Being a Kid / être un Enfant

There are days like this when being a kid again is just what we need.

We wouldn’t have to think about our weekly chores and monthly bills. We wouldn’t have to think about how we might look or how we should be in public. We wouldn’t have to worry about our social status and our personal ambitions.

We would be kids. Again. Wearing pea dotted jumper and pink boots, we would jump in the mud and roll over crunchy leaves. We would dance at the super market and smile to strangers without looking crazy. We would stuff ourselves with jellybeans, muffins and cookies without thinking about calories and gaining weight. We would ride rocking horses and go on the swing screaming: “Higher! Higher! I want to touch the clouds”. We would be kids. Just kids, if only for one day. Just one day.

At least we can always pretend to be kids, only older kids, by stuffing ourselves to one of these healthy and hearty Rutabaga and Cilantro muffins.

Rutabaga is such a fascinating and intimidating vegetable in appearance, and resembles parsnip and cabbage in taste. I used it in these savory muffins along with cilantro and roasted red peppers to add a little bit of sweetness to the batter. The taste of the rutabaga is very mild in the muffins comparing to the time I made a rutabaga soup. Not a good experience. My hubby ate it just because he is too polite or was too hungry. And I finished my bowl just because it was “good for me” and because I don’t like to mistreat my soups. I am a nice kid.

The use of buckwheat flour can be substituted for another nutty flour of your choice, such as chestnut or chickpea flour. This muffin would be a perfect pair to a soup or a spicy arugula and pear salad on your thanksgiving dinner.

Rutabaga and cilantro Muffins

Recipe:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup buckwheat flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1 tsp freshly ground coriander seeds
- 1 tsp honey
- 2 tbsp cilantro leaves, chopped
- 1 ½ cups rutabaga, peeled and finely shredded
- 1 red pepper, roasted, peeled and diced
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- ½ cup olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400F. Butter and flour 12 muffin-pan cups.
In a bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour, baking powder, salt, ground black pepper, cilantro and the ground coriander.
Beat the eggs until blended. Add the milk, oil, honey, red peppers and shredded rutabaga and beat until blended. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until moistened.
Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin-pan cups. Bake for 15- 18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out just a little moist. Do not overbake them.
Let them cool in the pan on a wire rack for two minutes, and then invert them onto the rack.
These muffins can be stored for up to 2 days in an airtight plastic container. The muffins are good on the first day and even better on the second.

Muffins de Rutabaga et Coriandre

In francais please:
- 200g de farine
- 75g de farine de sarrasin
- 2 c.c de levure chimique
- ¾ c.c de sel de mer
- ¼ c.c de poivre noir, fraîchement moulu
- 1 c.c de graines de coriandre, fraîchement moulues
- 1 c.c de miel
- 2 c.s de feuille de coriandre, hachées
- 185g de rutabaga, râpés
- 1 poivron rouge, grillée et coupe en dés
- 2 gros oeufs
- 250ml de lait entier
- 80 ml d’huile d’olive

Préchauffer votre four 200C. Beurrer et fariner un moule à muffins de 12.
Dans une jatte, mélanger les deux farines, la levure chimique, sel, poicre, coriandre et graines de coriandre.
Fouetter les oeufs un peu, puis ajouter le lait, l’huile d’olive, le miel, rutabaga et poivrons rouges et batter jusqu’ à ce que tout soit bien incorporé. Ajouter alors les ingredients secs et mélanager juste afin que le mélange soit bien uniforme. Ne pas trop mélanger afin d’avoir des muffins tendres.
Verser la pate a muffins dans votre moule a muffins et faites cuire pendant 15-18 minutes, jusqu’ à ce qu’un cure-dent inséré à l’interieur des muffins en ressort à peine humide.
Laisser refroidir dans le moule sur une grille à patisserie pendant 2 minutes, puis démouler. Servir accompagnés d’une soupe ou une salade de roquette ou de frisée. Ces muffins sont délicieux le premier jour, mais encore meilleur le second.
Ils peuvent se garder pendant deux jours dans une boite en plastique à fermeture hérmetique.