These muffins may not win any beauty contests—they’re not the prettiest on the block and they certainly have a muffin face only a mother could love. But they are unbelievably delicious. Here’s why:
- They contain bacon. That alone is a convincing argument.
- They have Swiss cheese both inside and toasted on top. If bacon didn’t seal the deal, the Swiss will.
- They include rye flour, which adds a distinct, savory depth.
Any one of those ingredients would be enough to make me dive mouth-first into a muffin. Combined, they’re irresistible. The salty, smoky bacon, assertive Swiss cheese and the sharp, earthy rye notes are enhanced by a subtle touch of onion. The result is the ultimate deli experience packed into a single, satisfying muffin.
What pairs well with these muffins? Soup, salad, or nothing at all. They make a great companion to creamy or brothy soups and fresh dinner salads, but they also stand alone as a hearty snack or a savory breakfast. They store well in the refrigerator when wrapped, and they should freeze nicely—although we rarely have enough left to try freezing because they tend to disappear within a day.
In the name of experimentation, I tucked three muffins into the back of the refrigerator for four days to see how they held up. The reality: I ate one the next day, another on the second day, my son had an accident on the third day, and I finished the last one on day four. It was still marvelous. A highly scientific process, indeed.
One more look before we make them? Certainly.
For a printer-friendly, photo-free version of this recipe, see the original recipe source.
Bacon and Swiss Rye Muffins
Adapted from King Arthur Flour’s Ham-and-Cheese Rye Muffins
Ingredients:
- 2 cups (7 1/2 ounces) whole rye flour (also known as pumpernickel flour)
- 3/4 cup (3 1/8 ounces) high-gluten flour (also known as bread flour)
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1 1/2 cups Swiss cheese, grated and divided
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 cups (12 fluid ounces) buttermilk (or 1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar plus milk to equal 1 1/2 cups)
- 1/2 cup (4 ounces) melted unsalted butter
- 1/2 pound bacon, sliced into thin strips, cooked until crispy and drained
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Generously grease a muffin tin or line it with paper cups that have been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. The cheese can stick, so proper greasing prevents having to scrape crispy cheese from paper or pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the rye flour, high-gluten flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and granulated onion. Toss in 1 1/4 cups of the grated Swiss cheese to coat the cheese with flour—this helps keep it distributed throughout the batter.
In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the egg, buttermilk and melted butter. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients all at once and stir until just combined; do not overmix. Gently fold in the crisp bacon.
Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin. Because whole-grain muffins don’t rise as much as lighter muffins, you can fill the cups fairly full. The batter should yield about 12 muffins.
Divide the remaining 1/4 cup of Swiss cheese evenly over the tops of the muffins, then bake for about 25 minutes, or until the cheese on top is toasty and deep golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean of batter (a little oil from the cheese or bacon is fine).
Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to finish cooling. Or skip the cooling and eat them warm—no judgment here.