Beans on Buttery Marmite Toast Muffins #MuffinMonday

Heinz Beans baked in a buttery white flour muffin subtly spiked with Marmite makes a great breakfast, snack or dinner. Add a fried egg or two to complete the meal. And more baked beans on the side, if you'd like. 

Beans on toast is a classic British meal, served up morning, noon or night, whenever something easy, cheap, hot and delicious is needed. I am reliably informed that it’s a great hangover cure but I cannot verify that from personal experience. It is certainly a favorite childhood dish and is still eaten with relish by many a Brit, of every age. Some butter the toast, some add the Heinz beans directly. A third group will butter, spread Marmite and then heap on the beans. But, always, always, it’s meant to be made with Heinz beans in the blue tin.

Here, I give you, beans on toast, with Marmite, muffin-style. They got the "These are delicious!" stamp of approval from my Scottish mother-in-law.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups or 315g flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup or 240ml milk
1/2 cup or 115g unsalted butter, melted then cooled
2 eggs
1 tablespoon Marmite, plus extra for garnish, if desired.
Generous 1/2 cup or 170g Heinz baked beans (Or Heinz Beanz as the blue can now reads)

Method
Preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by generously greasing with butter, oil or non-stick spray.

Combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a large mixing bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together milk, melted butter, Marmite and eggs.

Add all the milk mixture to flour mixture.

Gently fold just until dry ingredients are moistened.

Divide a little more than half your batter relatively evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Make a little well with your tomato sauce dipped tablespoon and add in a scant tablespoon of Heinz Baked Beans.

Top with the remaining batter.

Add a few baked beans and a drizzle of the tomato sauce to the top.

Depending on your crowd, another little drizzle of Marmite can also be added. I wasn’t sure who would go for it so I did a few with extra Marmite and the rest without. Folks can always add more once they are baked as well.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until muffins are golden.

Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before removing muffins from the pan.

Enjoy!

Ham and Scalloped Potato Muffins #MuffinMonday

A scalloped potato casserole-inspired muffin, with sliced potatoes, lots of cheese, cream and smoked ham. Perfect for breakfast, snack or even lunch. 

For the last couple of weeks our house has been a bustle of creativity and laughter, both in and out of the kitchen. Favorite dishes were cooked, touristy places were visited, a gingerbread mosque was baked and erected, many a cocktail was imbibed and a thousand backgammon games were played amongst the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree and our ancient rag-tag manger scene, which includes such witnesses to the Miracle Birth as a headless wise man, a longhorn and a small rhinoceros, along with the usual shepherds, cows and sheep.

Now the busy bathrooms and crazy kitchen are empty. The forlorn tree, stripped naked of its finery but for the occasional missed wisp of golden tinsel, has trailed fallen needles all the way to the curb of rejection. The dog circles just me now, every hopeful. And the baby Jesus and his eclectic entourage are back in the doll stroller box from Christmas circa 1995, which is their home for 50 weeks of the year.

I look around at the now reassembled living room, furniture back in its accustomed places and I am working on being grateful rather than sad. As much as it would give me joy to keep our daughters with us always, I am grateful that they are exceptionally capable of looking after themselves and are avidly pursuing their dreams.

Trying to look on all the bright sides of this situation, another bonus is that I can cook and bake exactly what pleases me. Last week a post from a friend and fellow blogger Kelli from Kelli’s Kitchen arrived in my email inbox with a recipe for one of my favorite casseroles, scalloped potatoes. Her version is a family favorite, cheesy and creamy but with the welcome addition of ham. If that divine top baked to a golden crunch doesn’t sell you, the tender, cheesy potatoes inside should do the trick. Do go have a look. My thoughts turned, as they do, to the possibility of a ham and scalloped potato muffin but I figured it wouldn’t be very popular with the sweet muffin crowd in residence. So I waited a week. (As it turns out, most of them didn't buy the PR for dried plums vs. prunes anyway. Hey, I tried.)

Totally worth the wait. These guys are delicious. All potato-y and cheesy and that ham? The perfect addition, for sure.

