Banana Carrot Muffins

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Banana Carrot Muffins

Gluten/Dairy-free/Paleo

Adapted from DailyMeals by My Little Blue Heron

It’s back to school time, and for some, the end of summer is delicious. I haven't shared recipes for ages. I've shifted my diet from gluten and diary free to Paleo or "Palee-ish". I have a mess of famtastic recipes to share with you, and I hope to start churning them out on a regular basis (again.)

These easy and fun to make muffins will keep you happy and your pantry or freezer stocked with a delicious and healthful grab ‘n go breakfast, snack, dessert or teatime option. These may become your finest muffin accomplishment of the year. They're easily mine.

I am so happy to share this recipe and some MLBH trucs! Let's get crackin'!

My Little Blue Heron trucs:

My favorite almond flour is Wellbee’s. It’s ground super fine, and if you use almond

flour as a flour sub, it’s worth the price. I also use and like Anthony’s almond flour. It’s not

as super fine, but it’s excellent quality, and if you sift it, it’s beautiful. You can buy it for a

little (but not much) less. 

Buy organic bananas. I look for smaller and rounder/plumper fruit.

     

Buy organic carrots. Think about it: these are hanging out in the dirt where they could

be bathing in pesticides that will be inside of you. Organic carrots seem to taste sweeter.

Buy the biggest, fattest ones available. For this recipe, if you can manage it, shred the

carrots by hand. That way they won’t be soggy.

 I cop to Trader Joe’s walnuts. Fresh, inexpensive and delicious.

Diamond Crystal is the best kosher salt. It doesn’t have other stuff in it.

Use Ceylon Cinnamon. It’s supposed to be healthier because it doesn’t contain large

amounts of coumarin. Coumarin is an anti-coagulant (If you're of un certain age, you've

heard of the drug, coumadin) and it (like it seems just about everything) can mess with

your liver. This health warning is only if you eat cinnamon in bulk (I do). But another good

reason is that real Ceylon cinnamon is delicious and more delicate and finer. It's sweeter

than the 'other' cinnamons. Look at the label: it should come from Sri Lanka! Don't 

freak out if you're using Cassia or Korintje: you won’t get sick. This is just the current

buzz.

Maple syrup is personal. I like mine both dark and light. It depends on what I'm using it 

for. Paleo diets use NO refined sugar, so pretty much, we use maple syrup, honey, dates

and I use coconut sugar, too. Back to maple syrup: For baking, dark seems to work very

well. Grade “B” is no longer a grade, so you'll read descriptions that say, “formerly grade

b”. I found a wonderful Canadian brand that’s dark and delicious called Escuminac. It’s

so fine. A more economical option: NOW brand is organic and really delicious.

By now you probably know that when a banana is beyond recognition, you should

freeze it. Remove its skin and put it into a Ziploc freezer bag and smash it up (fun). Label

how many are in the bag. Use them for baking, in smoothies, or add to your hot (or cold)

cereal.

 I think buying already ground flax seed should not be your first choice. I think

buying whole seeds and grinding them in your spice grinder is what you should do. I

keep my flax seeds (I like golden ones, but after reading about it, I don’t think there’s any

significant nutritional difference between dark or golden) in the fridge. I add them to my

smoothies and grind ‘em in small quantities to add the ground flax to salads and cereal.

BTW: Did you ever think you'd eat linseed (in bulk)? 

Make these muffins on a rainy day or when the subway is messed up (both almost any day in NYC). Make them when you have too many bananas that are overripe, or when you want your kitchen to smell like carrot cake. If you're a teacher or you work in the schools or your child is returning to school, and you want to start getting it all together for the upcoming school year, start grating your carrots. 

For whatever reason you may choose to make these muffins, I hope you love making them and enjoy eating them.

With love and मेत्ता,

jane

Maple Syrup from Canada 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁

Banana Carrot Muffins

Equipment:

Muffin tin (12), silicone, non-stick, or old-fashioned muffin liners. Box grater, liquid measure cup, measuring spoons, whisk, measuring cups, large bowls, mixing spoons, spatula, optional Vitamix, optional electric stand or hand mixer.

