Thursday, September 29, 2005

Pumpkin Carob Chip Muffins

Muffins are a great way to make orange vegetables attractive to a child who might otherwise dislike them. These scrumptious muffins are filled with whole wheat, flax, pumpkin, and nuts, and are soy-free for those kids with soy allergies. Carob chips taste just right here, but feel free to substitute vegan chocolate chips if you prefer.

makes 12 muffins


1 cup plain canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup canola oil
2 TB ground flax seed
1 tsp. vanilla
1 2/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
1/3 cup vegan carob chips
½ cup pecans, chopped
Perfect Cinnamon-Sugar* (see below)

Preheat the oven to 350º. Spray a nonstick muffin tin sprayed well with nonstick spray, or line the tin with paper muffin cups and spray the cups with nonstick spray. Set aside.

Put the pumpkin, water, canola oil, ground flax seed, and vanilla in a Vita-Mix or other blender and process on high for at least one minute, until light in color and well-blended. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, kosher salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add the pumpkin mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon or large spatula until well-blended. Fold in the carob chips and pecans.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tin, distributing evenly to make 12 muffins. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with some Perfect Cinnamon-Sugar.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a cake tested inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then use a spatula to gently lift each muffin from the muffin tin. Finish cooling on a wire rack.

*Perfect Cinnamon-Sugar: Whisk together ¾ cup sugar with 2 tsp. ground cinnamon and store in a sugar shaker. Use as a sweet sprinkle on porridge, toast, or soy yogurt.

39 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love you for using whole wheat flour. I'm going to have to get me some carob chips and try this!

(I know, I know, chocolate chips ... but sometimes a girl just needs carob.)

Anonymous said...

these sound great. I don't really think I have access to ground flax...is it necessary or is there something I can use in it's place (is it a binder?)

Jennifershmoo said...

Hi, erica! The ground flax is a binder and egg-replacer, but most importantly it is the best vegan source of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. I try to include some in our diet every day, and really encourage you to hunt some down.

Flax seeds are available at health foods stores and some regular grocery stores. I bet you can order it online, too. You can buy it already ground (store in the freezer) or as whole seeds you grind yourself using a spice grinder (this is what I recommend, as it's fresher that way).

Megan said...

Hi there. Interesting recipes. Found your blog through a Livejournal community. I'm not a vegan, but I do like to try veg*n recipes. Love the lunchbox, site, too btw.

Harmonia said...

hi there! Great to see another recipe. I'm not much of a cooker but realize I am going to have to learn more than I know NOW if I want to stick with the vegan-wannabe-ness LOL

Swing by when you have a chance.

Anonymous said...

Why kosher salt?

Jennifershmoo said...

Hi, Little My! Here's a good website that explains kosher salt:

http://www.mortonsalt.com/newsroom/koshersalt.html

Anonymous said...

hi jennifer,
great recipe, they are wonderful!!!
here's a pic...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/inkedyogachick/

Jennifershmoo said...

Thanks, weibke! I'm so glad you like them. Great picture -- those muffins look fantastic. In fact, all the pictures on your site look delicious!

Jennifershmoo said...

Hi, adrien-alice! Oh my gosh! I'll have to let my husband know I am now a goddess, so he better start peeling my grapes. LOL!!

Re. flax seed eggs, it's hard to know what to say without seeing your goo. It could be right. If you are starting out with ground flax, then adding it to the blender with water and blending for at least one minute, it should get gloppy and foamy. If you let it sit a bit, it will get gooier. I don't think a mortar & pestle are the way to go; it wouldn't give the mixture enough air. Good luck (or should I say goo luck?)!

Jennifershmoo said...

What lucky friends you have, adrien-alice!

Anonymous said...

This recipe looks fantastic. Thanks for posting it! My daughter was diagnosed with allergies recently, so I'm drastically changing my diet (still breastfeeding). I'm supposed to avoid seeds (including flax) and soy, so is there something I can use in place of the flax? Thanks again - can't wait to try them!

Anonymous said...

I made this recipe this weekend... DH (who hates all things healthy or vegetarian) gobbled up these muffins! He didn't even realize that they contained WW flour or flax! My boys also enjoyed them... The last ones went into lunchboxes this morning! Thanks!

Anonymous said...

i had a taste for pumpkin in march and stumbled across this recipe. it was OUTSTANDING! my family loved them too and had no idea they were vegan.

hyphen_helena said...

I love this recipe! I just made this for the first time a few days ago and it's delicious! My mom thought I should use chocolate chips because I don't like carob chips straight out of the package but I said, "No. This is what Jennifer recommends and I trust her." And I'm so glad because the carob is excellent in the muffins. If you're hesitant about the carob- try it!

vespabelle said...

I made these last weekend and they are amazing! These are going into my recipe notebook for sure.

Anonymous said...

I have been making these muffins every week for the past 6 weeks and now it has become the first baking recipe I've comitted to memory! Yum, yum! I use raisins instead of chips and sometimes I reduce the oil and add pumpkin butter(vegan)for great results. My one year old love them too. Your website is awesome!