A good savory muffin is great consolation. And you can be sure I have saved some ham to make the original casserole as well.

Ingredients
6 oz or 170g smallish new potatoes
2 cups or 250g flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
2 eggs
3/4 cup or 180ml milk
1/2 cup or 120ml whipping cream
1/4 cup butter or 60g, melted and cooled
7 oz or 200g extra sharp cheddar, grated
2 1/3 oz or 65g Parmesan, grated
1 cup or 150g baked smoked ham, chopped

Method
Put a pot of water on to boil with a teaspoon or so of salt, as you would to boil pasta. Fill a bowl with cold water and a few ice cubes and set it aside.

Slice your potatoes and pop them in the boiling water.

Cook for about 4-5 minutes, until they are just done. Pour the cooked potato slices into a colander and drain. Transfer them to the bowl of ice water till cool.

Return them to the colander to drain again.

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it liberally with oil or non-stick cooking spray.

Combine your flour, baking powder, salt and mustard powder in a large mixing bowl.

Set aside 6 slices of the cooked potato and a couple of small handfuls each of the cheddar, ham and Parmesan for topping the muffins before baking.

Just a little pile of each for topping.

Add the rest of the cheddar into the dry ingredient bowl and stir.

Now add the rest of the sliced potatoes into that bowl. Use a spoon to break the slices into pieces as you stir to combine. Finally, mix in the Parmesan and the ham.

In another smaller bowl, whisk together your eggs, milk, cream and cooled butter.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stop when they are just combined.

Divide your batter between the 12 greased muffins cups.

Top with reserved Parmesan cheese and ham pieces. Cut your potato slices in half and insert one half slice of potato into the batter in each cup.

Now try to get some reserved cheddar cheese to sit on top and around each potato slice. We aren’t looking for perfect here. Just some cheese on the potato.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Remove the muffins from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove to continue cooling on a wire rack.

Since the cheese melts out a little while baking, you may have to run a knife around the outside to remove them, depending on how well you greased the pan.

Enjoy!

Sesame Noodles with Spicy Peanut Sauce #FoodieExtravaganza

Chinese egg noodles with shrimp and crispy vegetables make a tasty, nutritious meal when tossed with savory peanut sauce. Great room temperature or cold.

I grew up eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And peanut butter cookies. You know, the homemade ones that have a crisscross made with a floured fork. I remember vividly the first commercials on television where choosy mothers chose Jif and friendly collisions got peanut butter in someone’s chocolate. And chocolate in someone’s peanut butter.

It took a trip to Indonesia when I was 18 years old to introduce me to a new use, a new savory love of peanut butter: Satay dipping sauce. Succulent bits of chicken or beef, marinated in special spices and grilled over an open charcoal flame by the dusty roadside, were meant to be dipped in a savory, spicy peanut sauce but I would just spoon that stuff over, full coverage being the fundamental goal. However delicious the satay, it was still primarily a conduit for the peanut sauce.

Ever since, I have been on the lookout for other peanut sauce conveyances, in addition to the handy spoon. I first found this wonderful noodle dish a couple of years ago on one of my favorite blogs, Magnolia Days – you might remember me mentioning it recently when I was making sticky cinnamon figs for a guest post in that genteel space. Renee had adapted a recipe from the Mom 100 Cookbook and created a main course from a side dish. Or maybe salad. Doesn’t matter. What’s important is that the whole fabulous mess was coated in a savory, spicy peanut sauce. I don’t think I ever told Renee that I had made it then, or any time since, which is very remiss and ungrateful of me. Because it is good. And I am grateful.

This month’s Foodie Extravaganza theme is peanut butter so I figured it was time to share these delicious noodles. Over the last couple of years, I’ve made adaptations of my own, adding other vegetables that I have on hand, like bean sprouts, or substituting chicken for the shrimp. I like to put fresh red chilies and crunchy peanut butter in the sauce. This is a great dish for mixing things up and using what you have, as long as you keep the peanut butter in the mix. Because that’s my favorite part. I hope it will be yours too.

