I had a FUNday SUNday. You too? It started off early, around 8:00am – just like I like it – with a quiet house all to myself… perfect for muffin’ makin’! After drooling over Allie’s recent recipe, I made a special trip to the store yesterday to pick up a few ingredients so I could mimic her muffins. I’d been wanting to use the remaining bit of quinoa I had in my cupboard from the last time I cooked with it, and Allie’s recipe sounded right up my allie alley.
Coconut Carrot Quinoa Muffins
I have always loved making muffins… mainly because the process is a piece of cake. It’s usually one of the first techniques you’re taught in an elementary foods course. If you do not know how to make muffins “properly”, I’ll show you the way…
Cooking 101: The Muffin Method
1. Whisk the dry ingredients together with salt, sugar, leavenings and any spices in a large bowl.
Dry Ingredients:
- 2 c. any flour [I used 1 1/2 c. whole wheat + 1/2 c. all-purpose]
- 1/3 c. shredded unsweetened coconut
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. salt
2. In another bowl or a large liquid measure, combine all the wet ingredients – dairy, eggs, liquid fat, and any flavoring.
Wet Ingredients:
- 3/4 c. shredded organic carrots
- 1/2 c. unsweetened organic soy milk
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/3 c. agave-honey syrup
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2T oil
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla
3. Pour the wet on top of the dry and fold them gently together. Minimal mixing is key. Fold in any additional ingredients at this step (fruit, nuts, etc.).
Fold In:
- 1 c. cooked quinoa
- 1/3 c. toasted chopped pecans
4. Scoop your batter into well-greased (or paper-lined) muffin tins. Fill the cavities 2/3 to 3/4 full.
Sprinkle with raw sugar.
5. Bake according to recipe directions.
This batch took approximately 26 minutes @ 350*.
-
A well-made muffin has a medium grain and is slightly moist, tender, and light. It has a somewhat pebbled appearance and rounded top.
-
An overstirred muffins has a peaked top and tunnels [excess air is beaten into the batter, stretching the gluten matrix].
My muffins weren’t as moist as Allie claimed hers to be, but I liked them nonetheless. They’re just barely sweet and I love the added flavor of the quinoa. What’s your favorite type of muffin? Are you a hearty bran, apple cinnamon, or peach blueberry kind of person?
* * *
After my a.m. baking, I washed + vacuumed my car, threw a load of laundry in the washer, and then my roommate treated me to a Starbucks iced coffee before we went shoppin’! My caffeine sensitivity resulted in a coffee buzz all day. Or perhaps it was also the afternoon mocha almond fudge gelato : ) I wish I had captured a photo of the dish of deliciousness, but alas, the camera missed the trip. I promise a picture of the Italian indulgence at some point, as I’m sure there will be many more visits to Powell’s Sweet Shoppe…
Sunday shopping was a success. Hello, watermelon birthday dress!
Then it was time to exercise, so I can be looking fine on June One Nine ; )
Treadmill Time:
- 10 minutes @ 6.4mph – 1.0 incline
- 10 minutes @ 4.4mph – 6.0 incline
[repeat set]
- 5 minutes @ 4.0mph – 3.0 incline
+ 15 minutes abs, arms & legs
Dinner
Dr. P California Veggie Burger a la toasted English Muffin + Mustard, Avocado, and Organic Lettuce
Quinoa [Where’d you come from?] + Salt & Pepper
I declare quinoa my new favorite grain – mmm.
Dessert
2 Kiwis + 2 Strawberries + Agave-Honey Syrup
Editing photos is entertaining.
This post has taken much too long to write/edit/design. I hope you enjoyed your muffin making lesson.
Night!
Chef Hillary
simply summer {strawberry} oats.
pb {& banana} snack muffins.
sunshine in a jar.
{vegan} almond apricot quinoa muffins.
chia cherry oatmeal.
Ze muffs are lookin’ scrumpsh!! Mine was overly moist…so I bumped up the flour count to 2 cups in the recipe. I believe I used 1 3/4.
Lovely post! The muffins look fabulous! My posts take forever as well :)
I never knew all that about cooking muffins. Interesting! Now I know I overbeat batter. Oops.
That dress is really cute. I’m in a wedding in September and the bridesmaids’ dresses are that same color but NOWHERE near as cute.
Those muffins sound so good! I’ve got a huge bag of quinoa in the pantry too… hmmm… I LOVE bran muffins with peanut butter (childhood comfort food) but peach blueberry sound beyond amazing.
I LOVE that dress! Such a pretty color and I like how it’s off the shoulder too. Your Dr. P cali veg burger looks great – I just got some yesterday and can’t wait to try them!
These look amazing! It’s funny, even though I’ve tried cooking with the flour, I’ve never thought about adding actual quinoa to my baked goods. I’ll have to give it a shot! :)
And I love your dress!
Your dress is gorgeous! You will look fab. Thanks for the muffin recipe, they look really yummy!
I need all of the baking lessons I can get! Those muffins look perfect to crumble over oatmeal.
oooh i love the color of your dress!
This is perfect! Just last night I was thinking that it’d be nice to make a carrot cake loaf to snack on soon. This is great! Thanks!
the muffins look SO good! i love the idea of using quinoa in a muffin recipe!
that dress is SO SO SO hot. love it! :)
Those look soooooo yummy. You are quite the lil’ baker ;) My fave kind is banana nut!
Also LOVE the color of that dress. It is like BAM! Gorgeous. :)
CUTE dress! I absolutely love love love that color.
YUM! Those muffins look wonderful! I also love that dress…you will defintiely ROCK that!
I love that dress! You are going to rock it girl!
What a gorgeous dress!
And those muffins…YUM! Love the addition of quinoa – how creative :)
Hillary, thank you for your sweet comment on my blog :) It made my day a little brighter!
Haha, I am the same way with baking for the family. If I bake in the afternoon, I kind of kick them out of the kitchen to be alone. Normal? Probably not, haha.
Awesome run girlie!
The muffins look yummy, Hilly. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a muffin recipe with quinoa before! My favorite all-time muffin recipe comes from a little muffin cookbook I think your mom gave me many moons ago – oatmeal blueberry. They always come out light and delish, and I change up the fruit to match what’s in season. I’ve used applesauce for half the fat and they’re a little more dense but still really yummy, and of course then I can eat two :)
Your muffins and fruit bowl look delish! Oh my, I just adore strawberries and kiwis. Oh, and I love your birthday dress. It is absolutely adorable! I’m sure you will look stunning in it.
Have a lovely day!
xoxo
Those muffins look amazing! I’m a muffin kind of girl. I’ve never made quinoa muffins though, so I cannot wait to try them! Thanks for relaying the awesome recipe (:
I used a flax egg instead of eggs & pumpkin instead of the oil! They turned out so good & I can’t stop eating them ;) Great recipe!
All pumpkin, no oil? Wow, awesome. Enjoy! :)