Week 75: Butternut Feta Muffins

Ever since I saw the recipe for these savory muffins on one of the blogs that I follow, I have had it in the back of my mind as something I would like to try. Butternut squashes have been accumulating on my counter from my organic produce box that I get delivered to my house every other week, so I thought it was about time.

Something that caught my eye with these muffins was that they had the slight sweetness from the butternut squash, which I thought would go nicely with the saltiness from the feta. One of my favorite flavor combinations recently has been sweet potato and feta, and this seemed like it would be similar. I also liked that it would have the savory elements of the sunflower seeds, parmesan, and mustard.

Now, when I first bit into these muffins, I was a little confused. My first thought was that it tasted a bit like scrambled eggs. Strange. As I worked my way through my muffin, I decided that it was enjoyable, but I was a little disappointed that I couldn't taste all the individual ingredients that were in it. Overall a winner, but just didn't quite live up to my huge expectations.

Year of Yum Rating: 4 STARS

INGREDIENTS
2-3 cups diced butternut squash
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 large handful baby spinach leaves, chopped fine
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
3 tbsp sunflower seeds
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup feta cheese, in small cubes
2 tsp whole grain mustard
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
2 cups unbleached flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 405 degrees. Toss squash in oil, salt and pepper, then place in roasting pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through and slightly mushy.
2. Transfer cooked squash to large bowl, add spinach, parsley, sunflower seeds, parmesan, feta and mustard. Mix.
3. In separate bowl, beat eggs and milk together and add to squash mixture. Sift flour and baking powder into mixture, add salt and pepper and fold together, being careful not to over mix.
4. Spoon mixture into a greased 12 hole muffin tray and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.