Basic Vegan Muffins

I recently found a great vegan blog that has a ton of baked goods. I'm not vegan, nor do I intend to become vegan anytime soon, but I do like the idea of cutting out some animal products. And hey, if it tastes good, why not?!

I made these brownies this weekend, though I admit, not vegan. Using margarine sounds kind of gross, so I instead used butter. The pumpkin gives them a nice fudginess that I love, though there is a slightly strange taste that goes along with it.

My other recipe is for vegan muffins and really, they are just as good as "normal" muffins.

Basic Vegan Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 3 medium apples, peeled and shredded
• 1- 1/4 cups oat milk
• ¼ cup oil
• 1 citrus fruit (lemon or orange), zested and juiced
• ½ cup dried fruits
• ½ cup walnuts, chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two muffin tins (I used one regular and one mini).
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, combine shredded carrot, shredded apple and milk and mix until well-combined. Add oil, citrus zest and juice.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in two batches until just combined. Fold in dried fruit and chopped walnuts.
4. Fill muffin tins 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
5. Turn out onto a rack to fully cool.

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Kabocha Muffins

Kabocha = Japanese pumpkin

It's one of my favorite Japanese dishes: delicious, tender, sweet pumpkin simmered in dashi stock with some sugar and perhaps some soy thrown in. I always had big portions of the stuff at "home" in Japan. And let's not forget the oh so delicious tempura fried variety over a bowl of rice. Kabocha is still my favorite part in ten-don and I will gladly trade it for my shrimp. Yum.

I found some kabocha seeds at a local Japanese grocery store, planted them, and now have several pumpkins to consume. So far I've gone through one (as they are supposed to "ripen" for a few months after harvesting) and tried a few recipes.

You can find kabocha at your local grocery store in the fall. If it's not available, you can substitute any kind of cooked fall squash with equally tasty results.

Kabocha Muffins

Ingredients

• 55g butter, softened
• 55g brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 180g kabocha, cooked and mashed
• 110g buttermilk
• 110g whole wheat pastry flour
• 15g baking powder

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line or grease a muffin tin and set aside.
2. In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Add in the egg and pumpkin and stir until combined. Stir in the buttermilk.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour and baking powder, then fold into the wet ingredients until just blended.
4. Scoop batter into muffin tin about 2/3 of the way up. Bake for 17 minutes until golden and cooked through.
5. Turn out onto a rack to cool.

Makes 12 muffins.

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blueberry muffin throwdown

What's a blueberry muffin throwdown, you ask. It is inspired by Bobby Flay's show, Throwdown, where he studies someone's signature dish, perfects it, then shows up to challenge them in a competition. I'm taking two blueberry muffin recipes, comparing them side by side, and selecting a winner based on which embodies the spirit, if you will, of a blueberry muffin. And may the best recipe prevail.

A. Blueberry Muffins, from Gourmet Magazine (via Food Network)

I found this recipe earlier in the week from a basic recipe search on Food Network. It was rated with 4 stars and sounded pretty simple. So I went ahead and made it.


3/4 C butter, softened
1/2 C vanilla sugar
1/2 C sugar
3/4 C milk
1 egg
1 3/4 C flour, sifted
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 C blueberries (I used frozen)
1-2 tbsp flour (reserved for the blueberries)

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Grease or line a muffin tin; set aside.
   
2. Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add in the egg, mixing well, then slowly add in the milk. Blend completely.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the butter mixture until just blended.
4. Toss the blueberries with flour to coat, then fold into the muffin batter.
5. Fill the muffin tin to nearly the top nearly to the top. Bake muffins for 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Turn onto a rack to cool.
   

I found this recipe (as originally written) a real hassle, so I revised it a tiny bit to be less fussy (and added my own spin with the vanilla sugar and more blueberries!). Blending the milk into the butter/sugar was a soupy nightmare, I'm surprised the muffins even turned out as muffins.

The end result, though, is a very sweet, almost cake-like muffin that I thought was a bit sparse in terms of the blueberries. I really like a lot of blueberry in my muffins, otherwise what's the point of a blueberry muffin? The muffins also fall apart easily which make them a bit hard to eat.


B. Double Blueberry Muffins, from Gale Gand (via Food Network)

I've had this recipe in my arsenal for a few years now. Always super simple, always delicious. Like the above recipe, it is also rated with 4 stars on Food Network.


