Soft Cheese Pine Nut Muffins

How to make it

Goddess Cheese Pine Nut Muffins vibrant strips of aromatic basil run through these delicious buttery cheese, pine nut studded muffins.

Method: Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan, gas mark 6

• Place the pine nuts into a dry skillet or frying pan and toast over a medium heat until golden. Remove from the pan and place on to a plate to cool. Reserve some pine nuts for topping the muffins.
• Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl.
• Pile the basil leaves on top of each other and cut into fine strips.
• Add the cooled pine nuts, basil, and seasonings to the bowl.
• Stir with a fork to incorporate.
• Break the soft cheese into lumps and add half to the flour mixture.
• Cover the cheese in the bowl with the flour mixture. This will stop it clumping together.
• Add the other half of the cheese, again pinching off gooey lumps and dropping them into the bowl. Cover in the flour mixture as before – dry mixture.
• Into a jug add the milk, oil and eggs. Lightly mix with a fork – wet mixture.
• Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture and pour in the wet mixture.
• Stir with a fork approximately 10-12 times until the ingredients are just mixed
• Place muffin liners in a muffin tin – it makes the muffins easier to remove.
• Divide the muffin mix between the 12 cases.
• Top with the reserved pine nuts – if you have forgotten to reserve any don’t worry they will still look and taste delicious.
• Place the tin in the top of the oven and bake for approximately 15 minutes.
• The muffins are cooked when they are just firm to touch and golden brown.
• Once baked remove the muffins from the oven.

This recipe is courtesy of Feasting is Fun.