Healthy Blueberry Muffins
Simply put, these muffins remind me of home. When I say home I do not mean a physical house or even a specific city or country; to me the concept of home involves people and feelings and sounds and smells and yes, particular foods! My childhood involved moving, a lot; I had lived in 4 different countries in 9 different houses before the age of 13, travelled all over the world and often spent Christmases or birthdays in a new hotel in a new country so feeling at home has always had little to do with a house.
One of my earliest memories of having that warm, fuzzy ‘at home’ feeling comes from sitting on my Nana’s kitchen counter licking the bowl of her blueberry muffin mix and getting my purple stained fingertips on every surface imaginable. It was the first recipe I ever learned by heart, the first bonding moment through food I was aware of and a baking tradition that we repeated every time we saw each other.
Baking with my Nana is still one of my favourite things to do, she still over-explains how to mix a batter and the best way to measure ingredients, doesn't like when I change her recipes or have a different way of doing things but she also still gives me the bowl to lick. Now in her late eighties, she is an adorable 4ft 11 curly white haired woman with a Sunderland accent, a kind heart, an unapologetic stubborn streak (I wonder where I get it from!) and a handbag collection to be jealous of. Always dressed to the nines even if she isn't leaving the house, she continues to be the hostess with the mostest and bakes muffins and scones and cakes by the dozens, sometimes hundreds, for neighbours, family and friends. She is my closest grandparent, someone who I love and admire very much and for me, it all started with a blueberry muffin.
As much as I love my Nana’s recipe, and I do, I still like to create alternative recipes that are healthier and accommodate more dietary requirements. These particular ones have no refined sugar, are vegan and gluten free and can use frozen or fresh blueberries with the same baking time. The oats do require pre-soaking which involves 5 minutes the night before you want to bake them and putting the mix in the fridge overnight. Once that is done the baking is very simple, quick and they bake really well directly in the muffin tins with no liners! They also freeze great so can be made in large batches and reheated in a microwave, oven or even steamer!
I hope you get to make these and we would love to see any photos so be sure to tag us on instagram or Facebook @createdsweetly!
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Until next time, keep it sweet!
Healthy Blueberry Muffins
VEGAN AND GLUTEN FREE, NO REFINED SUGAR AND NO DAIRY
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Combine gluten free oats and almond milk in a large bowl and let soak in the fridge overnight. You want the oats to soak up most of the milk so it should not be a very wet mixture.
2. When the oats are soaked and you are ready to bake pre heat your oven to 190°C/375°F and grease your muffin tin with a little bit of coconut oil.
3. Make the flaxseed egg by mixing 1 tablespoon of flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of water and let mixture thicken.
4. Add the flaxseed egg, maple syrup, coconut oil, cinnamon, vanilla, baking powder and salt into the soaked oats and stir until well combined.
5. Divide the mixture into the muffin tins and add blueberries as you pour the batter. I usually use a spoon and follow a one spoon, one blueberry pattern until the tin is filled. Mini muffins usually get 2 blueberries and the regular muffins usually get 5-8 depending on how blueberry-y you want it.
6. Bake the muffins for 25-30 minutes until they are golden brown and spring back to the touch. Let cool in the tin for a 10 minutes before turning them out and letting completely cool on a rack.
7. These are best warm so eat straight away or store them in an air-tight container for up to 5 days at room temperature and reheat in the oven or microwave. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
