Savoury Pesto Tomato Muffins

I've been toying with the idea of doing a savoury vegan spelt muffin for a while now but couldn't find a recipe, so I decided to bite the bullet and make up my own. I'm pleased to say that they were a huge success - wheat-free and healthy yet bursting with flavour and texture.

Savoury Pesto Tomato Muffins

1 cup wholewheat spelt flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup almond meal

3/4 cup almond milk

pinch of salt & freshly ground black pepper

dried mixed herbs

pinch of onion powder

pinch of garlic granules

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tbsp flax seed mixed with 3 tbsp water

3 tbsp chopped fresh basil

handful of chopped sundried tomatoes

handful of toasted pinenuts

handful of halved cherry tomatoes

Mix the spelt flour, cornmeal and almond meal in a bowl until well mixed. Add the salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic granules, baking powder and baking soda and combine. Add the flax mixture and almond milk and stir until a smooth batter is formed but don't overmix. Stir in the fresh basil, sundried tomatoes, pinenuts and cherry tomatoes, reserving a little of each to decorate. Pour a dollop of the mixture into muffin cases and top with a halved cherry tomato and a scattering of toasted pinenuts and basil leaves. Bake in a pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Bear in mind that the cherry tomatoes do make the muffins quite moist so the skewer might not come out totally clean even when the muffins are cooked.