When it’s cold outside, comfort comes in the shape of potato muffins

Potato muffins served with roast chicken and vegetables.

Give me potatoes and I’m happy. I love them in any way, shape and form, and last week, while idly paging through a well-thumbed old recipe book, I was intrigued, and also inspired, when I cast my eyes on a recipe for potato muffins.

Muffins are so adaptable and I often make spinach and feta muffins and herb and cheddar cheese muffins, so thought, why not potato muffins?

It gave way to also thinking you could try butternut muffins with cinnamon, but let’s leave that for another time…

I decided that I’d make my own version of the above on the weekend, that turned out to be a far departure from the original.

Potatoes have to one of the ultimate comfort foods and what with the weather being so cold and wet, they’re a good dish to make to warm the cockles.

It’s also one of the easiest dishes I have ever made, and you can make it your own with the seasoning and the addition of the cheese of your choice.

It takes about 15 minutes to prepare and once you have slid the muffin tin in the oven, you can put your feet up and sip on a glass of robust red wine as you watch the muffins turning golden brown …

Potato muffins

Ingredients

1 large onion, finely chopped and sautéed

4 large potatoes, peeled and boiled, until soft and drained

1 cup flour

2 eggs

1 cup grated cheddar cheese or crumbled feta cheese

½ cup milk or cream

½ cup chopped fresh herbs

½ tsp salt and twist or two from a black pepper grinder

Method

Mash the potatoes and add all the wet ingredients and the cooked onions.

Slowly sprinkle on top and then stir in the flour and the herbs into the wet mixture.

Grease a muffin tin for 12 small muffins and, using a dessert spoon put equal dollops of the mixture into each muffin hole.

Sprinkle over paprika.

Bake in a preheated 180 deg C oven for about 30 minutes until they are crusty.

Gently ease out with a knife.

Serve with a roast or a stew, or eat as a light supper dish with a fresh salad.