Fiesta Muffins

As hard as I try to have breakfast at home before heading in to the office, I am often/usually ravenous at work by, like, 9:50 a.m.

Likewise, I come home from work absolutely starving, at 6:30 or 7:00pm, and have a certain somedog to take for a half-hour walk before I can focus on dinner. I don’t keep snacky foods like chips and crackers around, because they would be consumed immediately upon return from the grocery store, if not in the car on the way home. Seriously, Pirates Booty has never lasted more than 35 minutes in my apartment, no matter the size of the bag. Therefore, grabbing something to quick to snack on often proves a challenge, given the purposeful lack of quick snacks.

And isn’t “grabbing something healthy” the perpetual holy grail?

Hello, Fiesta Muffins. Named for the light Mexican flavors (cumin and diced green chiles) by my friend TKH’s dad while enjoying them this week, Fiesta Muffins are filled with healthy ingredients like whole grains, egg, cheese, and chicken if you want it, and are super-easy to grab on the go. They freeze well too, so consider doubling the batch, and wrapping them individually once they cool {microwave for 30-45 seconds when ready to heat}.

I brought dinner to TKH and FQH (and T’s parents!) to help out (I mean, while staying comfortably within my skillset) after the birth of their beautiful daughter. When I asked what they were craving, Chicken Soup with Kale and Quinoa was selected. Easy enough, but I also wanted to deliver something satisfying they could easily grab while balancing a newborn, and lo-and-behold I came across this idea in my stack of printed recipes and magazine clippings.

The date on the printed email is August 22, 2005 – almost 10 years ago! From the email, it looks like I had offered my colleague CO a recipe for an easy breakfast, and she was reciprocating. And look at that, there is even a note at the end of the recipe that this makes a great gift for new moms. Huh. I don’t have any close friends with 10 year olds, so I definitely was not paying attention to helpful notes like that.

As stated like 4 times already alluded to, this is a great, filling on-the-go breakfast, or snack at any time. There were a few days this week when I brought Fiesta Muffins to work for breakfast. There was one day where I had one muffin at home (I woke up, of course, ravenous) and another when I got to work (still ravenous). That might be the secret – a little at home and a little at work to tide me over. And there were several days where this tided me over until dog-walking time came to an end. Much to Tazewell’s chagrin. Ok fine he got a bite.

Fiesta Muffins are much better warm, but some days I can’t wait the 20-30 seconds for the microwave before snacking, and these are not bad straight out of the fridge (if you are the type, like me, to like cold leftovers).

Top with a little squeeze of ketchup, and enjoy!

Fiesta Muffins

 

Print

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

This is a great, filling on-the-go breakfast, or snack at any time. Freezes well (individually wrapped, microwaved for 30-45 seconds when ready to eat), and this recipe doubles easily. Play around with cheeses and different add-ins, like chicken, sausage, or veggies.

Author: myutensilcrock.com

Recipe type: Breakfast, Brunch, Snack

Serves: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 whole egg
• 2 egg whites
• 2 c cooked brown rice, short-grain (I love the texture!)
• 1.5 c cooked quinoa
• 1 c cheese, shredded (I used monterey jack)
• 1 can diced green chiles (4 oz) (mild or hot, based on your preference)
• 1 chicken breast, poached and diced small
• ½ t cumin
• ¼ t kosher salt
• ¼ t freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 400 and spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, beat the egg and egg whites. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well.
3. Distribute evenly in the 12 muffin cups {I use a large cookie scooper to portion}.
4. Bake for 25 minutes, or until set - they will sizzle a little. YUM.
5. Let cool in the pan.
6. You might want to run a plastic knife around the edges before you try to pop them out.

Notes

Once the grains and chicken are cooked, this is a really fast recipe to throw together!

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