Ham and Cheese Muffins

One year. Three hundred and sixty-five days from January 8, 2018. I'm marking it now even though the official day is next week, because the year is about to turn over and I want to acknowledge it in the year it happened.

New Year's Eve on the ranch. Patrick went to bed at nine-thirty, which is what Patrick does on New Year's Eve because cows don't know about the calendar. Mom stayed up until eleven watching television in the living room, the Montana way of marking the new year: no party, no champagne, just the news and a cup of tea and acknowledgment that midnight is approximately when midnight is.

I stayed on the porch until midnight. I had my coffee thermos and my coat and the forty-below-with-wind-chill that Montana generates in late December, and I stood there and watched the stars and waited for midnight and when it came I said, to nobody and everybody: one year. I made it one year. I'm going to make it another one.

I called Gary at twelve-fifteen. He answered. He said, "Happy New Year." I said, "One year." He said, "I know. I've been counting too." I didn't know he counted for his sponsees. I said, "You count?" He said, "Always. Your year is my year too. That's how this works." I hadn't known that. I filed it under things I didn't know about what I have, which is more than I think.

Mom made black-eyed peas on New Year's Day, the same as last year, the same as she's been making since the 1970s. Ham hock and hot sauce and rice, for luck. I ate two bowls. We need whatever luck the peas provide. And we have more than we did last year. That's the truth of it.

Mom’s black-eyed peas with ham hock have meant luck in our house since before I was born, and this year I ate two bowls because we needed it and because it was good and because Gary had been counting my days right alongside me without me even knowing. If you’re carrying any of that into the new year — the gratitude, the people who count for you without being asked — these ham and cheese muffins are the kind of thing you make the morning after, when the peas are gone and the thermos is empty and you still want something warm that tastes like somebody was paying attention.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 12 muffins

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup diced cooked ham
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup whole milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives (optional)

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease a 12-cup standard muffin tin or line with paper liners.
Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper until evenly combined.
Add ham and cheese. Stir the diced ham, shredded cheddar, and chives (if using) into the dry ingredients so they’re well distributed and lightly coated in flour.
Mix wet ingredients. In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and Dijon mustard until smooth.
Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined — a few lumps are fine. Do not overmix or the muffins will be dense.
Fill and bake. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 18–22 minutes, until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool and serve. Let muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition (per serving)

Ham and Cheese Muffins — The Ham That Started the Year Right