Many thanks to Kaylin from Keep It Simple, Sweetie, our Foodie Extravaganza host this month. To see more delicious Foodie Extravaganza treats or learn how to join the party each month visit us here. And make sure to scroll down to the bottom to see all 19 of the sweet and savory peanut butter dishes we have for you this month!

Ingredients
For the sauce:
1 piece (2 1/2 inches or 6.3cm) fresh ginger
4 large garlic cloves
1-2 small red hot chili peppers (You know I used two!)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup or 140g crunchy peanut butter
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons fish sauce
4 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

For the noodles:
Salt for the boiling water
Almost 9 oz or 250g dried Chinese egg noodles
1 1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
4 ounces or 115g haricot verts or fine green beans
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 medium carrot
1/2 small head Napa or Savoy cabbage (about 11 oz or 310g)
2 small or one medium onion
1 pound or 450g shrimp (Mine weighed 12 1/3 oz or 350g when peeled and deveined)

To garnish:
1/4 cup or 25g sesame seeds
Green onion tops

Method
Peel the carrot and cut it into sticks. Top and tail the green beans. Slice the cabbage finely as you would for coleslaw. Do the same with the onions.

Put a large pot of lightly salted water on to boil.

Peel the ginger and garlic. Chop the ginger into small pieces and cut the stems off of  the chilies. Put the ginger, garlic and chilies in the food processor and process for a quick minute.

Add in the rest of the sauce ingredients and process until they are well mixed. Leave them in the food processor and get on with the rest of the dish.

Add cold water and ice cubes to a medium-sized mixing bowl and set it in readiness next to your stove.

When the pot of water is boiling, put the carrots and green beans in for just a couple of minutes. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and put them into the bowl of ice water.

Add the noodles into the pot of boiling water and cook as per packet instructions. Some take longer than others so following the manufacturer’s recommended time, perhaps minus a minute or two, is your best bet.

When the noodles are almost cooked, scoop out 1/4 cup or 60ml of the noodle water and add it to the sauce in the food processor. Process to combine.

Pour the cooked noodles into a colander and rinse them with very hot water. Put the noodles in a large mixing bowl and toss them with 1 1/2 tablespoons of sesame oil.

Now pour the peanut sauce in the food processor over them and toss again to make sure the noodles are well coated.

In the now empty noodle pot, sauté the sliced onions in one tablespoon of peanut oil. Add in the sliced cabbage and cook briefly. You want it wilted a little but still crunchy.

Add the onions and cabbage to the noodles and stir well. Cover the bowl and allow it to hang out for 30 to 45 minutes so the noodles can absorb the flavors of the sauce.

While you are waiting for the noodles, you can lightly toast your sesame seeds in a small non-stick skillet on the stove and chop some green onions for garnish, if desired.

When the noodle sitting time is almost up, once again, use your same pot to cook the shrimp with a little peanut oil and a light sprinkle of salt, just until they turn pink.

Drain the carrots and green beans and cut them into bite-sized pieces with your kitchen scissors. Add them to the noodles along with the shrimp. Toss well to mix.

Serve with a generous sprinkle of the toasted sesame seeds and some chopped green onions, if desired.

This dish is supposed be served at room temperature but it is also quite tasty cold which makes it great lunchbox fare.

Enjoy!

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board!

Savory Dishes

• Peanut Butter and Chicken Pumpkin Stew by Reneé at Kudos Kitchen by Reneé
• Peanut Butter Beef Stew by Joy at The Joyful Foodie
• Peanut Butter Curry Ramen by Marissa at Rae Gun Ramblings
• Peanuty Autumn Roots by Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Sesame Noodles with Spicy Peanut Sauce by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
• Thai Chicken Peanut Noodles by Melanie at Garnish and Glaze

