Becoming the Muffin Woman

Among my family members, there is only one name we are permitted to call each other – monster! Miranda is the potato chip monster. Elijah is the sweets monster. Nick is the cookie monster. No seriously, he can eat an entire pack of Chips Ahoy by himself and not gain a pound – mutter, mutter! I’m the sweet bread monster. I bake between 1-3 times a week, because I ALWAYS crave a sweet after-dinner snack. I’ve convinced myself that having a homemade baked good handy keeps me out of trouble. Or does it? Anyway, this past fall, I went on a baking spree, making loaf after loaf of banana bread, apple bread and pumpkin bread. Then came the muffin series – blueberry, banana and plain. Recently, I set out to make oatmeal muffins using the same basic muffin recipe from my Better Home and Gardens New Cookbook 12th edition that I purchased back in 2003. Despite the fact that I have several cookbooks and have access to scores of recipes online, that cookbook is my go-to cookbook. Since becoming vegan, I’ve been modifying recipes from it so I can continue to enjoy my favorite sweet breads.

As I mentioned earlier, I planned to use the basic muffin recipe, make it vegan and add oatmeal to it. I changed the recipe quite a bit: used spelt flour instead of all-purpose, used coconut milk instead of cows’ milk, used pink Himalayan sea salt instead of table salt, aquafaba instead of an egg, and then I decided to substitute the cooking oil with coconut oil. I’ve used nonorganic coconut oil before, but the organic form smells just like coconut as soon as you take the lid off the jar. Oh, my goodness! The smell nearly did me in! It persuaded me to add coconut flakes to my muffins!

So I ended up basically creating a recipe for Coconut-Oatmeal Muffins! Here’s how.

I combined spelt flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.

I added old-fashioned oatmeal and . . .

the coconut flakes that were calling my name!

Then I made a well in the center for the wet ingredients.

In a separate bowl, I began combining the wet ingredients, starting with coconut milk and aquafaba as a substitute for the egg.

Coconut oil is a solid at room temperature so I . . .

had to melt it for a few seconds in the microwave before adding to the wet mixture.

You have to work quickly once the coconut oil hits the cold milk, because the coconut oil starts transforming back into a solid. I didn’t work quickly enough and had to put the entire wet mixture in the microwave for a few seconds to melt the coconut oil, so I could add it all to the dry mixture.

I added the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stirred slowly until mixed in order to reduce the possibility of adding too much air to batter and ending up with muffins that have pointy tops instead of rounded ones. A very short Better Homes and Gardens video offer tips for baking muffins that have rounded tops.

After greasing your muffin cups or using liners, fill 2/3 of each cup with the batter.

They look like then when they’re done and . . .

like this if you dust them with powdered sugar and . . .

like this is you make a strawberry compote for them!

“Delicious!” was Elijah’s response when he tasted them. Preparing food that my family enjoys is one of the simple pleasures that I have an opportunity to experience with every meal I make!

Coconut-Oatmeal Muffins

Yields 12 muffins

Ingredients

1/3 cups spelt flour
3/4 cup rolled oats (I used old-fashioned this time but will used rolled the next).
1/3 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup sugar (I’m going to make them using coconut sugar soon).
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt (I used pink Himalayan sea salt).
3 tablespoons aquafaba
1 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup melted coconut oil

Instructions

1. Combine the dry ingredients, including the oats and coconut, and create a well in the center for the wet ingredients.
2. Combine the wet ingredients – coconut milk, aquafaba and melted coconut oil. Remember, the coconut oil will attempt to return to a solid once it hits the cold milk, so you might have to heat the wet mixture in the microwave for a few seconds.
3. Pour the wet mixture into the well of the dry ingredients, and gently fold the batter to increase your chances of ending up with rounded-top muffins instead of pointy-top muffins.
4. Fill each greased or lined muffin cup 2/3 full.
5. Bake at 350 for 18 minutes.

There are numerous recipes online for strawberry compote. I simply took about 7 strawberries, hulled them and added 2 tablespoons of strawberry preserves to a sauce pan and cooked on medium heat for about 7 minutes. You can use any flavor of preserves or jam to make your compote

Enjoy!

P.S. I replace other oils with coconut oil in recipes from time to time. I know . . . I know, it contains saturated fat, but there are SO many health benefits of using coconut oil, that I feel the health benefits outweigh the saturated fat issue. I’m not a physician, so don’t take my word for it, but here’s Dr. Oz’s words on it. Here’s another short video discussing the health benefits of using coconut oil.