Sunday 26 March 2017

Vegan muffins with tofu feta, olive and sun-dried tomato

I was delighted with a batch of savoury muffins I made last week.  I had hoped to make some more tonight but time got the better of me.  Yet I mustn't grumble.  It has been a productive weekend.  I have rediscovered my delicious bookmarking account, I have painted the back door frame and planted some seedlings in my pots.  I have even made a stew for tomorrow's dinner.  I just didn't have time to make another batch of muffins with tofu feta.

As I have mentioned before, I have been trying out recipes from Kristy Turner's But I Could Never Go Vegan, cookbook.  I made some tofu feta.  It was ok but I wasn't keen on the texture of the uncooked tofu.  (I preferred the almond feta I posted about yesterday.)

I had a yen for savoury muffins.  So I decided to search for muffin recipes using tofu feta.  If you ask Google, it seems they are pretty thin on the ground.  Finally I decided to adapt a vegan muffin recipe using sun-dried tomatoes and olives.

My mum was visiting while I was making these muffins.  She was gone by the time they came out of the oven.  It had been raining so hard when she left that she had needed to roll up her trousers and take off her shoes to wade to the car.  As soon as she reached the car the rain stopped.  I think one of these muffins might have been just the thing for such a moment.  Instead, E and I enjoyed some for lunch and more for dinner with soup.  I was lucky to snaffle a muffin for the following day to take to work.

I really loved these muffins, as did E.  It was all we could do not to just inhale the whole batch the moment it came out of the oven.  They were very soft and almost quiche-like.  I assume this is due to the tofu in the feta.  You could try this with almond feta but I suspect the texture would change.  Though it would probably work.  They had plenty of flavour and a nice texture.  I also really liked how the stuffed olives on the top made the muffins look like one eyed aliens.

I was so pleased with these muffins and happy to share them.  I wish there were more savoury muffins in the world.  Sweet muffins are great but they are treats.  Savoury muffins can be part of a meal.  They are great for lunch snacks, picnics and even breakfast.  I also love to serve them with soup or as dinner on the run.  I just wish I had the energy to make them more.

I am sending these muffins to Kimmy and Mary Ellen for Healthy Vegan Fridays.

More savoury vegan baking on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
Beetroot, apple and walnut scones (v)
Chickpea crackers (gf, v)
Kale scones (v)
Pumpkin miso muffins (v)
Pumpkin, pecan and poppyseed scones (v) 
Sweet potato, feta and sauerkraut muffins (v) 
Tofu and pesto crackers (v)

Vegan feta, olive and sun dried tomato muffins
Adapted from Sandra Vungi Vegan
Makes 12 muffins

Dry mix:
1 cup white plain flour
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp wholemeal flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Wet mix:
1 cup cold water
1/2 cup tofu feta
1/3 cup olive oil

Add-ins:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely sliced
3 heaped tbsp chopped green olives
2 heaped tbsp chopped sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbsp pesto

For topping:
12 green pitted olives

Grease a 12 hole muffin pan and preheat oven to 200 C.

Make the add-ins.  Cook onion in oil until starting to crisp up around the edges.  This can be done while chopping tomatoes and olives.  Once the onion is cooked, turn off the heat and stir in the tomatoes, olives tofu and pesto.  Set aside to cool while making the muffin batter.

To make the muffin batter, mix together the dry ingredients in one bowl and wet ingredients in another.  Pour wet into dry and mix gently until combined.  Stir in add-ins.

Spoon evenly into the 12 muffin holes.  Push an olive into the middle of each muffin so it is still visible at the top.  Bake for 20-30 minutes.  Rest 5 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool.  Eat warm or room temperature.  Keeps for a day or two in an airtight container.

*NOTES: My tofu feta was a crumbly mixture in a marinade so I squeezed out as much liquid as possible. It was quite like this tofu feta recipe.  I used oil-free semi dried tomatoes.  I used green olives marinated in lemon and garlic oil for in the muffins.  However they had stones in them so I used pitted olives stuffed with pimentos on the top.  If you want vegan muffins, make sure you use a vegan pesto.  I used this pesto recipe.

On the Stereo:
Donkeys 92-97: a collection of singles, rarities and unreleased recordings: Tindersticks

10 comments:

  1. I LOVE Sandra Vungi's website and get excited every time she adds a new recipe. These muffins look really delicious. Perfect for our approaching winter here in Tassie. Cheers for sharing this excellent recipe. Do you think the book is well worth buying?

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    1. Hi Fran - definitely buy the book - I have borrowed it and think I might buy it - will write more about it when I have made as many recipes as I can

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  2. Oh yes, these look great! I've experimented with savoury muffins a few times, and never quite nailed it, so I'm just going to borrow your recipe. I love the salty olives and sweet tomatoes together. A couple of these and a hearty salad, and I'd be a happy Joey.

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  3. I like the sound of these soft muffins. I don't like tough or dry muffins and these sound like they have a really nice texture. how do they keep?

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    1. Thanks Lorraine - we were lucky to have one kept for the next day - and that was really nice so I would say 3-4 days at least but have yet to get evidence :-)

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  4. These look so delicious Johanna! Love the addition of olives and sun-dried tomatoes, they're some of my favorites. I've been playing around with a feta recipe lately as well for a salad too. It's similar to Dianne's now that I'm looking at it. I'll have to try hers too.

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  5. I am not sure I've actually ever made savoury muffins. I have certainly enjoyed some made by others, but I'm not sure why I haven't made any myself. I may actually try making these gluten free (wish me luck haha). They sound really good and something that my hubby would especially like. The combination of sun dried tomatoes and olives would just be divine. And I've been keen to try making my own feta for awhile now, so this helps with that too.
    Thanks so much for sharing at Healthy Vegan Fridays! I'm pinning & sharing. Hope you have a little more time to yourself this week ;)

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  6. Ooh you had me at feta there Johanna! I love the stuff and could eat it until the cows come home!! But I've never come across tofu feta. I'm assuming it still delivers the same salty kick that regular feta does.
    Angela x

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  7. I am not sure I've ever made savoury muffins either - but have been thinking of them lately so these are well timed!

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  8. Just read your most recent post, but had to come and comment on this one. Indeed more savoury muffins in the world. I keep meaning to make vegetarian versions with cheese but hesitate as they would be way too many for just the two of us. I really admire your vegan versions/variations with homemade feta cheez. You have convinced me to get the cookbooks, but they are on my wishlist for now.

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