1/2 C butter, softened
1 C sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 C blueberries (I used frozen)
2 C flour
1/2 C milk
1-2 tbsp flour, reserved for blueberries
1 tbsp sugar, reserved for muffin tops

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease or line a muffin tin, set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla, baking powder, and salt.
   
3. Mash 3/4 C of the blueberries and blend into the batter.
4. Add 1 C of the flour, mix well, then add 1/4 C of the milk and mix well. Repeat and mix until just blended.
   
5. Toss the blueberries with flour to coat, then fold gently into the muffin batter.
6. Fill the muffin tin with batter, then sprinkle muffin tops with the sugar.
7. Bake for 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let muffins cool in the tin for 20-30 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool.

These muffins have a nice blueberry flavor throughout and a nice texture. I enjoy mine as a nice mid-morning snack with tea.


And the winner is...



B! I prefer this more traditional blueberry muffin for its texture, taste, and appearance. Not to mention it is really easy to make. If I were big on muffins, I'd probably use this recipe as a nice base to experiment with.

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Bob's Red Mill Sourdough Muffins

Honestly, I bought the Bob's Red Mill Baking Book on a whim at Powell's. Considering it was on sale for half the original price, I'd say it was a pretty good deal. The book is filled with all kinds of recipes using all kinds of grains.

I really like this recipe, especially with a sourdough starter sitting in the fridge. The best part trying different additions, like dried fruit or grated cheese. Just be sure to add it to the dry ingredient blend. I made two variations in one batch--white cheddar and provolone, and a dried blueberry/cranberry combination (the recipe recommends 1 3/4 cups of cheese for one batch, or 1 1/4 cups dried fruit).



Sourdough Muffins
from Bob's Red Mill Baking Book

1 3/4 C whole wheat flour
1 C all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 C sugar
1/2 C sourdough starter
1 1/2 cups warm milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 C vegetable oil

1. Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to moisten (this doesn't need to be well incorporated at all).
2. Cover with a lint-free dish towel and sit out at room temperature for 12 hours.
3. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 and spray a muffin tin. Stir batter to combine, pour into muffin tin, and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
   

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Pumpkin and Yogurt Corn Muffins

You know what it's like when you've let the dishes pile up in the sink, the bathroom get too dirty, or the laundry become a bit too daunting? Yeah, I have neglected this blog for a couple weeks now which means I've got several things to post today.

I found this mini corn muffin recipe on justbento a few weeks ago and thought it sounded really tasty. Plus, I had some leftover yogurt I needed to use up. Unfortunately, I over baked the muffins and they were practically inedible :( If baked properly, I recommend serving them with some maple butter--mix together softened/melted butter with maple syrup and allow to refirm.

Pumpkin and Yogurt Corn Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup minus 2 tbsp flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice mix
• 3 tbsp raw cane sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp canola oil
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/3 cup lowfat plain yogurt

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a mini muffin tin.
2. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just blended.
3. Spoon into muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes or so. Be sure not to overbake or they will be dry!

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blueberries continued

I made the best blueberry scones again the other night. I got the recipe from Food Network, it's by Tyler Florence: Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze. These are the best scones I've ever had, so yummy! I've made them without the glaze which definitely cuts back on the sugar, but I must say they are WAY better with the glaze. I transfer mine from the baking sheet directly onto a cooling rack, then put the rack over the baking sheet. This way I can add the glaze and the excess drips onto the sheet for easier cleanup.



I used another 2 cups to make multi-grain blueberry muffins last night. Here's a link to the original recipe: Multigrain Muffin, but I'll go ahead and post my slightly modified version. I enjoy this recipe because it is so simple to make and is a little healthier than the average blueberry muffin recipe with the addition of whole wheat flour and oat bran.


Blueberry Multigrain Muffins

1 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup oat bran
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 eggs
1 egg white
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup demarara sugar*
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cups fresh blueberries
Start by preheating the oven to 375. Spray or line a muffin tin.

1. Whisk flours, oat bran, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs and egg white; add the buttermilk, sugar, and oil. Stir the liquid mixture into the flour mixture until just evenly moist; the batter should be very thick--if not, add a bit more flour.
3. Toss blueberries with a bit of flour to coat evenly; gently fold into batter.
4. Fill each muffin cup with batter and bake 25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Turn muffins out onto rack and enjoy!

*Substitute with regular brown sugar. I've been experimenting with unprocessed sugars, like demarara sugar which I bought in the bulk section.

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