Category Archives: Breads and Baked Goods

Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins

I’ve been on the hunt for a good protein powder for some time now.  Most of the ones I have found either have corn or soy (or both), or use a lot of artificial sweeteners which I’m just not a fan of.  But fortunately, the girls behind Tone It Up have a Perfect Fit Protein that’s made with brown rice and stevia and free of all other allergens.  I was so excited to finally find a protein powder I could have that I whipped up a batch of Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins.

Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins PacketThe best part of these muffins is the stats.  Each muffin clocks in at 126 calories and has 6 grams of protein and 8 grams of fat which makes them the perfect snack.  I had a really early meeting at work this week, so I packed a couple of these muffins along with some PB and it made a great breakfast on the go.

Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins CloseThis recipe is actually adapted from the Tone It Up Blueberry Zest Muffins, but I didn’t have any blueberries on hand right at that moment so I swapped them for coconut and they still came out great.  I think next  time I’ll have to try chocolate coconut ones!

Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins (adapted from Tone It Up)

Makes 6 muffins

Ingredients:

1 packet Perfect Fit Protein Powder

1/4 cup coconut flour

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp coconut oil, melted

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Line 6 muffin tins with paper liners.

In a small bowl mix your protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder and salt.  Be sure to whisk your coconut flour and protein powder well to ensure there are no clumps.

Add your lemon juice, eggs, melted coconut oil and shredded coconut to your mixture and continue to mix until well blended.  The batter will be a bit thick.

Pour your mixture into the 6 muffin tins and place in the oven for 20 minutes.

Coconut Lemon Protein Muffins PlateEnjoy your protein packed muffin!

Any other protein powder recipes?  I’ve already made some tasty smoothies and want to make protein pancakes next!

I KNOW.  It’s more pumpkin.  What can I say?  I’m addicted and rolling with it all through fall.  Fortunately pumpkin is full of good things like beta-carotene, fiber and vitamin K, which is all the more reason to enjoy this vegetable in all sorts of forms.  Lately my new favorite way to enjoy pumpkin is in the form of pumpkin beer bread.

pumpkin beer bread close upI made pumpkin beer bread a couple of years ago using Smuttynose Pumpkin Beer, and this time around I wanted to make the beer bread using canned pumpkin.  I ended up using a German wheat beer since it was what we had on hand and I didn’t have time to get a proper pumpkin ale.  I also decided to use sorghum and brown rice flour instead of all-purpose.

With all these little tweaks, I honestly wasn’t quite sure how this bread would turn out, but it came out delicious!  You can definitely taste the beer in this bread, so if you want to reduce that beer taste I recommend using a little more sugar or reducing the amount of beer.

This bread is ridiculously easy to make and was promptly devoured in a matter of days.  Let the pumpkin obsession reign supreme!

pumpkin beer bread pinPumpkin Beer Bread

Ingredients:

1 bottle of beer of your choice (I prefer a wheat beer)

2 cups sorghum flour

1 cup brown rice flour

1/4 cup pumpkin

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 tsp baking powder

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  In a large mixing bowl combine your flours, salt, cinnamon and baking powder.

pumpkin beer pouring in breadSlowly pour your beer into the flour mixture and blend well.  Add your pumpkin, maple syrup and coconut oil and continue to mix until well combined.

Pour your bread mixture into a loaf pan and bake for 50-60 minutes.  The bread should turn a nice golden color when it’s done.

pumpkin bread slicedCool and enjoy!

I definitely want to try this bread again with a pumpkin beer.  I’ve heard Dogfish Head’s Punkin’ Ale is quite delicious, but are there any other pumpkin beers I should try?

Grain-Free Pumpkin Date Muffins

Yes, another pumpkin muffin recipe.  Guilty as charged.  But these muffins are different because they are grain-free pumpkin date muffins and may be my new fall favorite.

grain free pumpkin date muffinsIt all started when I was on my 10 mile run this weekend.  Usually when I’m running I think about what I want for breakfast (since I run early in the morning) and what I really wanted was the Carrot Banana Muffins that I’ve made from the True Food Kitchen cookbook numerous times.  But I did not have any carrots or bananas in my house, and the last thing I felt like doing after running 10 miles was hopping in the car and driving to the store.  Naturally we have an abundance of canned pumpkin in the house, so I decided to see if I could sub the pumpkin in for the carrot and banana in the True Food Kitchen recipe.