Sweet Treats

• 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies by Lindsay at My Creative Days
• Applesauce Peanut Butter Muffins by Kathleen at Fearlessly Creative Mammas
• Buckeye Brownie Bites by Teri at The Freshman Cook
• Dairy Free Chocolate Syrup Swirled Peanut Butter Blondies by Mary Frances at The Sweet {Tooth} Life
• Hong Kong French Toast by Tara at Tara's Multicultural Table
• Reese's Krispies Popcorn by Rebekah at Making Miracles
• Peanut Butter & Potato Chip Fudge by Kaylin at Keep it Simple, Sweetie
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes by Jacklyn at Mrs. Penguin Bakes
• Peanut Butter Filled Steamed Buns by Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Peanut Butter Potato Candy by Cindy at Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Pumpkin & Peanut Butter Pop Tarts by Kelly at Passion Kneaded
• Salted Vanilla Bean Peanut Butter Cup Fudge by Laura at Baking in Pyjamas
• Thai Peanut Chicken Skewers by LeeAnn at Pantry Friendly Cooking

.

Artichoke Dip Muffins #MuffinMonday

Rich muffins made with mayonnaise, Parmesan and artichokes, with just a small hit of heat from the jalapeño, these make great party food or a snack for the savory muffin lover in your life.

I am a fan of mayonnaise in all its forms, homemade and good quality store-bought, slathered on sandwiches, mixed through yolks for deviled eggs, heaped in potato salad. But I had never heard of mayonnaise cake. I must lead a very sheltered life. Last week in a Facebook group, the discussion was all about cakes made with mayo instead of eggs and oil/butter. And my first reaction was a resounding, “Eewww!” But I kept it to myself because of the risk of being pilloried; everyone else seemed really enthusiastic in the exchange of great chocolate and vanilla cake recipes using mayonnaise. Gag reflex in check, I even found a few versions online myself. I make homemade mayonnaise so I do know it’s just eggs and oil, I do. But still, a sweet cake with mayo? I guess I’m just not ready to go there yet.

But that discussion has been on my mind all week and it occurred to me that a savory cake, on the other hand, sounded like a capital idea. And what better to test that theory than with a savory muffin made with the same ingredients as my favorite artichoke dip, to wit, mayonnaise, artichoke, Parmesan and green chilies. With no eggs and no oil, just mayonnaise to fulfill both of those roles, I’m calling this one an unqualified success!

And since this is my blog and I can do what I want, I’d like to give a shout out to Eszther in the Shelf Drilling office in Dubai. Apparently she is a fan when my husband brings muffins in to the office and the savory ones are her favorites. And she reads my blog so I'm automatically a fan of hers. This one’s for you, Eszther! Hope you got one today.

Ingredients
1 can (14oz or 400g) artichoke hearts, drained weight 8 1/2oz or 240g
1 fresh jalapeño
1 cup or 150g finely grated Parmesan (This is one of the few times I recommend using the canister cheese rather than grating your own.)
2 cups or 250g flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup or 120ml mayonnaise
1 cup or 240ml milk

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease your 12-cup muffin pan liberally with canola, butter or non-stick spray.

Drain your artichoke hearts completely, even giving them a bit of a squeeze in your hands to make sure all of the juice is out. Cut them into small pieces. Halve your jalapeño and remove the seeds if you want to tone down the heat, otherwise leave them in. Mince the jalapeño.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, Parmesan and baking powder and stir well.

In another bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, milk, artichokes and jalapeños.

Pour your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold them together until just mixed. Your batter is going to be quite stiff, almost a dough, but don’t let that bother you. Trust. They still turn out light and fluffy, as a muffin should.

Divide the batter/dough evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake in your preheated oven about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool on a rack for a few minutes and then remove the muffins from the pan to cool completely.

These would be also be great as mini muffins for a cocktail party or to accompany any lunch or dinner spread.

See? Very fluffy on the inside!

Enjoy!

Crockpot Borlotti Beans with Smoked Pork

Cream and burgundy Borlotti beans are sometimes called cranberry or French horticultural beans but they all seem to come from the same original new world source, the cargamanto bean first cultivated in Colombia. Near as I can figure. 

