Rosemary & Goat Cheese Corn Muffins

Is anybody else's behind getting kicked by the time change? Because mine majorly is. I mean, I like the extra hour of daylight, blah blah blah...but I don't like not being able to fall asleep and then waking up even earlier than usual. Even my run game is off. To be fair, I know I run better in the morning than at, say, 4 PM. But something was just wonky.

This. This is what I felt like after my run. Just...unset. Kind of wiggly. 

I'd rather feel like this. Together. Sweet. Buttery? Ugh, let's just shake it out and make fancied up corn muffins.

Let's be real. It's just like making cornbread except it's in muffin form. You'll need: flour, cornmeal, buttermilk, an egg, goat cheese, rosemary, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Chop the rosemary until you don't have any super big pieces left.

Add the rosemary, salt, baking powder, and baking soda to the flour and cornmeal.

Mix with a fork until everything is evenly distributed.

Crack the egg into your buttermilk and give it a vigorous whisk. I definitely used the same fork I stirred the dry ingredients with. I must mention the buttermilk I used. If you're in South Carolina, try to find milk from Hickory Hill Farm. It's seriously the best buttermilk I've ever used.

Wet goes into dry and mixing brings it all together.

Crumble in some goat cheese and gently fold it in.

Scoop the corn muffin batter into a greased muffin tin. It's a pretty thick batter, so scooping is easy.

Bake until the tops are golden and set. I mean, I don't think I've every made a cuter muffin. 

So you know how I don't believe in sweet cornbread? Well in the spirit of contradiction, I recommend finding some good preserves and smearing them over warm, buttered corn muffins. Such a good breakfast.

A drizzle of honey ain't bad either, y'all. 

Rosemary & Goat Cheese Corn Muffins (makes 12 muffins)

1 c cornmeal

1 c all-purpose flour

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tbs baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Heaping tablespoon chopped rosemary

1 c buttermilk

1 egg

1/3 c goat cheese, crumbled

• Preheat oven to 375º. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin
• In a medium bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and rosemary.
• Measure the buttermilk and crack the egg into the cup. Whisk together until combined.
• Add the buttermilk mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in the goat cheese. 
• Portion the batter into the muffin cups. Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden on top.
• When muffins are cool enough to handle, take them out of the tin and let cool. Serve warm with butter (and honey or preserves if you like it on the sweet side).

Rosemary, Goat Cheese, & Caramelized Onion Scones

 I spent this past weekend on Lake Wateree with some very special ladies. We're a hodgepodge group, somehow putting aside our Carolina-Clemson rivalry to pore over bridal magazines and plan real (and imaginary) weddings. It's totally legit, since one of us is engaged (not me obviously) and the rest of us are in serious relationships. Plus we're girls, and it's fun. P.S. I found my dream dress. This beautiful Jenny Packham number is pretty much everything I've ever wanted.

But enough about weddings. Let's talk scones. I love 'em. I've also never had one turn out as well as this one. It's my new favorite! I made them for our breakfasts and heard nothing but squeals of delight. I kid, no one squealed, but they did have very nice things to say about my foodstuffs. Let's get it rockin' k?

Pesto Pasta with Fried Egg & Goat Cheese

Y'all, Instagram is available for Android users now!  I can take pictures on my phone like the cool kids now.  If you don't know, Instagram is an app that lets you use fun filters on pictures and share with...the world.  You can follow me at sweetsaltysc, although I imagine most of the people who read this will find me via facebook anyhow.

Cranberry-Cinnamon Goat Cheese Spread

A big congratulations to my dear friends Jeremy and Emily on their precious little boy, Benjamin!  I can't wait to meet the little guy!

I'm super excited for the National Peanut Festival tomorrow.  I'mma get me a corndog and about 15 other fried foods.  Maybe not 15.  But it's a fair, so I have to indulge.  I'm pretty sure it's illegal not to.  Obvi I had to run today to even think about gettin' my fair on tomorrow.  Word.  We might even ride the Scrambler!

Goat Cheese and Pancetta Orecchiette

I hope everyone had a lovely Halloween!  I drove up to Columbia to see my Grady-bear.  He was Darth Grady, Sith Lord.  Yeah, not a pumpkin or a sweet pea or any other vegetable.  Villain from Star Wars.  Totes appropriate.  In any event, I made chili per our Halloween tradition.  Nom.

We had a few trick or treaters and started watching a couple of horror movies.  Like TrollHunter.  Oh yeah.  A Blair Witch-style movie, Norwegian of course, about these college kids finding out trolls are real.  Did you know trolls turn to stone?  Well some explode, but I don't remember specifically a story where trolls turn to stone.  Did you know the Norwegian word for troll is troll?  According to Wikipedia the Scandinavians have trolls on lock.  So there you go, all you wanted to ever hear about trolls.

This pasta is the antithesis of a trolls.  It's creamy, comforting, and incapable of becoming a statue.  It's got goat cheese, pancetta, Parmigiano, and tomatoes that come together in a risotto-style pasta to make your life complete.  Complete, people.

Browned Butter and Asparagus Pasta with a Side of Disney

So I watched Snow White today.  It's funny how as a kid you don't necessarily realize how creepy cartoons can be.  I hadn't seen the movie in probably 15 years, so I didn't remember some of the details.  Like how when Snow White is running through the forest (after the huntsman realizes he can't follow the Queen's orders and bring Snow White's freakin' heart back in a box) and appears to have an acid trip.  How else do you explain the trees coming to life and logs turning into alligators?  Then at the end the Queen, disguised as a hag, falls to her death and is crushed by a boulder.  And on top of that, the vultures who had been following her circle around where she went down, presumably to snack on her carcass.  How is this a kid's movie?!

Doesn't that get your appetite goin'?!  Well forget about creepy children's movies and focus on an easy weeknight pasta dish.