So, here’s a story: A couple days before our wedding, a certain then-fiancé of mine decided he wanted ackee and saltfish with festivals instead of fried dumplins. Our dear friend Michelle was in town for the wedding, so she volunteered to treat everyone to this special breakfast. (We won’t even discuss the fact that, somehow, though this breakfast was made by MY friend in MY mother’s house where I lived I saw not one piece of ackee, saltfish or festival… RUDE!) Instead I must live with this memory of betrayal that resurfaces every time I walk into my pantry and see the remains of that 5 pound bag of cornmeal my loving husband bought for our his festivals that fine morning. It is this abundance of cornmeal that prompted me to perfect a basic corn muffin recipe that, like my new favorite biscuit recipe, can be the conduit for any combination of savory or sweet flavors, depending on the menu.
I love this recipe because you can do so many things with it! Without the herbes de provence, its a slightly sweet, authentic cornbread taste that makes the perfect complement to any meal, especially one with a lot of flavor variety on the menu. But to make these muffins shine on their own, you can integrate virtually any of your favorite flavors with just a few simple additions like herbs, spices, bacon or hot peppers… Oooo bacon. And scallions. *scribbles on to-bake list* But for today, herbes de provence corn muffins was the way to go.
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup raw cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon herbs de provence
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup canola oil
- 1 cup buttermilk
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees* and butter muffin tins or line with paper liners (like lazy me).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. In a large measuring cup, beat the egg then add the oil and buttermilk. Whisk to combine, then pour into dry ingredients. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir ingredients until combined, being careful not to over-mix (we don't want dense muffins!).
- Divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of your fluffiest muffin comes out with very few crumbs. Allow to cool for a minute or two before digging in!
[…] have barbecue without cornbread! Jalapeño corn muffins in this case. I always use the same base recipe for my corn muffins, and just change the flavorings depending on what we’re in the mood for or what else is on […]