blueberry and coconut muffins

3/4 cup organic virgin coconut oil, or unsalted butter
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 lg egg
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup organic whole wheat flour
1/2 cup pure cane sugar
1 1/2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 pkg blueberries
1 cup organic unsweetened coconut flakes

organic wheat germ
cinnamon
pure cane sugar
organic unsweetened coconut

preheat over to 400F. grease or line muffin tin with liners.

melt coconut oil or butter over low heat. turn off heat and whisk coconut milk, egg and yolk and vanilla.

with a fork stir together flour through salt. add to milk/butter mixture in saucepan. fold in blueberries and coconut.

spoon into lined muffin tin. combine enough wheat germ, cinnamon, sugar and coconut to sprinkle on top of each muffin. bake 18 minutes.

carrot chocolate almond muffins

1 lb organic carrots, shredded
1/2 cup organic cane sugar
1/2 cup organic brown sugar
6 tbl organic flaxseed oil or you can use veg oil
1/3 cup buttermilk
3 lg eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp organic almond extract
1 cup whole wheat
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup almond meal
1/4 cup organic cocoa powder
2 tsp aluminum-free baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
sliced raw almonds

preheat oven to 350F.

combine carrots thru eggs in a large bowl.

combine flour thru salt in small bowl.

stir flour into carrot mixture. fold in chocolate chips. pour into muffins tins, sprinkles with almonds and bake 22 min.

fig and almond muffins

wow...it is hot. like breathing in fire and exhaling smoke...its hot. why am i cooking? the farmers markets have been bountiful and our fridge is overflowig in beautiful colors so i need to.
i let littlefoodie do the shopping at our sunday morning farmers market and it ended up being purple day. teeny-tiny purple fingerling potatoes that i cannot wait to turn up and roast to a salty crispness. purple, white and light orange carrots that are sweet and crisp and ready for crunchiing. fresh and dried figs so juicy and bright. and the tomatoes, all colors, all sweeteness and juicy!
this morning i made lovely almond fig muffins adapted from a cookinglight recipe. littlefoodie is in love with all things fig...dried figs only so i get to enjoy the fresh ones all alone...mineminemine.
these are light and delicious and full of fiber and goodness!

enjoy!

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup organic cane sugar
1 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cup almond milk
1 tsp organic apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup dried organic figs (your choice)
2 tbl olive oil
1 lg organic egg

topping:
3 tbl organic brown sugar
1/4 cup oats
1 tbl organic coconut oil, melted (or unsalted organic butter)
1/2 cup organic sliced almonds

preheat oven to 400F.

grease muffin tins. combine flour thru cinnamon and stir with a whisk. make a well.

in a food processor blend the amond milk thru egg. pour into the dry ingredients and fold to combine.

spoon into muffin tins.

mix up brown sugar, oats, coconut oil and almonds. sprinkle over muffins. bake for 18 min.

m is for mutigrain and muffins (multigrain banana nut muffins to be exact)

its been another long stretch in between posts. i've been finding it harder and harder to cook and bake how i used to with a growing boy pulling on my legs most of the day. littlefoodie has become enamored with the alphabet and letters....and EVERY time he sees a word he loves to tell me the sound it makes and say the first letter...then proceeds to "spell" in his own special 2 1/2 yr old way.
today m was the word and all day "m said muffin, m says muffin..evwey lettah makes a sound m says mulitgrain banana nut muffins". do you have this crazy leapfrog letter contraption/brainwasher? escape while you can. and yes, i do enjoy the constant conversation and curiosity but i'd like to get my baking on around here a little more than i have been...

i have been experimenting with different flours like organic spelt flour and organic quinoa flour and so far the results have been awesome. also, i have been using unsweetened almond milk in most of my baked goods and the results are incredible as well.
these muffins, despite being hearty and wholesome are very light and flaky. under bigfoodie dads supervision today littlefoodie jr. downed 3 and wanted more all day. these were definitley 2 thumbs up from the toddler palate and the parental palates gave it high ratings as well.

enjoy!

1 cup organic spelt flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup organic quinoa flour
1/2 cup oat bran
1/2 cup oatmeal
2 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 large organic eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup unsweetned almond milk
2 tsp pure natural vanilla extract
2 ripe banana, mashed
1 cup crushed walnuts
1/3 cup dried blueberries (preservative free)
sliced roasted almonds

preheat oven to 350F.

sift spelt, quinoa and whole wheat flour, baking powder, and baking soda into bowl. stir in oat bran, oatmeal, cinnamon and salt.

add flour mixture to mixer and beat in on low the butter and applesauce. add eggs, almond milk, vanilla, and bananas. beat just until moistened and combined.

add in walnuts and fruit.

spoon into muffin tins and top with sliced almonds. bake for 25 min.

maple and fig muffins

apparently i love to make muffins. i didn't realize this until starting this blog. littlefoodie jr. is always happy that i am once again baking ANOTHER variety of muffins.
these are delicious and he couldn't get enough but it seems like i say that with everything. littlefoodie loves food...maybe its luck. maybe i change it up so often that he is used to variety and different textures and flavors or perhaps he is just like his mom and dad and will eat just about anything in front of them...really!
so i give you yet another muffin and another recipe that is so interchangable...i think thats why i love to make muffins so much, the possibilities seem endless. i adapted this from a muffin recipe that i had written down a while ago from allrecipes.com.

enjoy!

