These delicious savoury muffins are soft, light and fluffy – perfect served warm from the oven for lunch or a snack. Great for lunch boxes & picnics too!
Do you like savoury muffins? I think I might prefer them over the more conventional sweet kind. They certainly went down well with my daughter Kipper and DH when I made a batch for lunch one Sunday.
Cake for lunch! Yay! Even if it is flavoured with sun-dried tomatoes and cheese…
Store cupboard savoury muffins
We ate these yummy muffins still warm from the oven, and they were soft, light, fluffy and altogether scrumptious. They were also a doddle to make, so I will certainly be adding them to the “Easy and Fabulous” recipe file.
All the ingredients were assembled from the contents of the pantry and fridge – this is a great recipe to use up odds and ends. A lone spring onion here, the end of a jar of sun-dried tomatoes there, that sort of thing.
Everything’s better with pesto…
The pesto was a last minute addition. I spotted it as I went for the sun-dried tomatoes and thought it would add extra flavour, which it absolutely did. You could probably add a bit more without any problem if you really like pesto, or if you wanted to finish off a jar, or something like that.
Eat with toppings or without
DH split his muffin open and dolloped humous on it, whereas Kipper and I just dived in and ate them. You could also spread these savoury muffins with cream cheese, tapenade, or even just butter. Assuming you feel that they need further adornment. I’m not convinced.
There was one savoury muffin left, and I had it for a snack a couple of days later. It was still moist and just as tasty as when it was fresh. Store them in an airtight box and they’ll be fine for at least a day or two, so why not make a batch for family lunch boxes? They make a terrific change from sandwiches.
Makes 6 super-tasty savoury muffins.
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📖 Recipe
Sun-dried tomato & pesto savoury muffins
Ingredients
- 125 g plain flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 100 ml milk or non-dairy alternative
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon pesto
- 2 tablespoon oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoes or extra virgin olive oil
- 50 g sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained
- 2 spring onions
- 50 g grated hard cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Line a 6-cup muffin tin with paper or silicon liners.
- 125 g (1 cup) plain flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, ¼ teaspoon saltMix together the flour, baking powder, pepper and salt in a bowl and set aside.
- 100 ml (3/7 cup) milk or non-dairy alternative, 1 egg, ½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon pesto, 2 tablespoon oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoesIn a jug, whisk together the milk, egg, balsamic vinegar, pesto and oil.
- 50 g (1 ¾ oz) sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained, 2 spring onionsFinely chop the drained sun-dried tomatoes, and finely slice the spring onions.
- 50 g (1 ¾ oz) grated hard cheeseAdd the sun-dried tomatoes, onions and liquid ingredients to the flour mixture and gently stir together until just combined. Add about ⅔ of the cheese and fold in.
- Divide the mixture between the prepared muffin cases – they should be quite full. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the muffins.
- Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 20-25 minutes until risen, golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the centre of a muffin comes out clean.
- Allow to cool briefly before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
More tasty quick bread recipes
If you like these, you might also enjoy my cheese & olive picnic muffins (below), this quick and easy soda bread with yogurt, or this delicious vegetable soda bread.
Jo
Hi there, Could you add feta cheese to these? They sound lovely
Helen
Hi Jo. Absolutely! That sounds like a delicious addition. I hope you enjoy them!
All the best, Helen x.
Sheryl
Substituted all purpose gluten free flour and water for half the oil. Very tasty. Will definitely make these again.
Helen
Great to hear that these can be made gluten-free! So glad you enjoyed them Sheryl 🙂
Fiona
This is a wonderful recipe – however….the quantity for the baking powder should be in tsp NOT tbsp!!! So for those of you that have experienced flat muffins with a bitter taste that will be why. Reduce the amount to teaspoons and they will taste absolutely delish! hopefully the author will see this and ammend the recipe.
Helen
Hi Fiona, the quantity for baking powder in this recipe is correct – 1 tbsp or 3 tsp. However, if you use baking SODA instead, you will likely get the result you describe – flat muffins that taste bitter. If you want to substitute baking soda for the baking powder, use 1 tsp of baking soda, and add another 0.5-1 tsp balsamic vinegar to ensure that it is fully reacted and you don’t get the bitter taste. You will also need to get the muffins into the oven quickly as the leavening reaction is much faster. I hope this helps! All the best, Helen.
