Bake a Medley of Muffins from ‘At My Table’
This week, we’re spotlighting recipes from At My Table: Vegetarian Feasts for Family and Friends by Mary McCartney (Sterling Epicure), a photographer and cookbook author. McCartney is also a founder, along with her father Paul McCartney and her sister Stella McCartney, of Meat Free Monday, a nonprofit that advocates for meat-free eating at least one day each week. Try making the recipe at home and let us know what you think!
Photo: Mary McCartney
Medley of Muffins
Makes 12
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 20–25 minutes
Freshly baked muffins are irresistible, but there are so many possible flavors — how do you choose? All my kids have a different favorite, of course. So, to get around the problem, I make a batch of the basic muffin mix, then divide the mixture into three separate bowls and add a different flavor to each bowl. These are our top three combinations, but you can play around and come up with your own.
For the basic muffin mix:
2 large free-range eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk (or almond milk for a dairy-free option)
1 cup superfine sugar
3 1/3 cups plain, whole-grain, or spelt flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Pear and walnut muffin:
1 small pear, cored, peeled and finely chopped, mixed with ½ cup walnuts, finely chopped, and ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Berry muffin:
½ cup blueberries and/or raspberries
Lemon and poppy seed muffin:
Zest of 1 lemon, juice of ½ lemon, and 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin liners.
In a mixing bowl or food processor, beat the eggs and then mix in the oil, milk, and sugar. Sift in the dry ingredients and mix until well combined, but do not overbeat. Now that you have your basic muffin mix, you can get creative.
Divide the mixture equally between three bowls and add your preferred flavor ingredients. For instance, add the pear, walnuts, and cinnamon, to one, the mixed berries to another, and, finally, the lemon zest, lemon juice, and poppy seeds to the last one. Or come up with your own variations.
Spoon the mixture equally into the muffin liners — each bowl should have enough mixture for four muffins. As a rough guide, each muffin liner should be around three-quarters full.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 20–25 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Reprinted with permission from At My Table: Vegetarian Feasts for Family and Friends by Mary McCartney (Sterling Epicure).
More vegetarian recipes to make at home:
Bulgur with Roasted Red Peppers, Chickpeas, and Spinach
