By now, you’ve probably figured out that I’m a big fan of THE MUFFIN. Muffins are just SO EASY and always YUMMY. If they’re made nutritiously, they’re like CAKE without the fat and calories.

The muffins I’m sharing with you are adapted from one of my foodie favourite books, Enlightened Eating, by Caroline Marie Dupont, a very talented energetic healer, and nutrition and meditation expert whom I’ve had the pleasure of working with — she did some energy work on me, and it was UNBELIEVABLE.

Anyway, I was in a bit of a hurry, but I REALLY wanted to make the kids something homemade and nutritious to munch on because, as you know, I’ve been feeling down about my cooking lately…. I opened the pantry for an easy organic muffin mix that I THOUGHT I bought. But, alas, there was none in the pantry. And, then I remembered I never actually bought it; I’d put it back on the shelf last minute, SWEARING that I’d bake muffins from SCRATCH. No copping out this time.

So, I went through ALL my cookbooks, as I do EVERY time I go to bake muffins, and I found a surprisingly EASY one, with very few ingredients, AND VEGAN. Sweet!

You know, vegan muffins are not just good for vegans: no eggs = almost NO MESS. So, without further ado, I give you….

ENLIGHTENED APPLESAUCE MUFFINS!

INGREDIENTS
(Serves 12)

1/2 soy milk (I like the YU soymilk with omega 3s in it; you can substitute ANY kind of milk, including dairy for this, though)
1 cup applesauce
3 tbsp. olive oil or butter
1/3 cup maple syrup or honey
1 tbsp. ground flax seed (I used about 3 Tbs)*
2 cups whole wheat or spelt flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 - 2 tbsp lemon zest (I didn’t have lemons, so I left this out)
1 cup raisins or currants

*Always grind your flax seeds right before using them. I use a really small coffee grinder. So quick and easy.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly oil the muffin tin. Caroline suggests using coconut oil. I used an organic canola oil spray that I have — not the ideal choice, but I use so little….

2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the wet ingredients and ground flax seeds.

3. In another larger bowl, mix the dry ingredients and then fold in the wet ingredients.

4. Add the raisins and stir until everything’s mixed and you get a nice moist batter (never over-stir when baking).

5. Spoon the batter into the muffin tin.

6. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the centre of the muffin comes out clean.

7. Let the muffins cool for 5-10 minutes, and remove them from the tin.

Muffins freeze really well. So, you can put some in an air-tight container to freeze. This will prevent you from eating them all at once, too……. ENJOY!

I’ve been trying to do REALLY FUN things with the monkeys as much as possible lately. I realized that, if I’m going to be a stay-at-home-mom, it has to be about US — not JUST about them. Because if it’s JUST about them, NOBODY is benefiting. The happier mama is, the happier EVERYONE is.

So, we were lazing around on Sunday, and I decided we should BAKE MUFFINS! I could teach the monkey a little something about baking, AND we could all enjoy a HEALTHY alternative to the Halloween treats still sitting on our kitchen counter….

The recipe for these muffins was adapted from one of my favourite cookbooks right now, Nutrilicious: Food for Thought and Whole Health. I didn’t have any syrup, so I used my favourite natural sugar alternative, Agave Nectar, instead (which, BONUS, is lower on the glycemic index). I also felt the dough turned out a little dry, so I added more rice milk. The rest is pretty close to the original recipe. OH! Except for one more thing. The author calls for ALLSPICE. I would strongly advise using cinnamon instead. I have no idea why she chose allspice. Blech!

Other than the allspice, the muffins turned out GREAT! Nice and dense and filling and extra sweet because of the raisins…. AND, they’re super HEALTHY: high in fiber and a source of omega 3’s, baby! AND, NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THESE MUFFINS…. Love….

And, by the way, even though it says they’re optional? The SUNFLOWER SEEDS AS GARNISH is a must! They add both a satisfying crunch and necessary nuttiness!

INGREDIENTS
(Makes 12 yummy muffins)

2 tbsp ground flax seeds (buy them whole and grind them with a coffee grinder before use)
1/4 cup unrefined vegetable oil (I use Canola)
1/4 cup pure maple syrup OR agave nectar
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup rice milk (or, I would think, any milk alternative)
1 cup whole spelt or whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp ground allspice cinnamon
1 cup oat bran
1/2 cup organic raisins
Sunflower seeds for garnish, NOT OPTIONAL

INSTRUCTIONS

1) Preheat oven to 375º F.

2) Grease muffin tin so muffins don’t stick, and set aside.

3) In medium-sized bowl, pour in the oil, syrup/agave nectar, bananas and rice milk. And, STIR IT UP!

4) In larger bowl, pour in the ground flax, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, oat bran, and raisins. And, MIX it up!

5) Pour the liquid mix over the dry mix just until the two are blended.

6) Fill the muffin tins with the mix.

7) Sprinkle the muffins with sunflower seeds.

8) Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick (or knife) poked into the centre of the muffin comes out clean.

The author of Nutrilicious, Edith Rothschild, says these freeze really well! So, place a bunch on the kitchen counter (covered if storing for more than a day), and pack the other bunch in an airtight container and freeze.

I am on a HEALTH. KICK. And, I feel great. In fact, I haven’t felt THIS good in a LONG time. And, it didn’t take long at all.

For a complete overview of the plan I’m on, check Cheaty Monkey. I designed it myself! There’s something to be said for putting the diet books DOWN and listening to your own body.

By far, the best thing I ever did — I HAVE TO SAY — is ditching the dairy. In fact, I attribute how great I’m feeling to that alone. I feel lighter, less congested, clearer-headed. And, it’s because I gave up dairy, FASHIZZLE. And, I was ADDICTED to cheese. I’d have cheese on EVERYTHING. Peanut butter and cheese on a bagel was, like, MY FAVOURITE THING! Now, though, not an INCH of a craving.

One thing I thought I’d really miss is parmesan cheese. BUT, in the following pasta recipe, I used a FAKE parmesan cheese (with no casein — very important to look out for that in fake dairy products), and it did the job. It wasn’t PERFECT, but it satisfied my craving for the texture and saltiness of parmesan.

CHECK IT!

TASTY TOFU BASIL PASTA

INGREDIENTS
(serves 4-6)

1 block (organic) tofu, cubed
4 cups cooked brown rice pasta
Bunch Portobello Mushrooms (optional)
Bunch Spinach (optional)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped finely
1 tbsp canola Oil
1 tbsp olive Oil
Basil (generous amount)
Pepper (to taste)
Fake Parmesan Cheese (to taste)
Pine nuts (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Get your pasta cooking…. When pasta is halfway done, toss in portobello mushrooms. Drain them with the pasta.
2. Meanwhile, heat canola oil — MEDIUM HEAT (never heat oil on high) — in medium-sized pan. Lovingly…, throw in the garlic and onion, and saute until softened.
3. Throw in the tofu, flipping it over and over gently, letting each side brown.
4. Sprinkle with TONS of basil and a little bit of pepper. TONS of basil.
5. Mix pasta and tofu together.
6. Drizzle with Olive Oil. Add MORE basil — you really can’t have too much.
7. Pour into dishes. Sprinkle fake parmesan on top, and PINE NUTS. And, ENJOY!

Serve with a nice raw green salad with flax seed oil dressing (see next post!).

By the way, this dish is of course great WITHOUT tofu, as well. The pine nuts and the portobello mushrooms provide ample protein.

Let us know how YOU like it!

xo Haley-O