My Morning Chocolate

Looking for a new way to use your beefsteak tomatoes?

Last week, I was. I didn’t want to have tomato sauce again, and I’m not one to eat tomato slices or wedges on sandwiches or in salads.

So my eyes perked up when I read a recipe for Savory Muffins with Goat Cheese and Tomato Jam in Beard Bites, the email newsletter of The James Beard Foundation.  Something different to do with my tomatoes! I thought.  I was nearly sold on making these muffins because of the jam.

Then I looked more closely and realized the recipe was submitted by Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant. That did it.  Making these muffins suddenly became a nostalgic activity. (I wish I hadn’t chosen to make it for a baby shower though – I learned later that women can’t eat goat cheese when they’re pregnant.)

Yes, Clinton Street Bakery holds many memories for me, even though I’ve only actually eaten there once.

When I moved to New York for the second time, I worked at a Settlement House on the Lower East Side. This is where I met Kenny, and when I had some of my best times in the city.  Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant was in the neighborhood, just a few blocks away from the Settlement House.

Like many of the restaurants owners in that area, Clinton St. was very generous, donating both their food and their time to support the adults, youth, and families who came to the Settlement House for services.

And they’re food is also delicious.  For the most part, I sampled it at work events. But when I lived in New York, there was always a long line of people outside on the weekends, waiting to eat truffle fried eggs with asparagus or brioche French toast loaded with caramelized bananas, roasted pecans, and warm maple butter for brunch.

Even though I think Clinton St. is a great restaurant, I have to admit that I didn’t love these muffins on their own.  But with the tomato jam, goat cheese, and some chives?  Delicious.

Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant

Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant has a couple of exciting events in the future.

On November 8, 2010, the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook: Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond from New York’s Favorite Neighborhood Restaurant will be released. Recipes include Clinton St.’s buttermilk biscuits and house-made scones.

And even though it’s still a few months away, readers in New York can look forward to Pancake Month in February. Then, a different pancake is served every week day. Listen to the concoctions they cooked up last year:  chocolate and blood orange pancakes with candied orange glaze and warm maple butter, and fresh coconut pancakes with passion fruit syrup and bananas.

Savory Muffins with Goat Cheese and Tomato Jam

You can get the recipe for Clinton St.’s savory muffins with goat cheese and tomato jam here.

I only made one change to the recipe:  instead of large muffins, I decided to make mini muffins.  Then I topped them with tomato jam, goat cheese, and chives to make cute pop-in-your-mouth hors d’oeuvres.

Still, I have a couple of tips for making your muffins:

The melted butter hardens when cold milk is added; Filling the muffin cups

1) Melted Butter + Cold Liquid: The recipe says to melt the butter first, and then mix in whole milk or half-and-half.  The cold liquid then makes the butter harden (see left picture).  This may have been Clinton St.’s intention, but the butter hardening stage wasn’t mentioned in the recipe.  So I returned the milk and butter to the pan to let the butter melt a second time.

2)  Cooking Time: These muffins may take longer to cook than the 20 minutes suggested in the recipe.  Even though I made mini muffins, they were just beginning to turn brown after 45 minutes.

3)  Taste for Salt and Pepper: As I said, I didn’t love these muffins on their own.  But I wonder if adding more salt and pepper to the batter would have helped.  But if you do under-season as I did, rest assured that the tomato jam and goat cheese make up for it.

Once the muffins are made, the most temperamental part of the recipe is done.  Then, the tomato jam will come together easily.

The finished savory muffins and tomato jam

To Assemble Mini Hors d’Oeuvres

To assemble your hors d’oeuvres, cut the muffins in half lengthwise, spread each half with goat cheese, and top with tomato jam and chives or scallions.