To be honest, I didn’t take many pictures while I was making the grain-free pumpkin date muffins because I wasn’t sure how they would turn out.  But they turned out delicious!  Almost like mini pumpkin cakes sweetened with maple syrup and dates.

If you want to make these “true” paleo muffins, I would swap the maple syrup for the honey, otherwise these muffins are grain-free and gluten-free which is perfect for a wide variety of diets.

So embrace the pumpkin recipe overload because these are delicious.  Trust me.

grain free pumpkin date muffins pinGrain-Free Pumpkin Date Muffins (inspired from the True Food Kitchen cookbook)

*Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups almond flour

3 eggs (I used 1/3 cup + 3 tablespoons egg whites)

1 cup pumpkin

1 1/4 cup dates, pitted

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 325F.  Lightly grease or line a muffin tin with paper liners.

Place your dates in a food processor.  Pulse until dates begin to resemble more of a paste.  Add your pumpkin, almond flour, eggs (or egg whites), coconut oil, maple syrup, baking soda, salt and cinnamon to the food processor and pulse until everything is well blended.

(If you don’t have a food processor you can still make these by hand, just make sure your dates are finely chopped.)

Gently spoon your batter into the muffin tins and place in the oven.  Bake for 40-43 minutes.  You’ll know the muffins are done by sticking a toothpick in the center and seeing if it comes out clean.

grain free pumpkin date muffin tinThese muffins have a nice texture to them and are perfect with a pat of butter, chocolate spread, peanut butter, etc. etc.  And since there is minimal sugar in them, they are practically a health food (or so I tell myself).  I just might have to try these muffins as a grain-free pumpkin date bread next.

grainfree pumpkin date muffin close upWhat’s your favorite pumpkin recipe?  Is there something I need to try out next?

 

 

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

I patiently waited while Starbucks stocked their stores with pumpkin scones, cookies and of course pumpkin spice lattes.  I resisted when the pumpkin M&Ms hit Target.  But now that it is officially fall, I am embracing pumpkin like there is no tomorrow.  Starting with gluten-free pumpkin muffins.

gluten-free pumpkin muffinsSure, it might still hit 80 degrees during the day here in Southern California, but the mornings and evenings are starting to feel like autumn and that’s enough to me.  I even had to wear a sweatshirt to crossfit one morning because of a chill in the air.

gluten free pumpkin muffins paper linersSo about these gluten-free pumpkin muffins.  Prior to making these muffins I had many failed attempts at gluten-free pumpkin baking and usually ended up with a very gummy and not so pleasant tasting result.  But then I made these muffins and all was right in the world again.

This recipe comes from the Gluten-Free Goddess and it’s pretty much perfection.  I made a few tweaks on my end, and next time, I’m definitely adding chocolate chips.

gluten-free pumpkin muffin pinGluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins (makes 12 muffins)

Ingredients:
1 cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 cup pumpkin puree (use the plain pumpkin from a can, not pumpkin pie filling)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup almond milk

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Line a 12-muffin tin with paper liners or grease the inside of the tin with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl add all of your dry ingredients and mix until well blended.  In a smaller bowl mix your wet ingredients.

Slowly fold your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and continue to mix well.  I used a stand mixer for this, but you can use a hand mixer or just a good ol’ fashioned wooden spoon.  Be sure to mix well to ensure there are no extra clumps or lumps.

Spoon your batter into the muffin tins.  This would also be the appropriate time to add some chocolate chips or chopped nuts to your muffins.

Place in the oven and bake for 22-25 minutes.  The muffins should be nice and firm in the middle.

Remove muffins from the oven and let them cool.  Enjoy with a nice pat of butter, pb, jam, you get the idea.

gluten-free pumpkin muffinsWelcome back fall.  It’s good to have you back.