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 tbl organic natural brown sugar
2 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup spectrum brand shortening (no transfats/crappy gross ingredients)
1/3 cup oats
handful of flaxseed meal
1 egg
3/4 cup almond milk (we use unsweetened)
1/2 cup organic grade b maple syrup
1/2 cup chopped dried figs

preheat oven to 400F. grease muffin tin.
sift flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together.
cut in shortening.
add oats.
combine egg, almond milk and maple syrup. add to dry and stir until just moistened. stir in figs.
pour into muffin tins and bake 18 minutes.

morning glory muffins

try these. they are packed with fruits and veggies, fiber and sweetness! littlefoodie couldn't get enough and cause they are loaded with carrots it was my pleasure to indulge his hollering demands.

enjoy!

2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat bran
1/2 cup organic natural brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt
3 medium sized carrots, cleaned and shredded
1 apple, shredded
1/2 cup blueberries (we always use forzen organic wild blueberries..smaller w/more flavor)
1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 can crushed pinapple, drained
3/4 cup light coconut milk
2 tbl canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
wheat germ

preheat oven to 350F. grease muffin tin.

combine flour, oat bran, baking soda, cinnamon and slat in a large bowl. add in carrot, apple, blueberries, sunflower seeds and pineapple.

combine cocobut milk, canola oil, vanilla extract and eggs. add to dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

spoon into greased muffin tins and sprinkle with wheat germ on top. bake for 25 minutes.

molasses pumpkin muffins with crystallized ginger

littlefoodie and i just made these. they are soooo hearty and yummy! after cracking them open still slightly warm drizzle a little organic pure maple syrup over them...pure heaven! i adapted this recipe once again from the wonderful epicurious.com website! the 1 tbl of flaxseed meal and 3 tbls water heated and combined replaces and egg...great for vegans! replace the milk and yogurt with soymilk and soygurt or all soy milk and its totally vegan.


enjoy!

2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat bran
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup natural brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tbl ground flaxseed
3 tbl water
1 can organic pure pumpkin
1/2 cup blackstrap or unsulphured molasses
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

heat oven to 350F. spray muffin tins w/non stick spray.

sift flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. add oat bran to dry ingredients after sifted.

whisk brown sugar and canola oil to combine. add eggs. combine flaxseed and 3 tbl water. heat for 30 seconds in microwave. add to wet. add pumpkin, molasses, buttermilk and ginger.

add flour and sitr until just combined.

spoon into muffins tins and bake 25-30 mins.

orange oatmeal muffins and healed tibia

things have been busy over here with x-mas right around the corner. littlefoodie jr. had his cast removed monday. 5 days early but neccessary...see, there was a little incident with poop and believe me, no body part was spared, especially every crevace of his bright orange cast...yay!
so with the cast off i am hoping littlefoodie will return to normal since i believe that the cast held some sort of evil and was posessing him. he is happy to be free and his treat for being a brave boy was a rockin pair of bright red ruby slippers..just like dorothy. we are very obsessed with the wizard of oz over here at the moment...i love my boy for his imagination and little obsessions!!!!


so these muffins were delicious. i used a lavender sugar that i made not too long ago in place of regular cane sugar. littlefoodie wasnt too fond of the caramelized orange slices on the bottom but once i removed them he was fine and scarfing them down. sunday morning i made a wonderful recipe posted on tartlette (on the side in my links...i cannot get links to show up in my posts at the moment) called coconut honey...i canned a bunch and gave away most and saved a couple for us. i used that coconut honey in the bottom of the muffin tins instead of regular honey...resulting in yumminess.

enjoy!

2 oranges, zested and set aside
1/4 cup honey or coconut honey
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cooked oatmeal
1 tbl baking powder
1 tsp of cardamom
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup pure cane sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup half and half or whole milk
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

400F.
zest oranges and reserve zest. remove outside, pith and all of oranges and slice about 1/4 in thick..enough to get 12 slices.

grease muffin pans. add about 1 tsp of honey to bottom of each muffin cup and lay an orange slice down.

mix flour, oatmeal, baking powder, spices and salt.

whisk together eggs, milk and butter. add to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. pour into muffin tins and bake about 15 min. remove and eat!

spiced eggnog and cranberry muffins

things have been a bit slow in the kitchen of casa de littlefoodies. littlefoodie jr.s broken leg is kicking our butt...he is, to put it sweetly, ANNOYING. we know he is frustrated and all that but hey, what about the mama and the papa? good news is that monday is the 3rd week and that means he gets half of his cast off.
i have been explaining to him how its going to work and that its only half of the cast to which he replies "i no want half of my green sticker off...i want 2 parts of it off." somebody is going to be getting the smackdown come 1:45 monday afternoon and thats going to be me..(since littlefoodie daddy is being held captive and work and can't come.)
last week we visited gus fav grandparents and mommy got a little break time. but now we are back and ready to have 19237120 lbs and start our month of cooking!

these muffins are delicious. not low calorie though but so tasty anyway. if you're not a fan of eggnog go ahead and replace it with buttermilk only reduce it by 1/4 cup. the eggnog flavor is not too prominent just a subtle flavoring. little foodie loved them but camera battery is out so pics will come later!

enjoy!

1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp ground ginger
pinch of cloves and nutmeg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups eggnog
1 egg
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
wheat germ

preheat oven to 400F. grease muffin tins.

combine flour thru nutmeg.

combine wet ingredients and whisk to combine. add to dry and mix until moist. fold in cranberries. batter will be thick.

fill tins with batter and sprinkle tops with wheat germ.

bake 20 min.