Ingredients:

2 cups almond flour, finely ground, blanched

3 ripe bananas (from the freezer is great!)

3 eggs, size large, room temp.

3 medium organic carrots shredded (about 1 ½-2 cups)

¾ c. walnuts (or ‘other’ nuts of choice), chopped

2 Tbsp. flavorless oil (Canola, Grapeseed, Avocado, Sunflower)

1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. kosher salt

2 tsp. ground cinnamon powder

¼ tsp. vanilla powder or 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

¼ c. dried currents or other dried fruit of choice

            (may use fresh berries or diced apple)

2 tsp. ground flax (flax meal) or chia seeds

variation for fall!: try a combination of diced dried apples and raisins, cinnamon, 1/4 tsp of freshly grated nutmeg, 1/4-1/2 tsp. ground allspice .. and the leaves'll start changing as you take a bite. 

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350º F. and put rack in the middle of the oven. Prepare muffin tins.

Shred carrots and set aside.

ORANGE!

Measure and chop walnuts and set aside.

Measure currents or ‘other’ dried or fresh fruit and set aside.

In a LARGE bowl: Measure almond flour, flax meal, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

Whisk together and set aside.

a whiskit (for my daughter)

In the container of a Vitamix (or with a hand mixer, electric stand mixer or you can do this by hand!), mix together: banana, eggs, oil, vinegar, vanilla powder (or extract) and maple syrup. (If doing by hand, first mash the banana and then add the rest of the ingredients).

Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix well, until fully combined.

Fold in grated carrots.

Add walnuts and currents 'other add-ins' and mix until incorporated. (Don't be alarmed: this batter is wet!)

Fill muffin tins (they won’t rise much), and bake for 25-35 minutes, depending on size of muffin, how wet the batter, how accurate your oven is, and how firm you want the muffin to be. If you're finding it's not firm enough, bake a little longer. This is a MOIST (but not mushy) muffin.

Remove from oven and cool on rack. As soon as you can handle, remove from muffin tin so they won't steam. 

Cool completely and enjoy! Store in fridge for up to a week. Or, wrap in waxed paper and store in Ziploc freezer bags and pull from freezer. This may be politically incorrect, but they nuke really well.

Corn Muffins

Corn Muffins

Adapted by Blue Heron Kitchen

from Carole Walter’s Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More

This post is dedicated to my friends and former neighbors who live in Long Beach, NY
This blog began because of Bernadette Martin, the Manager of the Kennedy Plaza Farmer's Market

(Back in business on the 21st of November!)

These people were some of the hardest hit and most direly effected by the recent Superstorm Sandy.
 I encourage you to help in anyway you can. 
Click HERE to visit the official site of Long Beach. On the right hand side, you will find a link where you can donate directly to help rebuild the magical "City by the Sea".
Below is a link to the National Red Cross for further donations.

After Sandy hit hard, the following week, we were slammed with a Nor’easter that dumped as much as nine inches of snow on some of us here on the east coast. Compared to others, who lost power for weeks, their homes, belongings, cars and some, their lives, I was fortunate to have only lost power for several days. After replenishing all the spoilt food items, with the new threat of power outages, I pulled out my new butter, new eggs; and I got to work, baking several batches of corn things. 

Corn muffins make life better.

I've never loved corn muffins that have kernels of corn in them, so save your kernels for chowder.

Used to be the best place in town for my corn muffin was The Palace Diner on the corner of Main Street and the Long Island Expressway.

I had my Sunday run in the park/NY Times ritual and my regular booth and great waiter, "Klino".

He knew my 'usual': black coffee and a corn muffin, toasted with butter and orange marmalade on the side. (Okay, sometimes I had poached eggs.)

 Famous people ate at The Palace. Here's someone you might recognize who fell from grace, yet still knew a good corn muffin. Anthony Weiner seized a photo op with my son, while my son was secretly fuming that his feta cheese and onion omelet and onion roll were growing cold.

The Palace is gone. 

It's a Dim Sum Joint. (And it's pretty good .. but no muffins.)

