Cheddar Beer Muffins #MuffinMonday

Possibly my favorite muffin so far (and I’ve been baking them for #MuffinMonday for 13 years!) these cheddar beer muffins are tender and savory. They are the perfect snack. 

Lately, you may have noticed, I have been baking smaller batches of muffins, either six or nine because 12 is a lot. This time, I baked 12 because 1. mature cheddar and 2. beer. I knew we would love them and I was right. 

Completely unheard of, but we EACH ate THREE while they were still warm. The rest disappeared quickly over the next two days. 

Cheddar Beer Muffins

If you are a fan of savory muffins, do give these a try. I used a European pale lager (1664) and Cathedral extra mature cheddar for these. Substitute your favorite beer and sharp cheddar. 

Ingredients

4 oz or 113g extra sharp cheddar cheese, plus extra for topping, if desired

2 1/2 cups or 313g flour

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

A few generous grinds black pepper

6 tablespoons or 85g butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for the pan

1/2 cup or 120ml buttermilk 

2/3 cup or 156ml beer

1 egg

Method

Grate the cheese and set aside. 

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare a 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it with butter. 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, black pepper and baking powder.

Add in the grated cheddar and stir till well coated.

In another bowl, whisk together the butter, yogurt and beer. 

Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and fold till just combined.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups. 

Sprinkle the tops with extra grated cheddar, if desired. 

Bake for around 20 to 25 minutes or until the muffins are well-risen and golden.

Remove them to a wire rack to cool. 

You can serve them with a little butter while still warm but they are also excellent plain!

Enjoy!

It’s the last Monday of the month, which means it’s time for Muffin Monday! Check out the great muffin recipe links below.

• Carrot Cake Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cheddar Beer Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Funfetti Muffins from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Zucchini Cornbread Muffins (Small-Batch Recipe) from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice 
• Zucchini Bread Muffins from A Messy Kitchen

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page. 

Pin these Cheddar Beer Muffins! 

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Roasted Strawberry Muffins #MuffinMonday

These roasted strawberry muffins are baked with intensely sweet summer strawberries, roasted to concentrate their flavor even more! 

It’s such a pleasure to sniff summer berries that actually smell like they should! Sweet and fragrant. Most of the year strawberry smell of very little, flown in from who knows where but this time of the year, they come from a nearby farm and I just can’t get enough of them.

Mostly we just eat them straight out of the little boxes but occasionally some are left that are getting past their best. Those make the best muffins!

Roasted Strawberry Muffins

No strawberries? Substitute blueberries or raspberries. Or even chopped up peaches or nectarines. 

Ingredients

9 oz or 250g (after hulling and dicing) strawberries

1/2 cup or 100g sugar (I used golden caster sugar.)

1 1/3 cups or 167g flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/3 cup or 75g butter, melted and cooled

1 egg

2/3 cup or 160ml milk

3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Method

Preheat oven to 400°F or 200°C. Grease or line 9 muffin cups with paper liners. Line a baking pan with nonstick baking parchment for roasting the berries.

Hull your strawberries. I use a small paring knife to dig out the hull.

Chop the strawberries into pieces. Separate out a small pile of strawberry pieces for topping and set aside. 

In a mixing bowl, toss the rest of the strawberries with 1 tablespoon of the sugar. 

Spread the strawberries out on the baking parchment lined baking pan. 

Roast in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. 

Meanwhile, in large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and the rest of the sugar.  

In another mixing bowl, whisk together the butter, egg, milk and vanilla.

Add your cooled roasted strawberries along with any syrup that has been created to the flour bowl and toss gently to coat.  

Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and folded until just blended. 

Spoon into your prepared muffin cups, topping each with some of the reserved strawberries.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are golden.

Transfer from the oven to a wire rack and leave to cool for a few minutes. Remove from the pan. 

Enjoy!

It’s the last Monday of the month so that means it’s time for Muffin Monday. Check out all the muffin recipes we are sharing!

• ABC Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Banana Cream Cheese Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Panettone Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Raspberry Muffins from A Messy Kitchen
• Roasted Strawberry Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Sourdough Birthday Cake Muffins from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Strawberry Ricotta Jumbo Muffins with Ricotta Glaze from Jolene's Recipe Journal

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

Pin these Roasted Strawberry Muffins! 

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Chocolate Espresso Muffins #MuffinMonday

The deep rich flavor of these chocolate espresso muffins makes them the perfect accompaniment for a hot beverage or a cold glass of milk.

Last week my husband and I were packing up the car, ready for a road trip to France when our neighbor, a retired fisherman, knocked on our door with the gift of two immense spider crabs.

