Matt Brooks

THE WASHINGTON POST – “There is something special and sacred about mornings … when we slow down long enough to enjoy them,” Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky write in their latest cookbook, Rise & Run: Recipes, Rituals, and Runs to Fuel Your Day.

Former cross-country teammates – and my fellow alumni – from their days at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the pair knows all about morning routines and the importance of a nourishing breakfast. Flanagan is New York City Marathon champion, an Olympic silver medallist and one of the most accomplished American distance runners ever. And Kopecky is a food writer, nutrition coach and fellow marathoner.

Rise & Run, their fourth co-authored cookbook, is filled with breakfast and brunch recipes packed with whole grains, healthy fats, vegetables and fruit – plus training tips, meal planning guides and more.

The book is changing the way I approach weekday breakfasts. I’ve relied on my morning running routine more than ever during the pandemic, to get fresh air, move my body and feel restored before sitting down for long days of working from home. But rather than simply settling for a piece of toast or a mug of tea, I’m now trying to treat myself to a better breakfast by preparing the book’s apple butter oatmeal bake or one of two dozen Superhero Muffin variations – riffs on Flanagan and Kopecky’s most popular recipe from their debut book, Run Fast. Eat Slow – the night before or on the weekend.

These Apple Cheddar Muffins are a new favourite: fluffy and hearty, a little savoury, a little sweet and packed with whole grains, sweet potato and apples. They make an ideal grab-and-go or post-workout breakfast option, and it’s easy to make (and bake) ahead.

Top them with an aged or extra-sharp cheddar cheese for a bonus pop of flavour. In our testing, a mix of Honeycrisp and Granny Smith apples helped the natural sweetness of the fruit stand up to the salty, savoury flavours of the muffins.

Baked with hardy spelt flour, the muffins are a handy breakfast to fuel or refuel you for whatever the day may bring.

APPLE CHEDDAR MUFFINS
Active time: 30 mins
Total time: One hour
Servings: 12

Make Ahead: The batter can be prepared the night before baking and refrigerated in a sealed container.

Storage Notes: Leftover muffins can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days or in the freezer for up to three months. To reheat, microwave the muffins on LOW for about 30 seconds or reheat in a 300-degree oven for 10 minutes.

INGREDIENTS
Two cups spelt flour or whole-wheat flour
One-and-a-half teaspoons baking soda
Three-quarters teaspoon fine sea salt
Three large eggs
One-and-a-half cups coarsely shredded aged or extra-sharp cheddar cheese, divided
One cup coarsely grated peeled sweet potato
Half plain whole-milk yoghurt
One stick unsalted butter, melted
Two large firm, tart apples such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp, peeled and cored

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350oF. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, one cup of the cheese, the sweet potato, yoghurt and butter.

Use the large holes of a box grater to grate one of the apples. Chop the second apple into small pieces. Stir both apples into the wet ingredients. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until combined.

Use a spoon to scoop the batter into each muffin cup, filling to the brim. Sprinkle the remaining half cup of cheese on top of the muffins.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the muffins are nicely browned on top, the cheese is melted and crisped and a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Transfer the muffins to a wire rack and let cool to the touch before unmolding. Eat warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition information per serving: Calories: 225 | Total Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 77mg | Sodium: 387mg | Carbohydrates: 22g | Dietary Fibre: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Protein: 8g.

THE WASHINGTON POST – The Washington Post Food staff recently fielded questions about all things edible. Here are edited excerpts from that chat.

Q: What is/are a good substitute(s) for leeks in a recipe?

A: Leeks are relatively mild, so in most cases, thinly sliced sweet onions are best – or shallots. Depending on what you are making, you could also try other onions or scallions.
Ann Maloney

Q: What were your favourite food-cooking-related gifts received (or sent!) this year?

A: I got two large bags of homemade granola from a friend. It is delicious, not too sweet, toasty and nutty. It brought a big smile to my face. I sent spicy cheddar cheese straws, but instead of straws, we cut them into bite-size stars – like cookies – and everyone seemed to love that.
AM

A: We got a Turkish teatime giftbox from a cafe/shop we love that included not only the tea and teacups, but also tea snacks! I gave vanilla bean paste to someone who’s an avid baker and she loved it.
Kari Sonde

A: I sent a friend who is dealing with her first holiday since both her mother and live-in mother-in-law died one of those From Roy panettones, and given that I thought the one we got for ourselves was the most delicious one I had ever tasted, I’m sure that’ll be my favourite gift sent!
Joe Yonan

A: I gifted myself some Jasper Hill Farm cheese boxes – wow. I received a cake from Red Truck Bakery. Also fantastic. I sent Lou Malnati’s deep-dish pizza to friends and family with kids and folks stuck at home with covid. Those went over big.
Becky Krystal

Q: I have been making a wonderful cheesecake for a number of years except for one thing – the crust is always soggy. No matter what I do to not make the crust not soggy (longer baking time for the crust or reducing the amount of butter) it still gets soggy. The main thing with this cheesecake is that it is very voluminous. The height of it goes to the very top of the springform pan whereas commercially made cheesecakes and other recipes are half or less than half of the height. I make other, less-voluminous cheesecakes, but the crust is still soggy. I am at my wits end.

I started out by wrapping the springform pan with foil, but when I took it out of the oven, I noticed that water had collected inside the foil. I changed that up by putting the pan in a silicone barrier, so no water touches the pan at all but to no avail. Still soggy. The only reason I can think of now is that the volume of the cheesecake is pressing down on the crust and forcing liquid into the crust.

A: It does sound like maybe your springform pan is the issue? Even with the foil, you may still be getting leakage. I had this problem, and it took me getting a new pan to figure it out.

I don’t know if it would work with this recipe because you like the height, but another option is to do a very long bake at a very low temp. In that case you don’t need the water bath because the oven will not get above the temperature at which the egg proteins start to cause problems.
BK

Q: I eat local as much as possible. I wonder about fish which has traveled to more countries than I have plus the treatment of the workers/employees overseas and in the United States (US). Outside of a CSA, what options exist?

A: For fish, you’ll want to check out Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch, where you can search for a type of fish you want to eat and the most ethical producers.
KS

Q: I have a lot of small, cayenne-size dried peppers that are really hot. I don’t remember the variety I planted. Can I use them to make chilli crisp? If so, how? If not, what can I do with the peppers?

A: Dried peppers will last more than a year in your pantry, so no need to use them up right away! For a riff on chilli crisp, I would fry one or two thinly sliced shallots and four thinly sliced cloves garlic in a cup of peanut or neutral oil until barely toasted – don’t fry until browned, or the residual heat will cause them to burn – then add all at once one to three tablespoons each: fresh minced ginger, crushed dried chillies, cracked Sichuan peppercorns, chopped peanuts or cashews. Season to taste with salt.