Corn muffins with chilli and cheese

This recipe is an evolution, or adaptation of the cornbread recipe I wrote about here and here. I love it when you get that true moment of experimental inspiration ‘I wonder what would happen if…’ its my favourite type of cooking, and it works, when it really really works, its just so amazing.

One of the many things I love about cooking this recipe is how incredibly quick and easy it is, and also very light on the washing up. These savoury little cakes make a lovely addition to any picnicy/potluck kind of meal, and of course go especially well with rich chillis, soups or stews. Best eaten fresh.

230g fine polenta/cornmeal

100g plain flour

1 tsp salt

2tsp baking powder

2 eggs, lightly beaten

300ml/ ½ pint milk

1 cup (or so) frozen sweetcorn (take out of the freezer about 5-10 minutes before, so it starts to defrost a tiny bit)

1 fresh chilli, deseeded and diced (I used red for the colour, but some sort of pickled jalapeno would be nice too. A crumbled dried chilli, or some chilli powder would work, but fresh is better in this instance)

2 spring onions, whites and greens finely sliced (make sure to slice the greens lengthways before washing them, to get rid of the dirt they can accumulate)

grated cheese (I used a mixture of mozerella and cheddar) 1 large handful – more or less depending on your preferences

pumpkin seeds

olive oil

Makes 20 – you will need a non-stick cupcake tray – preferably two of them

Preheat the oven to 200c.

Drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil into 20 holes in the cupcake tins, approximately a quarter teaspoon per cake, and put the trays in the hot oven. The oil needs to be hot when you put the batter in, so it might be worth doing this before you weigh out the ingredients and get everything ready.

In a large mixing bowl mix together the dry powder ingredients, add the eggs and milk and mix until you get a smooth batter. Then mix in the corn, veggies and cheese.

Take the cupcake trays out of the oven (be very careful of the hot oil) and portion out the batter between the 20 oiled sections. When they bake they rise into very elegant and considerate cone shapes, so you don’t need to worry about any Hiroshima-style cake explosions. Scatter a few pumpkin seeds on the tops of each cake, and bake for about 13 minutes, until they are risen and golden. As soon as they are cool enough to touch, pop them out of the trays so that they do not continue to absorb oil.

Apologies for the lack of post-bake photo – I was too busy eating them!

Version made at a later date with coriander leaves added to the batter