The Weekly Muffin: Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Granola Muffins

I use to have one thing that I craved day in and day out. I am not big on sweets. I am no cookie or cake monster.  I know I said last week that I do like the occasional muffin, but that’s not true. I love muffins. If there was one thing I use to be able to eat everyday, it was muffins. Banana ginger, carrot-walnut, blueberry, bran, coconut. Big ones, small one. Sweet, but mostly savory ones.

Muffins are not really known for their incredible healthfulness. Before I went Gluten Free, it was easy to find a muffin on my way to work and I definitely had a good habit going. I usually ate a breakfast of a healthy homemade fruit smoothie and a low-fat/whole grain healthy (as can be) muffin from my local shop or whole foods. Most store bought muffins still leave something to be desired in the nutrition department and now, both gluten-free and egg-free, muffins are basically non-existent.

My muffin habit went to the wayside when I went gluten-free and vegan. I trained myself away from them. I developed mixed feelings over grains in general and didn’t spend much time baking. But last week, I opened the flood gates with my Gluten Free Banana Ginger Muffins. Now, all I can think about is the next muffin recipe I want to make. What is ironic, its more of a desire to bake them, than to eat them. Yes, even though I love muffins, I love creating them gluten free and egg free even more. It really gets my creative juices going. And yields delicious results. My head is spinning over the next combination I want to create. I love to eat muffins yes, but the last thing I need is dozens of muffins sitting around at arms reach. Thank goodness, I have an early morning running group that happily gobbles up my creations and provides feedback. I can have my muffin and eat it to, as the cliche goes.

The success of the banana in last weeks version made me very enthusiastic. I figured if mashed up bananas worked then soft baked apples made into apple sauce would not only work in the same manner but would be outstanding in the flavor department. The result was a moist muffin that held together and still was light and not dense. I think in gluten free baking we are all just trying to avoid things turning out like small bricks. These muffins succeeded. I really liked the homemade quick granola on the top, it was brown-sugary and a great counter-point of texture. I might experiment with incorporating the granola additionally into the muffin itself, but think that the scant tbsp-ish of granola per muffin helps maintain some of the healthfulness but keeps the flavor.

I am dreaming up the next batch and the next batch and the next batch. Try these for now, until next week that is. Stay tuned, there will be coconut and pineapple involved next time.

Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Granola Muffins

Ingredients:

1 pound apples, cored and chopped
½ cup agave nectar
2 tbsp. cinnamon, divided
½ cup almond milk
1 tbsp. lemon
½ cup gluten free oats
¼ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup butter , room temperature
2 tbsp. vanilla extract
½ cup light brown sugar
½ cup dark brown sugar
1 ⅓ cups brown rice flour
⅔ cup garbanzo bean flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp fresh nutmeg
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325. Toss apples, agave nectar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon together and spread on a baking sheet with parchment paper in a single layer. Bake for 35 minutes or until apples are tender. Remove apples from baking sheet with a slotted spoon. Carefully toss oats and 1/4 cup dark brown sugar in the apple liquid to coat. Bake oats for 10 minutes or until it begins to toast, be careful not to burn. Remove from oven and remove from baking sheet. Let apples and granola cool. (Home-prepared or store-bought granola can be substituted if you have it on hand).

Preheat oven to 350 and line with parchment cups/grease 2 muffin pans (12 muffins).

In a food processor, mix together the apples, almond milk, lemon, butter. Mix in the two types of brown sugar and vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients including remaining cinnamon. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir to combine.

Scoop about 1/4 cup of muffin mix into the muffin pans, making 9-12 muffins. Sprinkle the muffins with the granola and bake until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted, about 20-25 minutes.