog posts, recipes, my newsletter – the things I enjoy doing so much. I often listen to Radio 4 at my desk, with a hot cup of tea. Is it wrong to be mourning these daily treats already? I’m not naive. I know it’ll be mighty busy but do you think there might be time for half an hour a day? Who am I trying to kid… On to the recipe.
NB: Photography by Minal at Minal Photography.
One year ago: Lemon animal biscuits and Oatmeal & fudge cookies and 5 ways with the humble Victoria sponge
Two years ago: Octonauts cupcakes and Walnut, fudge and fleur de sel biscuits
Three years ago: Mutter paneer and Hot cross biscotti
Banana & toffee muffins
Makes 6
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6 and line a 6 hole muffin tray with cases. Wait until the oven has preheated before starting as these muffins are very quick to make and any mixture with baking powder in doesn’t like to sit about ready mixed for too long.
Mix together the flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl and stir well. In a jug mix together the egg, milk and oil – beat lightly with a fork and then pour over the dry ingredients. Use the fork to stir until just combined. Add the mashed banana and stir again lightly. Lastly pour the toffee sauce over the muffin mixture and swirl though with a spoon, gently and not too vigorously. Over beating this muffin mixture results in a tough muffin!
Spoon into the cases equally until almost full, then bake for 25 – 30 minutes until browned and risen. Don’t worry if areas of the muffin are a little lower then others – this will be where there’s a pool of toffee sauce. Enjoy warm or cold and eat within 3 days. These freeze well if you can’t get through them in time.
You only had to ask. And ask you did. I posted a picture of these little beauties on my Facebook page last week and since then I’ve had rather a lot of messages about them. It seems the recipe is in demand. Well all the credit goes to Emma Franklin and the Sainsburys Magazine team. I can confirm they were delicious. I can also confirm I ate two.
One year ago: Wedding macarons and Lemon and almond breakfast rolls and Sticky Bounty rolls
Two years ago: Bakewell tart with a vanilla crust and Father’s Day man-cake
Gluten-free oat-topped chorizo, sweetcorn and tomato muffins
Makes 6
Ingredients:
You will also need a 6-hole muffin tin, well oiled, or lined with muffin cases
Preheat the oven to 200°C, 180°C fan, gas 6. Dry-fry the chorizo until crispy, remove to a bowl, using a draining spoon, and leave to cool. Melt the butter in a small pan and set it aside. Halve the tomatoes, remove and discard the seeds, then chop the tomato flesh.
Using a balloon whisk and a large mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, eggs, olive oil and melted butter into a batter. Don’t worry if you have a few small, stubborn blobs of yogurt.
Sift in the flour and baking powder. Add a pinch of salt and scatter the chorizo, chopped tomatoes, sweetcorn and thyme over the top. Using a large metal spoon, fold everything together until combined, but don’t overmix. Divide the mixture among the muffin holes in the tin, piling them up high. Sprinkle a few oats on top of each one.
Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes in the tin. Loosen around the edges of each muffin with a knife, then tip each one out of the tin on to a cooling rack. Serve warm or cold.
I am confused about the number 3. At university and in the world of advertising, anything with three components was a Good Thing. We used to talk a lot about how wonderful, strong and simple the (holy) trinity was. Now I am not so sure; you see every time I mention my thoughts on having baby number 3 I am almost always met with a very strong opinion about why no-one should have three children. And that’s from people who aren’t one of three. Don’t even get me started on those who are.
The usual issue is that one sibling is left out. Well I’m one of one and so I was always the whole team and yet the loner. I have little sympathy for this argument. Besides me and my two best pals spent our whole teenage years as a three. It worked fine. We were a striking trio, one blonde, one ginger and one brunette.
Another issue is the money. As in how nothing fits a family of 5. You need a special bus type car, package holidays don’t fit, family cinema tickets are for 4 etc. Well, we already have the car with 7 seats so that’s ticked off. And we’re creatures of habit and tend to holiday in the UK in cottages so that’s sorted too. The cinema? I only took the boys the other day for the first time and youngest son starting shouting ‘I’ve got wind’ an hour into the film and so we had to leave. (He did to be fair.)
Time, energy and hands are the last trinity of reasons. Not enough of any of them. I can’t argue with the hands one, but time… I can create time surely? And energy… That’s what coffee’s for.
These muffins are super quick to make. Perfect for if you have lots of kids and no time.
Comments, as always, welcomed. Especially wisdom regarding the number 3.
One year ago: Baileys chocolate fridge cake truffles and Experimental banana loaf
Two years ago: Cherry, white choc and apricot biscuits and Reeses’ inspired chocolate and peanut tart andSesame, quinoa and carrot salad
Blueberry, lime and chocolate chip muffins
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6 and check the rack is in the centre of the oven. Line a muffin tray with 12 cases. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and zest in a bowl and stir really well. In a measuring jug pour the milk, lime juice, eggs and melted butter. Mix this together with a fork and don’t worry if the butter starts to re-solidify into little bits. This will happen if your milk is icy cold from the fridge and still makes for lovely muffins.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and mix gently with a fork until everything just comes together – don’t treat like a cake mixture as this’ll make your muffins tough. Add the blueberries and chocolate chips and gently stir through. Fill your cases to the top and then bake for about 25 minutes until golden and the blueberries start to pop and leave their jam on the top of the muffins. Cool on a wire rack out of the tin and enjoy with a lot of kids.
Holly Bell 