Persimmon Apple Muffins

The smell filling the house this morning is autumnally divine 🙂 The combination of the sweet persimmon puree, mixed with the subtle spice flavor from the cinnamon, nutmeg and coriander create a wonderful home for the soft chunks of apples that easily melts in your mouth. Add to that the occasional date bite surprise and you got yourself a beautiful fall muffin treat, healthy enough for breakfast, sweet enough for dessert.

I just thawed my last bag of muffins this week, so I had been pondering what muffin flavor I was going to start with to work on filling up my freezer again. While I had a few other flavors in mind, when I looked at my fruit rack this morning and saw the abundance of ripe persimmons, there was no doubt that was going to be the flavor of the week 🙂

For this recipe, either persimmons will work, but I used the fuyu, the small squatty ones that can be eaten hard. I had some soft ones so I used those. If you have some super ripe hachiya, those will work great as well, but just make sure they are super ripe. These are the tear drop larger ones. Those are pretty much inedible unless they are fully soft to the point of almost falling appart in your hand. I learned this the very hands on way. 

While I am typing this, it is quiet in the house as the kids are busy eating all the muffins that are barely cool enough to grab, but I made sure to put a large batch in a box out of reach. It makes me happy that my kids love my cooking this much, yet at the same time, it’s hard to not have them eat all the baked goods in one day!

 

 

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I mixed spelt, rice and teff. Don’t use spelt if gluten free)
• 1 cup small oats (regular works fine)\
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground coriander
• 3/4 cup coconut sugar
• 4 large dates chopped really small (I used medjool because I love how juicy and thick they are)
• 2 ripe persimmons, pureed
• 1 small apple, chopped small
• 1 cup water (or more if you find your dough too dry depending on what flour you use)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds soaked in 1/2 cup water

 

Steps:

• preheat oven to 350*F
• grind your flax seeds and put them in a small bowl in water, set aside
• mix first 9 ingredients in a large bowl
• blend the persimmons in order to make a puree
• add all the remaining (wet) ingredients in another bowl and mix well
• combine wet and dry ingredients
• grease muffin tins
• pour dough in tins and bake for about 10-12 minutes for mini muffins, probably around 18 minutes for larger ones, or until a toothpick comes out clean
• let cool in pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to cooling racks
• eat at will or store out of sight so you are not tempted to eat at will!!

 

Note this made about 56 mini muffins. I like to make mini muffins because it’s easier for the kids to handle and good to transport. Also, I make this many because I like to freeze some for later use so I can have an easy snack to grab, or a quick breakfast on the go.

 

 

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Banana Carrot Muffins

Simple and delicious. Nutritious and filling, these are the perfect little muffin to put in my kids snack bag, or as a quick grab-and-go breakfast. We just had our first week of school here and you know what that means?? Muffin time!! I find muffins to be so convenient during the school year as I can pack them with all kinds of nutritious foods and they come conveniently shaped in a ball that fits in all my kids hands! Making them an ideal food. And whether I choose to make them savory or sweet, I usually find a way to sneak in some veggies in there.

For my little 2nd graders first week I decided to make these simple-in-flavor banana carrot muffins. I made a huge batch and froze about 2 dozen for an easy last minute snack in the weeks to come, ad still had enough to feed all my kids all week.

One big baking batch saves me time in the long run.

I hope you try these and enjoy them as much as we did!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I mixed teff, rice and coconut)
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4tsp nutmeg, (I would’ve used cinnamon but ran out)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup packed shredded carrots
• 1 cup packed mashed bananas
• 3/4 maple syrup
• 1 cup milk (I used almond
• 3 TBS ground flax soaked in 6 TBS water (flax “egg”)

Steps:

• preheat oven to 350*F
• soak the flax seeds in water
• In a large bowl combine the first 3 ingredients
• in a blender combine all the other ingredients and blend just enough to mix everything together
• combine dry and wet ingredients
• grease some mini muffin tins with coconut oil and fill them up
• bake for about 10 minutes for mini muffins, and about 18 minutes for larger muffins
• let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack

Tropical Muffins

Pineapple. Coconut. Orange. It’s like pinacolada in muffin form!! When my husband came home with a pineapple earlier this week, I knew I wanted to make muffins with it. The thought of bitting into a baked good and finding a nice piece of sweet pineapple is what got my creative juices flowing.

My good friend just had her second baby, and as good friends do, I brought her some food. Among all the goodies I brought her, were a version of these muffins. The first version actually. Although I wasn’t a fan of the way the first batch came out, I still delivered them to her because I didn’t have time to bake another batch that day and I really wanted to provide her with something more than just dinner. So she got my test run muffins (Sorry Paige!!). The very next morning I woke up and decided to try again because I just wasn’t satisfied with how they came out. After changing the recipe a bit, I am much happier with this version 🙂 The only thing I would change is adding more fresh pineapple.

