Morning Glory Muffins

I’m just going to come out and say it… these muffins are truly glorious! Each one is moist, dense, and full of flavors and textures that make each bite a new taste. They’re packed with wholesome goodness from apples, carrots, raisins, walnuts, coconut, and pineapple, and are made almost completely with whole-wheat flour. What they aren’t packed with is a load of sugar and fat like most muffins. All of the fruit provides most of the sweetness and moisture the sugar and fat would provide; brown sugar and coconut oil make up the rest. These muffins are great for a healthy, satisfying snack, a quick breakfast, or even an after-dinner treat. Make up a batch this weekend to have all week long… if you can keep from eating them all in a day or two.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 1/2 c. whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
• 1 T. baking powder
• 2 t. baking soda
• 2 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ground ginger
• 1/2 t. salt
• One 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, strained, juice reserved
• 1/2 c. coconut oil, melted
• 1 Granny Smith apple, grated (I used the grater blade in my food processor)
• 1 T. vanilla extract
• 2 c. grated carrot (about 3 medium, again, I used a food processor)
• 1/2 c. raisins
• 1/2 c. shredded coconut
• 1/2 c. chopped English walnuts

First, preheat the oven to 400 and prepare your muffin tins with paper liners or cooking spray. I have what I consider “normal-sized” muffin tins and this recipe made 18 for me. I used an ice-cream scoop to form my muffins and they were the perfect size, about 2-3-inch balls.

In a large bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients, including the brown sugar. Next, add all of the remaining ingredients and fold to combine into a thick, wet dough. If it’s too dry, add a little of the reserved pineapple juice. It should hold together but still be sticky. If you have any latex/rubber gloves, they’re great for mixing the dough and forming the balls with your hands.

Scoop out the dough into your muffin tins and bake at 400 for 10 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to 350 and bake an additional 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and dry. Remove from the tins onto a wire rack and enjoy hot or at room temperature. Store in an airtight container.

https://www.homestead.org/cookbook/creamy-rhubarb-cake/