Molasses & Mayhem

what are you craving?

healthier raspberry-pear-walnut muffins (with chia seeds, flax seeds, and coconut oil)

healthy recipes, snacks, breakfast recipesLauren HaslettComment

these muffins are seriously delicious and actually pretty good for you – completely free of any commercial dairy and filled with good-for-you ingredients like whole grains, omega-3 packed chia and flax seeds, walnuts, and tons of fruit, these muffins are a tasty treat or morning meal you don't have to feel any guilt about.

 

one really important thing to note! these muffins are so chock full of good-for-you things like soft, sweet fruit and whole seeds, that they do tend to spoil rather quickly. if you're not going to eat these within two days, i highly recommend freezing the extras and just warming in the oven when you're ready to eat. that way you won't lose any to spoilage, and you'll have delicious, homemade muffins on hand whenever you find yourself craving one!

 

makes 8-10 muffins

ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole-wheat flour

2 tablespoons almond flour

½ ounce (about 1 tablespooon + 2 teaspoons) whole chia seeds

1 tablespoon whole flax seeds

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup (packed) dark brown sugar

8 fluid ounces (1 cup) almond milk

6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

2 eggs

½ cup chopped walnuts

1 cup frozen raspberries (slightly thawed)

1 small pear, peeled, seeded, and cut into small dice (about ¾ cup to 1 cup total)

 

how to do it:

1. preheat oven to 375°F and prepare muffin tin (spray with cooking spray or fill with paper baking cups).

2. mix flours, seeds, baking powder, salt, and spices together in a large bowl.

3. in a second bowl, mix sugars, almond milk, coconut oil, and eggs. once well-mixed, add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until just combined.

4.  gently fold in the walnuts and fruit. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins and bake 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center of muffin comes out clean.

5. let cool 5-10 minutes before removing from tin and serving.

these gorgeous muffins are so moist and fruity, they really don't need anything else. i'd definitely recommend eating them warm out of the oven, but if you still want to add a little extra something, i'd just mix a small amount of butter or your butter substitute of choice (maybe half a tablespoon) with a pinch of ground cinnamon and spread it over the cut sides of the halved muffins before you devour them.

of course, butter means these treats would no longer be dairy-free, but that's only an issue if you are unlucky enough to have an allergy or are actively trying to avoid this food group for other reasons. personally, i love, love, love me some dairy (cheese, specifically, if i'm being totally honest), but i find my skin doesn't love it quite so much as my taste buds do, so i'm attempting to cut back on it for awhile. and if all of my dairy-free experiments turn out this well, maybe it won't be as hard as i thought!

If you have any recipes you'd like to see a diary-free version of, please feel free to share in the comments! i always love a challenge. :)

copyright molasses & mayhem; 2014.