Reblochon cheese and yogurt muffins

Children love these butter-free yoghurt muffins as much as adults do. They are just the thing for autumn, so comforting and very tasty. Warmly tucked into the centre of the muffin, the Reblochon's unctuous texture and slightly nutty flavour are a delight. Serve with a colourful salad of oak leaf lettuce and seasonal fruits for a great meal. This recipe serves four, making eight muffins.

These muffins reheat well so it's worthwhile making an extra batch. They are also delicious eaten cold as a snack or as part of a lunchbox. Despite its creamy consistency, Reblochon has
a high water content (more than 50%) and thus contains less fat than many other cheeses (25g for 100g Reblochon). Instead of Reblochon, you can use 225 g brie de Maux, coulomier, marroille or a nicely flavoured goat's cheese. The muffin recipe is taken from Modes et Travaux (Oct 2008).

INGREDIENTS

For the muffins:
1/2 reblochon cheese
200g flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
4 eggs
200g natural yogurt
4 tablespoons olive oil
Pepper

For the salad:
4 figs
1 pear
1 granny smith apple
1 oak leaf lettuce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Busy:20 min Total prep time: 30 min

MUFFINS

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Mix the flour with the baking powder.

Add in succession the eggs, yoghurt, olive oil and pepper, mixing with a wooden spoon.

Once you have reached a homogeneous mixture, pour the batter into the cavities of a greased muffin tray or individual ramequins, filling them to two-thirds of their height.

Remove the skin from the Reblochon with a knife and cut the cheese into as many cubes as you have muffins (i.e. 8 or 9)

Place the muffin tray in the oven. Four minutes into the baking, stick a cube of cheese into each muffin. Try not to push all the way down as this will pierce the crusty base that will have started to form. The cheese, which is denser than the muffin batter, would then leak out  underneath. Don't worry if the cheese sticks out on top, it will melt.

Bake for another 15 minutes or so, until the muffins are a nice golden colour.

SALAD

Do this while the muffins are baking. Quarter the figs, core the pear and apple and cut them into segments. Wash the lettuce and mix it with the fruit quarters. Add the oil and vinegar and gently mix.

Serve the muffins hot with the salad.

Sign up to Tasty Diaries, Anne-Laure's charming and inspiring email newsletter packed with colourful, seasonal recipes and kitchen tips.

1 October 2010