I thanked him profusely then went to the kitchen to show them to my husband. There was no way we could leave them for a week, even in the refrigerator so that afternoon, I wrenched all their legs off and popped them in a Ziploc bag. Then I picked the meat from the bodies and put them in a container. The crabs would make the traveling team. 

Whenever our neighbor brings over crabs, and occasionally lobsters, my return gift is something homemade. Sometimes carrot cake which is his favorite, or jam or fudge sauce but often it’s muffins. Because muffins are easy, versatile and everyone loves them. Bake some for a neighbor or friend!

Chocolate Espresso Muffins

This recipe makes nine standard muffins. If you don’t have a nine-cup pan, just use a 12-cup one and add a little water to the empty cups so the pan heats evenly.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups or 156g flour

1/2 cup or 100g sugar

1/4 cup or 20g cocoa

1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup or 100g semi-sweet chocolate chips plus a little extra for topping, if desired.

1/3 cup or 80ml canola oil, plus extra for greasing the muffin pan

1/3 cup + 1/4 cup or 140ml milk 

1 egg

Method

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare a nine-hole muffin pan brushing or spraying the insides with oil.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your flour, sugar, cocoa, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. (I did put the espresso powder but somehow missed taking a photo after!)

In another smaller bowl, whisk together your oil, milk and egg.

To help the chocolate chips remain evenly in the batter, I like to mix them around with the residual oil left in the measuring cup. It’s just enough to wet them a little so that the flour mixture sticks to them. Toss and stir. 

Mix the chocolate chips into the flour mixture and use your clean hands to separate any that are stuck together. 

Pour your wet mixture into the dry ingredients and fold until they are just combined. 

Divide the batter evenly between the holes in your oiled muffin pan. Add a few more chocolate chips to the top, if desired.  

Bake in your preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are puffed up and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle. 

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.

Run an offset spatula or butter knife around the edges of the pans and gently turn the muffins out of the pan and cool further on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

It’s the last Monday of the month so that means it’s time for Muffin Monday. Check out the lovely muffins my blogger friends are sharing today! 

• Banana Crunch Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Chocolate Espresso Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Rhubarb-Ginger Muffins with Vanilla Bean Streusel from Jolene’s Recipe Journal
• Sour Cream Banana Rhubarb Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Teff Brownie Muffins from A Messy Kitchen
• Western Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

Pin these Chocolate Espresso Muffins!

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M&M Mini Muffins #MuffinMonday

Small and sweet, these M&M mini muffins are the perfect little bite for brunch, snack or tea time. Watch 24 disappear in no time at all! 

Last month, we hosted a small brunch for our former neighbors who moved last summer. They only moved six blocks away, which seems like nothing in the greater scheme of things but with everyone’s busy lives, we rarely get to see them unless we put something on the calendar. 

I made these muffins along with a crushed pineapple carrot quick bread, cheesy scrambled eggs, crispy bacon and fruit salad. It was lovely to catch up with them and the mini muffins were a hit with their adorable soon-to-be four-year-old, as I was hoping they would be.

You may notice that my M&M baking bits are missing the reds and greens. That is because I needed them to bake Christmas cookies to donate for a senior citizen Christmas party in our neighborhood last year. I couldn’t be bothered to drive to the store so I sat and separated them. The things I'll do to avoid yet another trip to the store!

M&M Mini Muffins

If you don’t have M&M baking bits, you can substitute mini chocolate chips. Or chop a chocolate bar up in pieces. Definitely don't drive to the store just for baking bits. 🤣 🙄

Ingredients for 24 mini muffins:

1 cup or 125g flour

1/4 cup or 50g sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1/4 cup or 75g plain Greek yogurt

1/4 cup or 60ml milk

2 tablespoons canola or other light oil, plus extra for greasing the pan

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/2 cup or 85g M&M baking bits

Method

Preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C and prepare your mini muffin pan by lining it with little paper muffin cups or brushing the inside with oil. 

In large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 

In smaller bowl, whisk together the egg, yogurt, milk, oil and vanilla extract.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredient and fold until just combined then fold in the baking bits.

Divide the batter between your prepared mini muffin cups. 

Bake in the preheated oven about 15-18 minutes or until the muffins are nicely browned and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Leave them to cool for a few minutes then remove them from the pan and cool on a wire rack. 

Enjoy!

It's the last Monday of the month so that means it's Muffin Monday. Time to share muffin recipes! Check out the links below: 

• Blueberry Orange Muffins (egg free) from A Messy Kitchen
• M&M Mini Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Tahini Coconut Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

Pin these M&M Mini Muffins!

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