Mini Cheese Muffins/ Cheese Puffs

Name: Mini Cheese Muffins
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 180 grams plain flour ((all-purpose/standard grade)); 120 grams cheddar cheese ((grated)); 2 teaspoons baking powder; ½ teaspoon table salt; ½ teaspoon dried oregano or sweet basil; ½ teaspoon paprika; ¼ teaspoon ground pepper; ¼ teaspoon mustard powder; 1 egg ((large)); 15 grams olive oil; 180 grams/mL milk

jump to recipe Pin

These delightful and delicious savoury mini cheese muffins are flavoured with cheddar cheese, dried herbs and a few spices. The mini size is great for mini snacks or small punches of flavour added to the lunch box.

a hand picking up a mini cheese muffin from a plate

The original recipe that this one is based on was published in the Kei Road Women's Association Centenary Recipe Book. I played around with the ratio of ingredients, changed a few, and decided these cheese puffs needed some dried herbs and spices.

Jump to:

What You Need for this Recipe
Substitutions/Variations
Making Mini Cheese Muffins
Pro Tips for this Recipe
Mini Cheese Muffins FAQ
Rate & Review!
Recipe Card
Community Comments

What You Need for this Recipe

Equipment

This recipe requires a mixing bowl, spoons, and a mini muffin or patty pan tin.

Ingredients

Cheddar Cheese or Tasty Cheese
Flour
Egg
Milk
Baking Powder
Salt
Herbs and Spices

Substitutions/Variations

The original mini cheese muffin or cheese puff recipe that this one is based on did not contain herbs or spices, only salt. If you have any picky eaters in the family or would like to omit one or more of the spices or herbs, these muffins taste just as great as plain cheese muffins.

Here in New Zealand, the basic cheddar is called Tasty cheddar which is great cheddar cheese, has a great flavour profile. Cheddar cheese can be replaced with a mature cheddar that would pump up the flavour to another level that I fully endorse. Or a milder cheese for those sensitive to strong flavours.

Whole or full-cream milk can be substituted with skim or trim milk. If using plant-based milk - I would stick to soy milk.

Olive oil can be substituted out with another natural oil.

Plain/all-purpose/standard grade flour can be substituted on a 1-to-1 basis for recipes that have ½ to 1 teaspoon of baking powder per 125 grams/1 cups of flour. If the recipe requires more than 1 teaspoon per cup, simply add the extra baking powder to the recipe to make up the difference. Self-raising/rising flours may already contain salt so this may need to be omitted from the recipe as well.

Salt is a crucial ingredient in all baked goods. I use table salt in all my recipes. One teaspoon of table salt equals 1.5 teaspoons of Morton Kosher Salt equals 2 teaspoons of Diamond Crystal.

Making Mini Cheese Muffins

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 200°C / 180°C fan assisted, and grease mini muffin or patty pan.

Step 2 - whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, herbs and spices. Add the grated cheese and stir through to coat with flour.

Step 2 - flour, baking powder, salt and spices whisked together. Cheese added and stirred through

Step 3 - Beat together the egg and olive oil with a fork and add to the dry ingredients. Pour in the milk, and mix until just combined.

Step 4 - portion out the muffin batter into the cups of the muffin tin. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire cooling rack.

cheese muffin layer divided into mini muffin pan

You can see the web story here.

Pro Tips for this Recipe

The secret to moist, tender muffins is mixing until the ingredients are just combined and making sure to take the muffins out of the oven as soon as they are baked.

Do not overmix the muffin batter, using a spatula or wooden spoon, gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined and no more!

Ovens and Air Fryers

The temperatures stated are for conventional ovens. For convection, fan-forced, fan-assisted, or air-fryers, the temperature must be reduced by 20°C/25°F.

For baking, make sure the oven is fully preheated, and that the rack is in the middle of the oven. Open the oven as little as possible. For best baking results use an oven thermometer.

Remember that all ovens work slightly differently and bake times may need to be adjusted for your specific oven.

Storage and Freezing

If you haven't eaten these muffins the moment they come out of the oven, and you have some left for storage you can place them in an airtight container at room temperature for two days. If you stick them in the fridge, you can store them for a week.

Mini Cheese Muffins FAQ

Can you leave muffins out overnight?

If you haven't eaten these muffins the moment they come out of the oven, and you have some left for storage you can place them in an airtight container at room temperature for two days.

Can you use Olive oil in muffins?

Olive oil goes
Yes - this mini cheese muffin recipe contains olive oil as the added fat which really compliments the savoury nature of the muffin.

Rate & Review!

If you made this recipe, please leave a star rating! It gives my readers and me helpful feedback. If you want more recipes, subscribe to my newsletter, and follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook!

Recipe Card