Elaine Mitchell
The double function did not double the flour or the milk.
Helen
Thanks for bringing this to my attention Elaine. I’ve updated the recipe card so it should be working now 🙂
Summer Yule
I doubled up on the pesto and they were perfect. Great served warm! I felt the cheese negated the need for butter or other toppings.
Helen
Thanks Summer. So glad to hear you enjoyed them.
Claire Scott
These are so delicious but does anyone know if they are freezable ?
Helen
Hi Claire, thanks for your comment – I’m so glad you like them! I’ve never tried freezing them. I always just make a small batch and eat them within a day or two! However I can see no reason why they wouldn’t freeze OK. If you decide to try, please come back and tell us how you got on! Thanks and all the best, Helen.
Rebecca
Hi Helen, could I omit the cheese from these? Would they still turn out okay?
Helen
Hi Rebecca. Yes, I’ve made them without the cheese before and they still turn out fine. I hope you enjoy them!
C Wheeler
Absolutely lovely. Every Monday I task myself with making something
different for lunch while my husband is out, The smell got him as soon as he walked in and the taste was amazing, Intended to save some but unfortunately they were too good, Definitelty a do againer,
Helen
Thanks so much for your lovely comment. I’m really glad you both enjoyed them so much 🙂
Lisa
I added pine nuts. Delish!
Helen
OOoh, yum! Great idea Lisa – I’ll give them a go next time.
Ali
Is it possible to sub oat flour for the plain flour?
Helen
Hi Ali. I haven’t tried with oat flour so I don’t know how it would behave. If you have a go, please come back and let us know how it turned out! Thanks, Helen.
Tina
Just about to make these …is it really a tablespoon of baking powder, or should it be teaspoon?
Helen
Hi Tina – yes, it’s a tablespoon! It sounds a lot but I promise it’s right. Your muffins will be tall, light and fluffy 🙂
Tina
Yes they were thanks, and delicious too!
Julie McPherson
Oh goodness, these do look yummy and they would be perfect for a family picnic. Commenting as BritMums Baking Round-up Editor
Helen
Thanks Julie! Yes, they’re great for picnics – now we just need the weather…
Andrea @ The Petite Cook
I love savoury muffins, and this sundried tomato & pesto combo sounds absolutely divine!
Helen
Thanks Andrea! I love sundried tomatoes and pesto together. We chuck them both in with pasta for a super-speedy and delicious dinner, too.
Katie Bryson (@cookingkt)
Goodness these look good… I need access to your ‘easy and fabulous’ recipe file….
Helen
Sorry Katie, the file only exists in my head! I probably ought to write it all down somewhere though.
Ceri
These sound great, and I love how the cheese looks in the tops. I’d cover mine in butter 🙂
Helen
Thanks Ceri. I’m totally with you – lashings of butter on everything!
Gail
I am so excited to try these! Do they freeze well?
Helen
I haven’t tried, but I don’t see why not… Come back and let me know if you try! Thanks, Helen x.
Gail
OK, they freeze great! After defrosting, I put them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet in a warm oven (around 100C) for about an hour and they were amazing!
Helen
Thanks Gail! That’s great to know!
Monika Dabrowski
Great recipe, Helen, I am a huge fan of savoury muffins! Also the links on your blog seem to be working fine.
Pnina
What is spring onion and can I omit the pesto? Also on you picture on the bottom looks like you have olives? Do I just add them?
Helen
Hi Pnina. Spring onions are sometimes called salad onions or green onions I think – they’re long and thin and quite mild and usually used in salads. You can leave out the pesto with no problem. The photo at the bottom is for another similar recipe – cheese and olive picnic muffins
Hope this helps! Helen x.
Gail
Hi Pnina, not sure where you live, but in Israel they are called בצל ירוק (green onions) and in America they will be called scallions.
Alma Vorrei
These muffins sound absolutely delicious! I’ve never made savoury muffins before so I must give them a try. Thank you 🙂
Helen
Thanks Alma. I must admit I prefer savoury muffins to sweet ones, on the whole. Maybe it’s just the novelty of savoury cake…?
Miriam
Helen,
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I tried making savory muffins for my kids to take to eat supper in the park the other week, and they came out way too dense and flat. I’m excited to try your picnic muffin recipe!
Helen
Thanks Miriam! I hope your kids enjoy them 🙂