Ingredients:

Dry:

• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1 1/2 cups flour (I used buckwheat)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp tumeric (optional)
• 1 cup oats (I used small)
• 1 cup toasted coconut shreds
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar

Wet:

• 1 cup orange juice (I used fresh pressed)
• 1 TBS orange zest
• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds in 1/2 cup water
• 2 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 1 TBS vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple

• 1/4 cup coconut pieces to top muffins

Steps:

• preheat oven to 350*F
• in a smal bowl combine ground flax with water, stir and let sit
• in a skillet, on medium heat, toast the coconut shreds. Stirring constantly. Pay close attention to this as the coconut goes from not toasted to brunt really fast. This should tie just a couple minutes.
• in a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients, coconut included
• in a blender combine all the wet ingredients, flax seeds included
• barely blend, just enough to mix the ingredients and start breaking down the pineapple. If you have settings on your blender, I would put it on low. If you don’t you could do this in the food processor and pulse a few times.
• put in greased muffin tins, top with coconut pieces and bake about 10 minutes for mini muffins and 20 minutes for larger muffins.

Blueberry Corn Oatmeal Bites

While snuggling in bed this morning, the kids were putting in their breakfast requests. My daughter said she wanted corn muffins. I responded I don’t have corn flour. She says: “But we have the frozen corn! My son:”I don’t want corn muffins Tika! I want oatmeal wif boobewies!” In order to make them  both happy, we came up with these as a solution. They were so easy to make, my daughter did most of the work. As they were baking i thought “Great, here’s school snack for the next few days!”.

Well as I’m typing this, there are barely a quarter of them left. I doubt there will be any left by the end of the morning. I guess the kids love them!!

You can get as creative as you want with the flavors here. Raisins? Cranberries? Shredded coconut? The possibilities are endless. And these are super quick to make I actually could make these before school one morning.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups small oats
• 1 large ripe banana
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup frozen corn

I would have added 2 TBS of honey but we are out. The kids don’t seem to mind but if you are used to having a sweetener breakfast, i would suggest you add a couple TBS of sweetener as these are just slightly sweet.

Steps:

• preheat oven to 350*F
• put all ingredients but frozen fruit in a bowl and have your kids mash it all together with their hands!
• add the frozen fruit and continue mashing until well combined
• grease mini muffin tins with coconut oil
• fill them up pressing them down so they keep there shape
• bake for 10 minutes
• cool and enjoy!

Sneaky Blood Orange Cacao Muffins

Because blood orange cacao muffins wouldn’t be good enough as it is that I had to make them sneaky. How? By adding a large cup of fresh kale to the mix. Seriously, if you didn’t see me baking these, you would have no idea that there was a healthy serving of greens in there. The kids were with me, so they saw, but it didn’t stop them from chowing down once they were out of the oven!

A a kid I did not like fruit in my chocolate. It was a flavor/texture thing. And I did not like nuts in my chocolate either. It was a waste-of-space thing. A big almond in my chocolate bar meant less chocolate. Ummm no thanks. My how times have changed!! I love chocolate so much I will eat it with almost anything. That is why it is so fun for me to come up with all kids of creations. Wether or not I am original in my pairings, it is still a fun process 🙂

I think blood oranges have a natural raspberry flare to them. Somewhat sweet, somewhat tangy. So last minute, once the batter was all ready to go into the muffin tins, I decided to accentuate that flavor by adding whole raspberries to the mix. A total win.

I won’t even lie and tell you that when my son didn’t feel like eating his salad for dinner, I justified not asking him to by saying “He had 3 muffins today, that’s a decent amount of greens.” Ha! Ninja parenting makes my life easier!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour ( I mixed garbanzo and buckwheat)
• 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup cacao powder, depending on how chocolatey you like things
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds soaked in 1/2 cup water for 10-20 minutes
• 1 cup blood orange juice
• 1 TBS blood orange zest
• 1/2 coconut oil
• 1 1/2 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup chopped fresh kale
• 1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen then thawed

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325*F
• grind flax seeds in coffee grinder if needed and soak in water
• combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl
• combine the rest of the ingredients minus the raspberries, in a blender
• blend until the kale is well broken down
• mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients
• slowly fold in raspberries as to not have them break down too much
• grease your muffin tins
• bake for 10-12 minutes for mini muffins or probably around 18-20 minutes for regular size muffins

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

Apple Carrot Muffins

Just the right amount of sweet thanks to the honey and fruit, these little muffins are sure to give you plenty of energy without the nasty refined sugar crash that can sometimes come from baked goods.

