When Brooke told me that she was going to make this vegetarian healthy savoury muffins recipe, at first I was a little skeptical. Anything with the word vegetarian typically has me scrunching up my face as my initial reaction. The thing was, as Brooke began to rattle off the list of ingredients including, Kalamata olives, semi sun-dried tomatoes and feta just to name a few I was quickly being won over by this savoury muffins recipe.
The thing about these vegetable muffins is they are incredibly versatile, you can have them for breakfast, lunch or dinner or even just as a lunchbox snack. Brooke and I took them to work with us throughout the following week. Personally, I couldn’t seem to get past morning tea without eating mine. However, Brooke managed to wait and have hers with soup at lunchtime.
Not only are these really tasty savoury muffins, but they are also really filling and pretty healthy too. The beauty of these muffins is you can also freeze them to eat during the week or whenever you feel like a sugar-free snack.
I can definitely see this healthy savoury muffin recipe becoming a go to recipe in case of a snacking emergency. Although I think next time I will sneakily add some bacon or chorizo while Brooke is preoccupied in the kitchen (Insert evil laugh).
If you have a craving for something sweet and vegetable savoury muffins just won’t cut it then check our recipes for blueberry and lemon cupcakes, pecan slice, apple and rhubarb crumble or no bake mars bar slice.
Vegetable savoury muffin baking tips
Like all baking practice and precision with measurement makes perfect! However, try these helpful tips to make your vegetable savoury muffins turn out on the first attempt.
Its important that when you wash your baby spinach leaves you remove as much excess water as possible. Running your spinach through a salad spinner is a good way to do this. Alternatively placing the spinach on paper towel and gently drying will work.
Don’t over stir the savoury muffin mixture. Resist the temptation to over beat your batter as this will cause your savoury muffins to become touch. You want the final mixture to be lumpy in texture. It should only take 10-12 strokes with a wooden spoon to blend your mixture.
Don’t skimp of the vegetables. If you don’t like on of the veggies, don’t just leave it out but instead replace it with an alternative.
Thoroughly grease the muffin tin before adding the batter. They tend to turn out better without paper cases or muffin cups. We recommend that you spray the pan with canola oil however you also could use olive oil.
Keep an eye on the baking time. Because of the variation in the water content in your ingredients and because all ovens are different you want to monitor them closely. If you take them out too early your savoury muffins could be uncooked in the middle. Bake them too long and they can become dry. Use a skewer to test your savoury muffins a couple of minutes before the end of the bake. If your skewer comes out clean then they should be perfectly cooked.
How to store your savoury muffins
Once you’ve made such great savoury muffins you will be keen to ensure you get to enjoy them all. While to some that could mean trying to eat as many as soon as possible if you store them properly they can be enjoyed over a longer period of time. These are our tips for storing muffins;
Leave your savoury muffins for around 3-5mins after cooking to allow them to firm up before you transfer to a cooling rack.
The muffins you don’t eat warm, ensure they cool completely on a wire rack. Storing your muffins when they are even a little bit warm will result in condensation which you need to avoid, or you will be left with soggy muffins.
Depending on how many muffins you have made you may either want to store dry, refrigerate or freeze your muffins.
We always like to freeze savoury muffins, its such a great way to store them and if they are properly frozen they will be good for at least 2 months (but will remain safe well past then). For best quality we like to individually wrap muffins in clingfilm and then transfer them into containers or Ziplock freezer bags. To reheat – just pop them out of the freezer and place them back in the muffin tin. Reheat at 170c (350f) until heated through. Alternatively, allow them to thaw and reheat them in the microwave.
You can refrigerate them muffins, however this tends to alter the texture of the muffin and we don’t recommend this.
Storing muffins at room temperature is better than refrigeration when it comes to retaining the quality of the flavour. The best way to store them is to line an air tight container with kitchen paper, and place them on top, if you have two layers worth then add another sheet of baking paper in between before seeling the lid. The paper should help to avoid any moisture build up. If you live in a warm climate I recommend only storing for a day or 2 at room temperature. Make sure you freeze them if you don’t think they will be gone in 2 days
Savoury muffins recipe instructions
- 2½ cups self-raising flour
- ½ bunch spinach
- 150g feta cheese
- ½ cup semi-sundried tomatoes
- ¼ cup Kalamata sliced olives
- 2tbspn parmesan
- 1⅓ cup milk
- 50g melted butter
- 1 egg
- Preheat oven to 200c and brush a 12 muffin pan with canola oil.
- Sift the flour into a large bowl. Add shredded spinach, crumbled feta cheese, chopped sundried tomatoes, olives, parmesan and stir to combine. Whisk together the melted butter, milk and egg until just combined and add to the dry ingredients. Mix together.
- Spoon mixture into prepared pans. Bake for 20 minutes. Turn onto a wire rack to cool. Serve warm with some butter or avocado if you prefer. Yum!
Sooo yummy!
I tried the recipe yesterday and had to bake my muffins a little bit longer (30 minutes) but it was delicious.
Thanks for the recipe and your blog is really great!
Marianne
Hi Marianne,
I love these muffins. Brooke actually made them again this weekend and I had one today.
I just checked out your blog by the way. Beautiful photos! I am going to need to work on my French though 🙂
Try the French Apple Cake we posted yesterday and let us know what you think.
Clint
I have a bunch of leftover Kalamata olives from a previous recipe and I now found the perfect use for them! What a great idea – this looks wonderful!
These muffins look great! I will be making them next weekend for a baby shower. They will be a big hit I am sure! Thanks 🙂
Thanks Genevieve, I hope they are a hit at your baby shower!
These savoury muffins were great straight from the oven with melted butter.
I made these muffins yesterday with a few tiny variation, and they were great! Very moist and so versatile! And my 3-year-old ate 6 of them in two days, so I’m going to make them again (and again). I think olives should be mandatory in any risen savoury dough. I’ll talk about them in my blog, if you don’t mind. Thank you!
I made these into bite size muffins and took to work they were a huge success
Hello!
Love the idea for these – perfect for a hypoglycaemic who is sugar-wary like myself… Just wondering, at what point do you freeze them and do you defrost in the microwave?
Many thanks!
Hi Polly, so glad you like our recipe! I let the muffins cool, before wrapping them in cling wrap. You can also store them in an airtight container in the freezer. If I am taking them to work I just leave it in the fridge and let it defrost or you can microwave them. Sometimes I like to cut them in half and toast them in the sandwich press too!