From the Kitchen of Amy Rothenberg ND
I enjoy cooking with apples in the fall. Here in New England we are really IN the apples; from late August to right about now we are inundated with local apples of every stripe. I love baked apples, applesauce, drying apples, apples in my oatmeal and every once in a while, an amazing slice of apple pie. But these muffins are more for everyday use, healthy and robust, gluten free, low in fat & low in sugar. I love them warm out of the oven or cut in half height-wise & toasted upside down in a little butter on a cast iron skillet! See what you think.
Here’s what you need:
- 1 cup applesauce. If I have homemade I use it!
- One apple cut into little pencil eraser sized pieces
- 1/3 cup of oil. I like canola oil here. It’s chock full of alpha-linolenic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid which can help reduce inflammation, promotes brain health and may well help to stave off arthritis & heart disease. Sometimes I will replace half the oil with further applesauce, they come out just fine.
- 1-2 eggs, 2 if they’re small
- 2 TBSP ground flax seed
- 2 cups flour - I often use a premade Gluten Free Flour mix by Bob’s
- ¼ cup of sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
- ½ cup of nuts of your choice, chopped up. I love walnuts as they’re a perfect partner to those crimson cranberries, but I have also made with pecans or with almonds.
Mix the wet ingredients together in one bowl. Mix the dry ingredients together in another. Push a small crater into the dry mixture and pour in the egg combo. Stir just until all is comingled. Then gently fold in the nuts & cranberries. Fill your greased muffin tins about 2/3 full and pop into a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. Done when the toothpick comes out clean! Yum.