Cornmeal Buttermilk Muffins~Sweet or Savory #Baketogether

Call me crazy but I just couldn’t decide on this month’s recipe. For the past two weeks, I bounced between a sweet and a savory recipe. Both delicious, both beautiful, both fun but I just couldn’t choose between them. And then it dawned on me (at 3 am when most ideas pop into my head) that I should post a recipe that both team sweet and team savory will enjoy and have some fun monkeying around with. I’ll save those other two recipes for another month.. we’ll get to them. I promise. For now, let’s talk about the muffin at hand..

A few general comments:

• Both teams will love that this recipe yields only 6 muffins. Something I am personally thankful for as any more than that will only end up adding to my posterior (patting myself on the back).
• I didn’t include any how-to pix for these muffins. The mixing method is simple and straightforward and requires no power tools. Of course, if you have questions, holler at me. I’m always happy to help.
• Regardless of your sweet or savory preference, these muffins are best with served warm. If you’re not serving straight from the oven, cool them, cover and stow at room temperature up to two days and reheat before serving.

For the gang in Team Sweet. The main recipe is written for you. It’s a touch sweet with just enough cornmeal to give it a nice texture and a nice splash of vanilla rounds out the flavor. With strawberries coming into their glorious-ness, I decided to add a bucket full (well, not quite a bucket full but you get my drift) to these muffins but, as always, feel free to fold in whatever fruit suits your fancy.

For Team Savory, I used this same recipe BUT, I reduced the sugar to 2 tablespoons, 86’d the vanilla and added 2 tablespoons of chopped scallions, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 1/4 teaspoon additional table salt and 2 ounces of crumbled blue cheese. I served them for dinner alongside a bowl of vegetable soup…um, um good. Pretty much any cheese will work in these babies as will any herb. More thoughts below..

If you are new to #Baketogether – Welcome! We are a very inclusive  group of happy bakers and I just know you’ll have fun. Subscribe to my rss feed and use/follow #baketogether on Twitter so you stay in-the-know. For a few more details check out this post for some info on how we #baketogether.

This recipe is truly an evergreen and can be switched up too many ways to count. Here are just a few suggestions – these work for both sweet and savory versions:

• Change the fruit/cheese: I don’t know about you but I’m making these with the first basket of local blueberries. Use YOUR fave and keep us posted.
• Add more or different flavors: Adding citrus zest, ginger or finely chopped herbs (jalapeno, cayenne or dry mustard would be nice for Team Savory) to the batter is an easy addition. Or, you can really shake things up and go with cinnamon, almond, chocolate  .. maybe all three. Who knows?
• Change the shape: Maybe you want to make a 1 layer cake or coffeecake or a small loaf for slicing… go ahead.. give it a go.
• Add texture: Chopped, toasted nuts or poppy seeds can add complexity to the cake. If you are going here, I’d fold them in at the end along with the fruit/cheese.
• Bake on a streusel topping: Again.. this can be sweet or savory. Toasted nuts can be added in here too..
• Add a drizzle or a glaze: literally, the icing on the muffin

So which are you: Team Sweet or Team Savory?  Remember, here at #baketogether, we love all shapes, sizes and flavors equally so put on your thinking caps and start planing Cornmeal Buttermilk Muffins~Sweet OR Savory #Baketogether right now. As always, if you need further guidance or inspiration, give me a holler!

Cornmeal Buttermilk Muffins
Makes 6, moist muffins.

For the muffins:
3/4 cup (3 3/8 ounces) all purpose flour
1/3 cup (1 1/3 ounces) finely ground yellow cornmeal
1/3 cup (2 3/8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 large egg, at room temperature
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces strawberries, stemmed & coarsely chopped (about 1 packed cup)

To make the muffins:

1. Position an oven rack in the center of the oven. Heat oven to 350°F. Line 6 regular-sized muffin cups with paper or foil liners.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Whisk until well blended. Measure the buttermilk using a 2 cup glass measureI (if you don’t have one, measure the buttermilk and pour into a small bowl). Add the egg, oil and vanilla and mix with a table fork until well blended. Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and add the strawberries. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold (no stirring) until just blended.
3. Portion the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups (1/4 cup of batter per cup will be about three-quarters of the way full). Bake until the tops are pale golden brown and a pick inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Move to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Carefully remove the muffins from the pan and set them on a wire rack. Serve immediately or cool completely and stow in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. I like them best when they are served warm so please reheat before serving.

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