Anonymous said...

Any recommendations on making this recipe wheat free?

Anonymous said...

I recently went vegan and found your book surfing the web for vegan cookbooks. Now I'm a total devotee! ;) I made these muffins last night and they were a huge hit! I've always enjoyed baking and these were a great example of how fun and tasty vegan baking can be! Thank you SO much for your book, the blog, etc!

Artie said...

I made these about a week ago and saved one for a friend who has a "sensitive palate" (meaning she's just very good at figuring out what kind of flavors have been used in recipes, and textures, that sort of thing). She LOVED these muffins, and couldn't believe what a great egg replacer ground flax is! My kiddos and I loved the muffins too! Thank you!!

Jennifer said...

I just found out that I was allergic to soy so I was anxious to try these muffins. However, both the non stick cooking spray and carob chips contain soy lecithin.

As substitutes, I used virgin coconut oil to grease the tins. I have found this to work great for baking. I also used Nestles Chocolatier Premiun Baking Bar (4 chopped squares) which does not contain soy lecithin. This is a great find for those who love chocolate and want to easily find it in a supermarket.

My preference was to also substitute applesauce for the canola oil. I am not vegan or allergic to eggs, so I added an egg and 2 t. of wheat germ instead of flax seed.

I baked these delicious muffins in my mini muffin tin for 15 minutes. There were perfect.

I hope this helps those with a soy allergy and thanks for the yummy recipe.

Anonymous said...

I guess, even if my little Lilly tastes such a muffin, thinking it is sweet, she will be disappointed at once and won't eat this any more.

Anonymous said...

These are delicious. I have made them at least four times and my kids and I eat up the whole batch in just one day! Thank you for providing healthy and delicious recipes.

Opra said...

Rather interesting! It can be very useful for many parents, who don't know how to make their children eat some food:)

Anonymous said...

I made this for a campus bakesale today. It was for the nutrition association so I felt like I should be responsible and bring something healthy! These went over so well. They are absolutely delicious. I am making them again to bring to a get together this Sunday. Thanks!

Unknown said...

I just made these today (Mmmm just had one too =) ) They are my first muffin sans eggs and I was amazed at how well they turned out!! I modified your recipe slightly and only added 2/3 of a cup of sugar abd then added 1 tbs. molasses and 1 tbs agave syrup to limit the sugar but keep the sweet. They were really delicious thanks so much for the recipe!!

Anonymous said...

I stumbled upon your page while googling "carb chips vegan" I'm recently leaning more towards the vegan lifestyle..but have a quick question. Can you still use the regular Carob Chip's in vegan cookies? Thanks,
Heather

Anonymous said...

What brand of carob chips do you use?
The recipe sounds great!

Jennifershmoo said...

Good question! Most carob chips contain dairy, so you'll have to search out vegan ones. I buy nondairy vegan carob chips that are bagged with a generic label at my local health food store.

Sunspire makes vegan carob chips:

http://www.veganessentials.com/catalog/sunspire-carob-baking-chips.htm

Anonymous said...

Can anyone give me the Nutrition Facts on these?

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Anonymous said...

Thank you, thank you, thank you! My sons are allergic to dairy, soy, eggs, nuts & even mustard so cooking for them can be quite a challenge. But not with these yummy muffins! They will be a staple in our house and I look forward to using the recipe as a base for others. I made them for playgroup and every single muffin was gobbled up by the non-Vegan crowd. Thanks for being a great resource!

Anonymous said...

This recipe is AWESOME! We bought the cookbook for my daughter who has dairy and soy allergies. I tried this recipe last week and was impressed with how delicious it was! My family and I can't get enough! Just made a double batch of it last night!

Anonymous said...

I can't wait to try these with squash. I wonder if any other veggies would work? Has anyone tried to experiment a little with the recipe?

Anonymous said...

My daughter and I are DEVOURING these now! We can't get enough!

Terran said...

To raising_kahne: Try using Stevia. It's a great natural sweetener used in South or Central America for centuries. Comes in powder or liquid. Also comes in a box of packets, just like sugar packets. I really like it in tea, hot and cold (stir longer to dissolve in cold things). Safety is controversial. See Stevia.com for 1 take on that, and be sure to do further research before you make the decision to use stevia. It can be used in cooking and baking, as the only sweetener, or in combination with other non-sugar natural sweeteners.

Or you could try brown rice syrup instead of sugar.

You could check out christinacooks.com for ideas on how to use brown rice syrup, and how to order it online if you're nowhere near a health food store.

Anonymous said...

These are amazing! I am trying out a vegan diet- and these are the second of your recipes I have made. They are so tasty- and do not taste as healthy as they are.

Thank you for your blog!!

KimTess said...

could I substitute some or all of the oil with applesauce?

Jennifershmoo said...

It wouldn't hurt to give it a try!