Great Breakfast Ideas: Fig & Black Pepper Muffins

I love the sweetness of figs. Fresh, they are fantastic, and dried…well I don’t think there is anything that matches the sweetness of a fig. They were not something I grew up with, except for the addiction my dad had to fig newtons. I discovered them as a young mom, trying to keep sugar out of my kids diets, and I have been addicted to them myself, ever since.

I am looking for a fig tree to plant this year. They grow well in my area and the idea of having them to pick, fresh from my own tree, is beyond appealing. We own a historic home in a nearby town that we restored and rented to some people, and that house has a fig tree that is huge, having been there for decades. About this time of year I start thinking of asking them to trade homes!

These muffins are unusual. I was trying to decide on a breakfast treat the other day and I saw the figs in the pantry. I mentally went through ingredients and decided on black pepper. The spiciness of the cracked black pepper, the sweetness of the figs, the richness of the macadamias, well they all come together in a fantastic combination of flavor and texture. I dusted the finished muffins with powdered sugar and they were gone in moments.

Fig & Black Pepper Muffins

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cups white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup milk
1 c chopped dried figs
1/2 c chopped pecans, walnuts or macadamias

Preheat oven to 400F

Mix dry ingredients, including sugar,  together.

Mix milk, melted butter and eggs.

Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture and stir just to mix.  Add figs and macadamia nuts (or nuts of choice). Spoon into silicon lined muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden and done.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes.

12 large muffins.

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