We finally ran out of all the muffins I had made over the fall and winter and stored for later use. Which means it’s time to get baking again! I love muffins. Not to eat myself but to have on hand for my kids. They can be so nutritious as well as versatile.

And if you make a big enough batch, they can be a handy quick snack.

These muffins are packed with vitamins and fiber from the carrots and apples, as well as from the flax seeds. Those also provide a good dose of omega 3’s essential fatty acids (the good kind of fat that helps with cholesterol). The almond base gives  this muffins a delicious flavor while keeping it suitable for gluten intolerant people. And the honey. Well that kind of sweetener just always makes my kids happy 🙂

I am hoping to put some away in the freezer, but at the rate my family is eating them, I better hurry up!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup almond meal or almond flour
• 1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup small oats (regular oats work fine)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds soaked for 10 minutes in 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1 cup shredded apple
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup honey

Steps:

• preheat oven to 375*F (190*C)
• soak the flax seeds in water
• in a large mixing bowl combine first 6 ingredients and mix
• in a blender combine remaining ingredients
• pour the wet ingredients in the flour mixture and mix
• grease some mini muffin tins and put dough in them
• bake for about 10 minutes for mini muffins, around 18-20 minutes for larger ones

This recipe made about 54 mini muffins. I think it will make about 16 large ones.

 

Francais:

• 1.5 cups de farine d’amandes (340 grammes)
• 1.5 cups de farine de sarasin
• 2 cuillere a caffee de bicarbonate de soude
• 1 cup de flocons d’avoine (225 grammes)
• 1 cuillere a caffee de canelle
• 1/4 cup (6o gr) de graines de lin moulues trempees dans 1/2 cup (125 ml) d’eau pendant 10 minutes, bien remuer 
• 1/2 cup de compote de pommes (115gr)
• 1 cup carrotes rapees (225 gr)
• 1 cup pommes rapees
• 1/4 cup d’huile de noix de coco fondue (65ml)
• 1/2 cup de miel  

 

Pizza Muffins

Yes, you read that right, Pizza Muffins, whaaa?!?!? I personally had never had a pizza muffin until today so I was pretty satisfied with myself for creating that 🙂

It is a bit of a different direction from what I normally make but I had my daughter in mind and wanted to make her something I knew she would devour for her school lunch. She loves pizza, but it is not ideal to transport nor is it as good cold (I know, I know, some would argue this). In comes the Pizza Muffin. It definitely tastes like a muffin, all doughy and fluffy and stuff, but the flavors aren’t far from a pizza. I am happy with how they turned out and my family agrees, which is what matters most.

As usual, I froze some to have on hand for future use when I am in need of a quick lunch.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I used spelt)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 cup cooked veggies (I used mushrooms and kale) I recommend using cooked veggies in order to minimize the water content, therefor keeping the integrity of the muffin while baking.
• 1 1/2 cups milk (I used coconut)
• 1 egg
• 1 cup shredded organic cheese
• 1 TBS fresh oregano

Steps:

• preheat the oven to 375 F
• sauté your veggies in a pan until cooked
• mix first 4 ingredients in a large bowl
• in a smaller bowl mix the remaining ingredients
• combine all
• oil some large muffin tins
• fill them up 3/4 of the way
• Sprinkle some cheese on top if you like
• bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean
• cool on a rack
• Enjoy!!

This made 18 large muffins.

Ingredients

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)

Zucchini Banana Muffins

Every week, for 5 days, I send my daughter off to school with a snack and a lunch. That’s a lot of snacks and a lot of lunches, week after week. For that reason, at times I like to make a huge batch of muffins and freeze a bunch so that I can easily grab a snack last minute that will be nutritious and exciting for her. She can get bored of the dried fruit mixes and sliced apples.

This recipe is simple in taste, no processed sugars therefor not overly sweet and, in my opinion, nutritious and healthy so that she can stay full longer and have good fuel for her body. Store bought muffins (or coffee shop muffins), are glorified cupcakes without the frosting. In terms of sugar content, they are pretty much equally high. When made well, muffins can be an easy, quick nutritious breakfast/snack.

The kids loved these, I had to hurry and freeze a few batches before they ate them all. Which to me is a win. Giving them something they love while maintaining my nutritional integrity is important to me.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (I used spelt and buckwheat here)
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 2 large ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup pitted dates ( I use medjool because they are so decadent and sweet and soft)
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp liquid vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 F
• In a large bowl mix together first 6 ingredients
• In a food processor combine the rest, except for zucchini
• Add wet mixture to the bowl, add zucchini, mix well
• Oil some muffin tins, fill them up
• Bake for about 10 minutes for mini muffins, probably 20-25 minutes for large muffins
• I made 72 mini muffins with this recipe!!!