This recipe is sweet and corn-crunchy. 

I like a corn muffin to taste more like corn than cake; and this one has a bold, corn flavor. It’ll shine at breakfast and also be a great addition to your savory bread-basket at dinner (you can reduce the sugar by 1/4 of a cup!)

I encourage you to use Bob’s Red Mill COARSE GRIND Corn Meal, mixed with regular or medium grind corn meal. It adds crunch, fiber and sweetness to these muffins. If you follow the above link to the site, it’s sold in four 24 oz. bags for $8.35. Pretty reasonable, and it keeps quite well. You can purchase it at Fairway Market or at any good independent market that carries Bob’s Red Mill’s line of products.

Always use whole milk when a recipe calls for ‘milk’. It’s also a good idea to use organic milk. It doesn’t come from cows treated with hormones or who have chomped on stuff that are all gmo’d.

When your refrigerated ingredients are at room temperature, they won’t ‘shock’ the daylights out of the rising agents. Bring them all down to room temperature – the milk, the eggs; and even the butter that you’re going to melt will melt faster if it’s out. (Anyone who lived without power for several days or more or who lives outside of this country knows that butter can be left out of the fridge and it will do you no harm – promise.)

These are great the day they’re made, for up to a few days. You can freeze them, so if you want corn muffins on your Thanksgiving Day table, you can start now!

Please remember to donate (click on this link to the Red Cross!). If you’re in the NY/NJ Metro area, you can donate clothes, food, time and money (whichever and whatever you can) to help those of us who have suffered and continue to suffer the damage that Sandy has incurred. Here is a link to the Huffington Post article: Hurricane Sandy: 10 Tips For Donating Smart

Stay warm, charged, gassed up and safe.

peace and love,

jane

Corn Muffins

Yield 24 Muffins (may be halved)

Ingredients:

12 Tbsp./6 oz. unsalted butter (I use Plugra, a higher fat content European style butter)

4 Tbsp. Canola Oil

2 C. Unbleached All Purpose Flour (Try King Arthur)

1 1/2 C. Stone Ground Yellow Cornmeal, spooned and leveled

1/2 C. Coarse Ground Yellow Cornmeal, spooned and leveled

1 C. Granulated Sugar (For a more savory muffin, use 3/4 c.)

2 Tbsp. Baking Powder (make sure it’s fresh!) (And YES, I do mean Tablespoons)

1 ½ tsp. kosher salt

4 eggs, size large, at room temperature

2 C. Whole Milk (preferably organic, at room temperature)

1 ½ tsp. pure vanilla extract (I use Baldwin’s from West Stockbridge!)

Procedure:

1.    Rack in oven to the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 400º F.

2.    Brown your butter in a heavy saucepan, melting it over low heat. Skim the foam as it forms (it helps to tilt the saucepan toward you!) The butter is ready when it’s a golden brown and it has a nutty fragrance. This should take about five minutes or so. Be careful to not burn the butter!

3.    Pour the browned butter into a glass measuring cup and add the Canola oil.

4.    Spoon a generous ½ tsp. of this mixture into each muffin cup. Use a pastry brush or some waxed paper to spread it around the cup.

5.    In a large bowl (always use a larger bowl than you pull out, you’ll be glad), whisk together all dry ingredients.

6.    In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla extract.

7.     Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients (you can make a wish now) and pour in the wet ingredients, including the remaining butter/oil mixture. (If you’re doing this in two batches, be sure to reserve some butter/oil mixture for the second batch.

8.     Using a large rubber spatula, push the dry ingredients into the center from the sides of the bowl. Do Not Overmix. The batter will be loose and somewhat lumpy (like some body parts appear when you haven’t been exercising regularly.)

9.     Portion the batter into the muffin tin(s) using an ice cream scoop that has a ¼ c. capacity (or use a ¼ c. measuring cup, or wing it). The cups should be almost full.

10.  Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the muffins are golden brown and tops are spongy to the touch. If you’re baking on two racks, be sure to rotate your tins, top to bottom, front to back, half way through the bake.

11.  Place on rack to cool.