It’s amazing how two people’s perception of the same thing can be so completely opposite based on their own personal experiences. When Ben and I first started spending time together, he would go on runs. Let me clarify, he would actually enjoy, going out, and just running. I couldn’t understand it because my experience with running only went as far as training for a different sport that I actually cared about, it was no more than a means to an end, but for him it WAS the end. He had ran track in high school so the running itself was the sport, the competition with himself to go farther than he’d gone last time, or faster than he’d gone before (seemingly impossible considering he hit 5.02 for the mile run his freshman year!). The same principle, although far less impressive, can be applied to different foods. Just the word “stew” is enough to turn my head, but for Ben it took a long time to picture anything other than a slightly thickened, under seasoned, unimpressive soup (don’t worry, he's long since put that tragic misconception behind him!). So many things in our lives are subject to interpretation, but there is one thing that spans all people, all ages, all geographic locations.
Everyone, loves, a good muffin.
Ok there are definitely far more important absolute truths than that. But let’s just start with this one and then we can work our way up! But for something so universally loved, it certainly seems to be tragically misunderstood. Although most people know better than to reach for a muffin for their highly nutritious breakfast option, many do seem to think of muffins as a middle of the road, or possibly even a little better, option for starting their day off right. Sadly, the truth is that you’d be far better off grabbing a glazed donut than your average blueberry muffin if you’re looking for a healthy breakfast. Weighing in at almost 500 calories, around 60 grams of simple carbs, and about 40 grams of sugar, the average muffin just about doubles the poor qualities in a donut, and is essentially the same as drinking a can of soda for breakfast. So no more muffins? Of course not! Just like we don’t have to say no to ice cream, cake, pie, or barbecue! We just need to tweak it to taste just as good, or even better, but give our bodies what they need!
Enter in our chunky almond muffins! These were actually one of the first non raw veggie foods we came up with, and long before we started sprouting grain, so we had assumed all baked goods were off the table for us. We traded fully processed white flour, for ground up almonds that have not been boiled, and therefore haven’t lost any of their raw nutrients. This swap alone takes care of a huge portion of the inflammation causing simple carbs (sugars) that the average muffin contains. It also replaces those detrimental components with inflammation and angiogenesis reducing proanthocyanidins, omega-3 polyunsaturated acids, carotenoids, and resveratrol. Then swapping out the white sugar for maple syrup and ripened bananas provides us with an array of natural vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to help with energy, immune support, metabolic function, heart disease and even blood pressure. This brings our grand total of calories down to about 280 per muffin, and more importantly, 280 calories of unprocessed, natural body function improving nutrition.
What could possibly make this swap even better? How about the fact that you’re not missing any of the delicious flavor, in fact if you’re anything like us, you’ll undoubtedly find yourself preferring this genuine flavor and texture as opposed to an over processed and sometimes crumbly cake. And even more exciting is that you can make a huge batch at once and freeze them to enjoy whenever you want!
Chunky Almond Muffins Recipe:
2 C Ground Almonds
1/2 C Sprouted Grain or Whole Wheat Flour
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
Pinch Salt
1-2 Ripe Bananas
1/3 C Maple Syrup
1/4 C Milk
2 Eggs
1/3 C Softened Coconut Oil
2 tsp Almond Extract
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
Mix all dry ingredients, then mix wet ingredients into the dry mixture well. Fill sprayed muffin cups 3/4 full, and bake at 350° for 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely before turning out.
Note: To make chocolate orange muffins, use 1/4 C of Sprouted Grain/Whole Wheat Flour and 1/4 C of Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. Also omit the almond extract in exchange for about 10 drops of food grade orange oil, or 1 Tbsp of orange zest.
Comments