Strangely, or perhaps not so strangely considering how small the world has become these days, I first discovered Borlottis (or one of their close cousins) as fresh beans in a small vegetable stall in Kuala Lumpur. They were already shelled but their distinctive red marks attracted me immediately. This was years ago (2007, in fact) when Nigella was still doing her quick dinners on television. She was home alone and had pan-fried a thin steak to eat with some mashed white beans as her side. I tried some version of her recipe with the fresh borlottis and fell in love with them. Nowadays, I can’t find the fresh ones so I make do with dried. But, you know what?  They are also fabulous. Maybe I’m just a bean person. Are you?

I made this one-pot dish in my crockpot a while back and I’ve been wanting to share it with you. I love the slow cooker for busy days when I can’t be standing around stirring a pot. Fill, turn it on and walk away! Come back in a few hours and you’ve got dinner. If you can’t get smoked pork neck steaks, by all means use whatever you’ve got. A smoked ham hock would be great, as would any kind of sausage.

Ingredients
2 medium onions
2 handfuls cloves garlic (Let’s not get anal about how many. You like garlic? Hum more in.)
2 lb 3 oz or 1 kg smoked pork neck steaks
Sea salt
Black pepper
1 lb+ or 500g dried Borlotti beans
2 bay leaves

Method
Slice your onions and lay a third of them at the bottom of your crockpot or slow cooker. Add a third of the garlic cloves.

Top with a third of the smoked pork steaks or whatever meat you are using. Sprinkle with sea salt and a few good grinds of fresh black pepper.

Add on one third of your Borlotti beans.

Keep layering, onions and garlic, pork steak, salt and pepper then beans until you get to the final layer of beans.

Add water to cover the beans by at least one inch or two centimeters.  Add another few grinds of pepper, if you are so inclined and tuck a couple of bay leaves into the water. Cover the pot and turn it on low.

Totally forgot to take a photo with the bay leaves but they did go in!

You’ll have beans and pork ready to eat in six to eight hours, depending on how old your beans were to start. Older beans have dried out more so they take a little longer to cook. Check them in around four to five hours and add more water, if necessary. You don’t even need to stir.

When they are done, I like to take a half cup or so of beans out and mash them with a fork.  I add the mashed beans back into the crockpot to thicken the broth beautifully.

Serve with rice or a crusty loaf to sop up the broth and, if you are me, some pepper sauce.

Enjoy!

Pasta with Creamed Yogurt Peas and Feta

A simple one dish meal, big on flavor and so satisfying, this creamy pasta with peas and yogurt is topped with toasted chili pine nuts which add a pop of color and welcome hit of heat.

I read this post on Orangette some time last year and wasted little time before taking Molly’s advice and making this dish. I had every intention of making it again while in Providence visiting my daughter for spring break because this is just the sort of dish she’d love. Sadly, we never did get around to it but, as I head back to Dubai, I figured it was time to share. So she can make it when I’m gone.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups or 400g whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup or 60ml olive oil
2 medium cloves garlic
1 pound or 500g fresh or thawed frozen peas
1 teaspoon flakey sea salt (I use Maldon. If you use fine grain sea salt, use a 1/2 teaspoon.)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Scant 1/2 cup or 60g pine nuts
2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorns or crushed red pepper
1 lb or 500g dried pasta
8 ounces or 240g feta cheese

Method
Process the 2/3 cup or 100g of the peas and the garlic with the yogurt and half of the olive oil in a food processor or with a hand blender until smooth and creamy.

 Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl, add in the salt and smoked paprika and stir.

In a small saucepan, over a medium fire, sauté the pine nuts and Sichuan peppercorns in the remaining olive oil.

Turn the fire off as the pine nuts start to turn slightly golden and remove the pan from the heat. They will color a little bit more as they cool.

Meanwhile, cook your pasta is lightly salted water according to the package instructions, adding the balance of the peas to the pot when the pasta has just a minute or two left in cooking time.

While your pasta is boiling along merrily, crumble your feta with a fork.

Drain the pasta and peas in a colander. Add the hot pasta/peas a little at a time to the bowl with the yogurt pea sauce and stir well between each addition. Molly says that adding it all at once could cause the sauce to separate so definitely don’t dump it all in.

Add in the crumbled feta and stir.

Serve each bowl topped with a spoon or two of the toasted pine nuts and a drizzle of the chili oil.

Enjoy!