My husband and I just returned from a short trip to Nassau, Bahamas. Unlike most of our vacations that have purpose, usually visiting friends or family, this trip was just for us, with the primary goal of not doing much more than enjoying some delicious meals and staring at the ocean.
We accomplished that goal. So much so, that it never occurred to us to check the Washington, D.C. weather until we were at the airport awaiting our return flight. Imagine our shock when we discovered snow and negative-number wind chills were in the forecast. Ugghh! Don’t get me wrong, I love snow and winter weather, preferably when I am inside, in front of a fire. But it was a bit too much when compared with the sun and sea, the bright blue sky, and the temperatures in the 70s that we had so quickly become accustomed to.
Reality check – it’s still winter, Jeannine.
For me, comfort foods come to mind when the snow flies, and that usually means some sort of soup. I love them all – Thai chicken, chili, vegetable beef, broccoli and cheese, the varieties are endless. Nothing is more comforting than a bowl of soup on a cold day, especially when accompanied by some fresh homemade bread, rolls or savory muffins.
I made these muffins to go with black-eyed peas on New Years Day, but they will go well with almost any type of soup. Last New Years I attempted gluten-free baking for the first time by substituting gluten-free flour for regular flour in my normal cornbread recipe. The results were anything but spectacular, but my wonderfully supportive husband choked that cornbread down until it was finished. My gluten-free baking has improved considerably since that first effort, and I was really pleased with the way these muffins turned out. I hope you like these muffins as well as I do. If you make them, please send me a comment and let me know what you served with them.
Gluten-Free Green Chilie Corn Muffins
Makes 12 Muffins
I have found that I get better results by mixing my own gluten-free flour blend than when using a commercial product off-the-shelf, but in a pinch I use the King Arthur Gluten-Free Flour. If you want to make your own, I used 2 cups white rice flour, 1 cup brown rice flour, 1 cup tapioca flour or starch, and 1/2 cup potato starch. This makes quite a bit, but stores well in the freezer. This recipe worked well with palm sugar, but you can use granulated if that’s what you have on hand.
Nonstick cooking spray for the pan
1 cup gluten-free flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup palm sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter (1 stick or 4 ounces), melted
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 4-ounce can (about 2 tablespoons) chopped green chilies
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or use paper cupcake liners.
In a large bowl thoroughly whisk the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center and set aside.
In a separate medium bowl whisk the eggs until frothy. Whisk in the butter and buttermilk and mix then stir in the green chilies.
Pour the liquid mixture into the well in the dry mixture and stir until just combined. Do not over mix. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. The cups should be almost full with a mound in the center.
Bake the muffins 16-18 minutes, until golden brown. Immediately transfer the muffins to a wire rack, cooling them on their sides.
Slightly adapted from Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch, and Beyond by Linda J. Amendt
