Beetroot Chocolate Muffins

These muffins came out so nice. Naturally sweet, fluffy, and full of flavor. As I am working on filling up my freezer again, I am having fun coming up with new muffin recipes. My latest one happened because I really wanted to make a red muffin. I thought my daughter would love that and it was right around Valentines day so it seemed fitting. While the raw dough was a beautiful crimson color, the baked product lost all of its vibrance. But not it’s wonderful flavor! Beets are not only a great natural sweetener, they are also high in many nutrients (potassium, magnesium, vitamins A,B and C, beta carotene, iron, fiber….) I like to make sure my kids eat a good variety of foods, and sneaking in some vegetables in baked goods is a great way to do it. I don’t lie to them, I tell them what is in their food. Therefor they do not grow an aversion to most things because they get to experience them in really fun ways! Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I mixed rice and buckwheat)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup carrots, shredded
• 1/2 cup beetroot, shredded
• 1/2 cup beet juice (I juiced mine fresh) *optional, I was using this mainly for color which got lost. but it also helped sweeten. If you are going to omit this, add water or milk instead and a little bit extra sweetener.
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds soaked in 1/2 cup water for 20 minutes
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
• 2 TBS of shredded coconut for garnish

Steps:

• preheat oven to *325
• mix flax seed and water and let sit while doing the rest
• in a large bowl mix first 5 ingredients
• in a blender combine all the rest but chocolate chips and coconut, and blend just enough to get everything to blend together
• combine dry and wet ingredients
• add chocolate chips
• pour in greased mini muffin tins
• top with coconut
• bake for 10-12 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean
• let cool on a rack

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Butternut Squash Muffins

I went to go visit my friends who just had a baby yesterday. As I always do when I visit friends with a newborn, I bring something to eat. Even if friends with newborns say they need nothing, don’t take their word for it. Having 3 kids myself, I know how nice it is to not have to think about food when all I want to do is cuddle with my baby, or how nice it is to get a little unexpected treat from a loving friend. So for them, I created these butternut squash muffins. I originally intended to make these with pumpkin but had some butternut that I needed to use. I have been making a version of these muffins for years. I love them as they are light and fluffy. I started making these with carrots instead of the squash and would bring them to my daughter’s preschool when it was my day to provide snack. They were always a hit. As usual, I made a big batch so I could freeze some to have on hand for weeks to come.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I mixed spelt and buckwheat)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 cups shredded butternut squash
• 3/4 cups maple syrup
• zest of 1 orange
• 3/4 cups chocolate chips ( I normally use raisins, but I felt like being a little decadent here)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 F
• in a large bowl mix all the dry ingredients
• in a blender blend all other ingredients just enough so everything is well mixed
• combine both, add chocolate chips, mix
• grease some muffin tins
• fill them up
• bake 10-12 minutes for mini muffins, about 20 minutes for bigger ones
• let cool on a rack before devouring (Just so you don’t burn your mouth)