Maybe it's the fact that it's 40 km/h winds outside (and blowing snow), but it feels like fall, rather than spring out there today. I was really REALLY hoping to feel productive in the yard today and get some spring cleaning done out there... but I also feel super pouty about the weather so I'm staying in.
But rather than sulking, I'm going to work out, clean the house AND make myself some fall-inspired muffins to solace myself with.
These beauties have a cool 100 calories and 1 gram of fat each because I am awesome. If you add nuts or something (and why wouldn't you? Nuts are delish!) it's a bit more but not much. I didn't add raisins because Johnny hates cooked raisins and muffins are for sharing (or else I will definitely eat all 12 myself and suffer Food Regrets).
I got the basic recipe from The Internet (seriously I looked at about a dozen carrot muffin recipes. I wish I remember the one I took the most inspiration from. Sorry, muffin lady/man for not crediting you specifically). This is what I used:
THE MUFFIN. (preheat oven to 400)
dry stuffs
1 3/4 all purpose unbleached organic flour.
1/4 cup raw organic sugar.
1 T ground flax seed
1tsp baking powder
.5 tsp baking soda
1 T cinnamon (I love cinnamon. You might want to use less. Or more.)
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp sea salt, fine.
wet stuffs
3 T Light Table syrup (we're out of real maple syrup, mea culpa)
1 cup pureed canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, just pure pumpkin).
1/4 cup fresh squeeezed orange juice
3 tsp vanilla
3 T dried shredded coconut
if you add 3 T slivered almonds, your muffins will be 115 calories each instead of 100.
combine dry ingredients well, set aside.
combine wet ingredients, whisk well to mix thoroughly. You can add some more orange juice if it's a little thick, but not too much.
fold dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a wooden spoon and stir until just mixed, don't overwork it.
bake for 20-25 minutes, check it after 20 with a toothpick. I use silicone muffin trays but if you use regular ones then you should use muffin paper cups to avoid tears getting them out whole.
