Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins

From Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins


My hubby and I love spicy food. The more peppers the better.  We also love our Southern food. To us, cornbread and beans go hand in hand (to borrow from a song) like the rhythm and blues.  That is why when Rebecca from Ezra Pound Cake decided for Dorie's (and I hope I write it down right this time) Savory Corn and Pepper muffins to be this Tuesday's challenge,  I automatically knew that I would have to put a spin on "Spaghetti Night". Yes, Mondays have officially become" Spaghetti Night" in our household, but I knew somehow, someway I would fit in these "Southwestern Twang"  muffins (as described by Dorie herself) into this night.

And, I did.  I started off by making slow cooked, ham flavored infused pinto beans in the crock pot this morning. I just love the smell of beans cooking in the kitchen, especially the way the aroma fills the house while you go about your day. It is one of my favorite memories, smelling my grandma's beans cooking all day on Saturdays to serve throughout the week.  It was also special to sit down at her table with a pot of hot steaming beans that were flavored perfectly with garlic and chopped onions with a topping of cheddar cheese. Later as an adult, I would add chopped jalapenos. The only thing that could make it more perfect was fresh hot homemade salsa, tortillas, or cornbread served on the side.

From Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins

Along with our beans, to keep with the theme of "Spaghetti Night",  I made a Mexican version of spaghetti, Sopa de Fideo. My kids absolutely go nuts when I make this. Sopa de Fideo is vermicelli cooked in a tomato sauce flavored with garlic, chicken bouillons, cumin, chopped onions, and salt and pepper. Usually,  I slice up hot dogs in it for the kids (the way my grandma did). However, tonight I did not. I served it as a side to the beans and warm, good smelling Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins.
The only twists I made to the muffins were:
  •   I  added Cooked Jimmy Dean sausage to the batter
  •   I added a little extra sugar to the batter  
A few minutes before the muffins came out, I sprinkled them with Monterrey Jack cheese to melt on the tops. The muffins were really good. My husband likes spicy things (that is why he married me) , as do I, so I would probably add more jalapenos to this recipe for us next time.  I would love to add more sugar as well. I usually add an  extra 1/2 cup of sugar (yes, yes, I know) to my cornbread recipe. The kids and I love ours to taste almost like cake. 

From Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins

Thanks Rebecca for giving us an excuse to sit down to an old-fashioned, simple, comfort food meal. Please go visit her site for the Savory Corn and Pepper recipe. She really has a wonderful food blog! Also, don't forget to check out what the other TWD'ers paired with their magnificent muffins.

Next Up: Dorie's Berry Surprise Cake

23 comments:

Leslie said...

Melted cheese on the top?!? Brilliant! I'm glad these helped bring back great memories!

chocolatechic said...

I used to be able to take the heat, now I can't.

These muffins were great.

Kayte said...

Oh, I love all your little suggestions and tips and add-ins and ingredients. It is such fun to see how everyone adds their own signature on all these recipes...I am always so BORING...I do it exactly the way Dorie says the first time and then I play around...with things like you suggest...in other words...I steal ideas like this from you! Thanks for sharing! They look great.
www.grandmaskitchentable.typepad.com

Amy of Sing For Your Supper said...

Great ideas! They really look great - I loved these muffins!!

-Amy
www.singforyoursupperblog.com

Teanna DiMicco said...

Mmmm those pinto beans sound phenomenal and they look gorgeous next to your gorgeous muffins!

Anonymous said...

YUM! Melty cheese is always good. Your muffins look great!

Pamela said...

The cheese on top was definitely an idea that I wished I had thought of. But there is always next time. All of the food sounds delicious, though!

Jamie said...

Holy Moly! Sausage and cheese??? That sounds delicious!

Rebecca of "Ezra Pound Cake" said...

Sausage! What a great idea. And so is spaghetti night. Yum.

Anonymous said...

I love that you added sausage to these muffins and we love everything spicy at our house too!

Ivette said...

WOW.. that cheese must have been heavenly on those muffins! I wish I would have thought of that!!
Your muffins look great!

dharmagirl said...

Yum! Beans and cornbread is just about the most perfect food combination ever. I had cooked up a mess of navy beans, so I made a simple soup. I love your idea of sprinkling cheese on the top--delicious!

Katy said...

Oh, I love your version with the sausage! Sounds great. Your recipes sound like my kind of cooking! :)

Lillian said...

I bet they were great with cheese -- wish I'd thought of that!

The Unrepentant Carbivore said...

your muffins and beans look so yummy! I googled "Sopa de Fideo", and now I've got yet another new recipe to try. Yay!!

Anonymous said...

Mmmm. We like things spicy too! My husband would have loved the addition of sausage in the muffins--great idea!

Cathy said...

Oh my word -- every last think about your meal sounds wonderful! Wish I had dinner at your house that night. Your muffins look perfect! Definitely a great recipe for the spicy food lover!

Dragana said...

Very nice addition the sausage is!
I will add some next time. DSN.

Anonymous said...

This whole meal sounds great. I need to institute a weekly spaghetti night. Good idea.

Jennifer said...

Wow, the Sopa de Fideo sounds great! And, I too, love beans. My favorite are black beans, cooked with chopped onion, jalapeno, cumin, lime juice and a can of fire roasted tomatoes. So good.
I wish I would have thought to add melted cheese on my muffins! They came out great, but everything is better with cheese! (or bacon. or gravy.)

Linda said...

Thanks for stopping by to see my enchilada recipe....but these muffins...OMG...they look wonderful!

CB said...

Oooh sausage and melted cheese! I thought the muffins were ok but with your changes I totally wanna try them again! PS. I think Spaghetti night is such a cute idea! Glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Clara @ iheartfood4thought

Jaime said...

i love the shape of your muffins!