Like most mums, since having Bradley I find there are less hours in the day for cooking. The mornings fly by and before I know it it’s lunchtime and I find myself torn between trying to eat as quickly as possible (before he wakes up) and wanting something that’s wholesome and healthy.
It’s no secret; healthy and nutritious food takes time to cook. The key is planning and preparation so last Sunday I decided to get my s**t together and do some prep for the week ahead. I weighed out and measured all the ingredients for this recipe while I was cooking our Sunday roast so that it was all ready to go in the morning. While I was peeling vegetables I threw a soup together to keep me going for a few days and it’s this bit of extra effort on a Sunday that means I won’t find myself eating beans or eggs on toast for the millionth time which are delicious lunch options but I know I can do better.
I use wholegrain spelt flour and pumpkin seeds in this muffin recipe, which are low on the GI index meaning they make you feel fuller for longer. Spinach is known for its health benefits and I’m always looking for ways to eat more greens because we all know greens are good for our general health as well as for boosting our immune systems.
Delicious and versatile, these muffins are great for breakfast, brunch, lunch or for snacking. When I bake a batch of these I freeze them to have them throughout the week. I get them out of the freezer in the morning and by lunchtime they’ve defrosted. 30-60 seconds in the microwave and they’re good to go. These used to go down well with crew when I worked on yachts as a nice mid-morning treat with some cream cheese but I love to dunk them in soup instead of a bread roll.
(makes 12 muffins)
Ingredients
375g wholewheat spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder
250g baby spinach, chopped
200g crumbled Feta
100g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
30g finely grated Parmesan
Zest of 1/2 a lemon
1 1/2 cups milk
90g melted butter
2 eggs
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Salt and Pepper
30g Pumpkin seeds, plus extra for topping
Method
Preheat oven to 180°C. Place all of the dry ingredients (reserving half of the Parmesan for the topping later) in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Use a fork to whisk together the milk, butter and eggs. Mix the wet mixture into the dry ingredients taking care not to over-mix.
Spoon the mixture into twelve muffin cases then top each muffin with the remaining Parmesan and some more pumpkin seeds.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn out onto wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.
