In my recent attempts to be fiscally responsible, I try to make coffee at home and bring my breakfast and lunch to work. Since our office becomes pretty casual in the summer, I’ve altogether adopted a more free-spirited mindset and have found it difficult to stick with my plan to be financially reasonable and resourceful.

  On Friday, I completed the work-week by eating all three meals – breakfast, lunch, and dinner – at coffee shops or restaurants, guiltlessly accomplishing the trifecta of dining out. Thanks to DiBruno Brothers, I started my day of frivolous spending on the right foot with something sweet; their fig and goat cheese muffin, perfectly baked by Metropolitan Bakery, is a great with a morning cup of coffee and, speaking from experience, pretty delicious as a lunchtime snack or after-work treat, too.

  It’s been fun allowing my palate to tour all of the dining options within a four block radius of my office but, seriously, this is the week I really buckle down. My travel mug is ready for home-brewed coffee, I’ve got Greek yogurt with all the fixin’s for breakfast, and even bought my favorite dressing as motivation to bring healthy, homemade salads for lunch. And, I’ve even baked a supply of fig and goat cheese muffins. Though slightly different than those made by Metropolitan Bakery, they are just as tasty and will certainly hold me over until I’m ready to splurge again.

Fig and Goat Cheese Muffins

Adapted from Running with Spoons

Crumbles

½ cup all-purpose flour

1½ tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

Filling

4 oz. soft goat cheese

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

Muffin batter

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

¼ cup applesauce

½ cup honey

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

6 oz. dried figs, chopped

Make the crumb topping: mix together the flour, both sugars, baking powder, and salt. Then, mix in the butter until ingredients are combined and the mixture clumps together when pressed. Set aside in the refrigerator as you prepare the muffin batter. Preheat oven to 425 and line a muffin pan with paper or silicone liners. In a small bowl, prepare the filling by combining goat cheese, honey, and orange zest. Stir until fully combined and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a medium sized bowl, combine egg, oil, applesauce, honey, and Greek yogurt. Stir until fully combined. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined (do not overmix). Fold in figs. Spoon batter into muffin tins until about halfway full. Add about one teaspoon of filling to each tin, and cover with more muffin batter. Make sure the cheese filling is fully covered. Generously top each with crumbles. Bake muffins for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges start to brown. When finished, allow to cool in pan on a wire rack.