Pear, blue cheese and walnut muffins
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
Pear, blue cheese and walnut muffins
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
Jo Wheatley
Jo baked her way into our hearts by winning The Great British Bake Off in 2011. Her cookbooks, Home Baking and A Passion for Baking, are full of easy cakes and impressive desserts to share with friends and family.
Jo Wheatley
Jo baked her way into our hearts by winning The Great British Bake Off in 2011. Her cookbooks, Home Baking and A Passion for Baking, are full of easy cakes and impressive desserts to share with friends and family.
Ingredients
For the muffins:
- 250g self-raising flour
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 200g Stilton, Gorgonzola Piccante or Saint Agur
- 1 large firm pear, peeled and chopped into small pieces
- 100g walnut halves, roughly chopped
- 100g full-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 medium eggs
- 150ml whole milk
For the topping:
- 40g unsalted butter
- 60g plain flour
- 20g mature cheddar, grated
Step by step
Make up to a day ahead; store in an airtight container. The muffins can also be frozen.
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Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. First make the topping. In a bowl, rub together the butter and plain flour until you have a crumbly consistency. Add the grated cheddar and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Mix until combined, then set aside while you make the muffin batter.
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Line a 12-hole muffin tin with muffin cases. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into a large bowl. Add a pinch of salt. Break the blue cheese into bite-sized pieces and scatter into the bowl, along with the chopped pear and walnut pieces. Stir to combine. In a jug, whisk together the yogurt, eggs and milk. Pour the mixture in the jug into the dry ingredients and fold in with a large metal spoon until just combined – but don't overwork it.
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Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cases and sprinkle over
the topping. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until
well risen and golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving.TipFor light, airy muffins, be careful not to overmix the batter. Cool muffins on a wire rack, out of the tin, to stop the bottoms becoming soggy.
These are surprising little muffins – no one flavour is overpowering; there's just a harmonious blend of cheese, pear and walnuts. They're perfect for lunch with a salad, or, even better, with a spoonful of chutney. Use firm pears or your muffins will have soggy bottoms – and that’s never good!
