Vegan Morning Glory Muffins

To me, nothing sounds more perfect than spending a weekend morning at a local cafe and dining on a delicious, hearty muffin alongside a piping hot latte.

But what can I say, I’m a dreamer. And because I live in a fairytale baking land, I make muffins all day long with a wooden spoon in my hand and a flour-coated apron as my dress. And although my muffins don’t grant me magical powers, they’re such a healthy, succulent snack that I can’t help but try new recipes when they come along, like this one.

Usually when I come across a recipe, if it has more than 10 ingredients I bail. Call me discriminant. I prefer minimalist. I just don’t like complicated things. I like to keep my baking as simple and healthy as possible.

If it has more than 1/2 a stick of butter or 1 cup of sugar, the deal’s off. Unless, of course, I can health-ify it, which is what I did with this one. You see all this fruit and vegetable goodness below? Would you like it to be in your muffin? I can do that for you. Yes, yes I can. Come now, I’ll show you how.

I modified this recipe quite a bit and amped up the fruit and veggie count. And guess what? They still turned out amazingly delicious. I must say, I’m proud of these little guys – in all their vegan glory.

Vegan Morning Glory Muffins

INGREDIENTS
3 flax eggs [3 T flaxseed meal + 6.5 T water]
1/2 c applesauce
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 T vanilla extract
1 banana, mashed
1/3 to 1/2 c brown sugar

2 c flour *
1 T ground cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

2 carrots, grated
1 apple, peeled & grated
1/3 c raisins [optional]
2 T chopped pecans

* in any combination. I used 1 c whole wheat, 1/2 c all purpose & 1/4 c coconut flour, which is very absorbent.

METHOD
Preheat oven to 375 F. Prepare muffin tins with paper liners.
In a medium bowl whisk flax eggs, applesauce, banana, oil, brown sugar and vanilla.
In a large bowl, stir together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir the carrots, apples, raisins, walnuts and coconut into the flour mixture to coat.
Combine both mixtures in the larger bowl. If too dry, add a splash of almond  or soy milk.
Spoon into the muffin tins, filling totally full [or 3/4 if you prefer a smaller portion].
Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until golden and a knife comes out clean.

Makes about 20 muffins.

20 of these little guys! Weeeeeeee!

I sampled one fresh out of the oven and was thoroughly pleased. And I took another obligatory ‘sample’ the next morning to make sure I wasn’t mistaken. I wasn’t.

The texture is moist and hearty, and the flavor is reminiscent of carrot cake. But don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a muffin for pansies. It’s a muffin for men. Men, and fiber-loving, butt-kicking women alike. Any takers?

So far I’ve only tried these plain and they were magnifique. But warming them up with a little butter and drizzle of honey sounds like a good idea to me. Or if you’re going the ‘defeat the whole health purpose’ route, top it with some cream cheese frosting. That’ll mess the whole thing up in no time! [thumbs up!]

But really, any way you slice it these are great. With tons of sweet carrot, apple and raisin flavor and a little crunch from the pecans, they sing fall with a hearty punch. I’ve already popped them in my freezer to grab as an on-the-go snack, which means I’ll likely be eating them morning, noon and night. Shhhhhhh.

What? Thanksgiving breakfast option? Who said that? Oh yeah, it was me. I’m plugging my own muffins. Get the hint?

Enjoy!