SEASON TO SEASON EATING
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Photography
  • My pantry
  • Inspire
  • Contact me

Hearty Pecan Muff-Cakes

1/30/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
These muffins are just down right perfect in texture, taste and nutrition, they are now my favorite muffin yet! I wanted to create a muffin that truly harnessed the rich flavor of pecans, that sweet, yet nutty aroma. These muffins have all the true flavor of pecans all wrapped up in a portable little package, plus they are gluten free, vegan and ... low carb to boot! Feel free to just grab one on the go, or during that sinful dessert craving. The term "muff-cake" is acceptable here since these muffins have many qualities of muffins, in that they are packed with nutrition, yet they also have that decadent rich taste of a cupcake. 

Baking really is all about the stories, nothing can  bring back memories better than a taste or a smell. When I was little, I always remember picking up fallen pecans down in our backyard with the anticipation of my mom's homemade pecan pie. We would come back with buckets and buckets full, it would take us months to get them all shelled, one shell at a time. Although these muffins are no way near my mom's pecan pie, the smell still brings it back to me. 

In order to prevent compromising flavor for texture, I decided to add pecan flour and pecan butter to create the perfect amount of moisture. Pecans already have some natural sweetness that really takes these beauties over the edge! Pecans also have been known to boost brain function, as I have said before. The best part about these muffins though, it that they are both vegan and low carb, which is really hard to come by. Low carb flours usually require egg to serve as a binder, but this recipe defies all odds! Vegans usually eat a lot of carbs, even though they are good carbs, it is nice to change it up a bit. These muffins are also packed with healthy fats, which hold an array of benefits from heart health to the fight against depression. Is there ever a more delicious way to enjoy pecans? 
Picture
Picture

Hearty Pecan Muff-Cakes

Gluten Free, Vegan, Low Carb

Ingredients: 

1 1/4 cups pecan meal* 

1/3 cup oat flour (ground from GF rolled oats, I have also found that buckwheat works good too) 

1/3 cup coconut flour 

2 tbs ground flax seed meal

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar (to help with the leavening) 

1 extra ripe banana, throughly mashed

2 tbs maple syrup 

1/2 cup almond milk (or another nut milk) + 2 tbs more if needed

1/4 cup homemade pecan butter*

extra chopped pecans for the topping + some pecan halves

Instructions:

Pre heat the oven to 350F degrees. 

Make your pecan flour (instructions below), and add it to a bowl along with all the other dry ingredients, stir to combine. 

In a separate bowl, combine the almond milk and pecan butter, then gently whisk them together. Next, add in the banana and maple syrup, adding the vinegar last, then continue to thoroughly whisk the mixture. Carefully stir together the wet and dry bowls. If the mixture seems too dry, add in the additional 2 tbs almond milk. 

Now, pour the batter into paper lined muffin tins and finish them off with the leftover crumbled pecans and one large half if desired. Bake the muffins for about 20 - 25  minutes (you will be able to smell them)! Enjoy! 

*For the pecan flour I simply threw a scant 1 1/4 cups shelled pecans into my high speed blender (or food processor if you prefer) and pulsed them until they resembled a course flour. Be careful not to make butter, it really only takes a few seconds. It should resemble wet sand.

*For the pecan butter I used about 2 cups shelled pecans, roasted them for about 30 minutes a 350F degrees and processed them in the food processor for about 5-7 minutes. You can store the leftovers in a glass jar inside the fridge for months. It also tastes divine on fresh toast or with an apple. You can also buy this specialty butter at health food stores, but they are very expensive and I have found that making it is Much-Much cheaper!

Picture
Picture
                                                                                                                                                                        Post by: Rebecca


              Featured Articles from FEM by mgid:
Place your ad here
Loading...
3 Comments
Rachel @ Bakerita link
2/13/2013 03:20:10 pm

Looks so delicious!! What a yummy flavor combo. I'd love to have one of these for breakfast.

Reply
Rebecca link
2/14/2013 10:00:57 pm

Thank you, they are so easy to make too and keep for a while in the fridge!

Reply
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan link
3/5/2013 06:51:12 am

Holy cow, these look perfect! I think my bowl of cereal tomorrow morning will look measly next to these : )

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    About the editor

    Picture






    Rebecca is a passionate young cook who enjoys cooking with the freshest ingredients possible, foraged straight from the earth. Season To Season Eating was created to show the world how beneficial it is to find and prepare whole, nourishing foods seasonally and effortlessly. On any normal day you may find her wandering through the forest with herbs in hand or crafting beautiful things to share with friends.

    Popular Posts: 

    Valentine Citrus Juice 
    Ultimate RAW Brownie 
    Creamy Polenta with Mushrooms  
    Cheezy Cauliflower Bites
    Lemon and Ginger Kale Chips   
    Lemony Cheesecake Bites

    Categories

    All
    Appetizer
    Apple
    Autumn
    Avocado
    Baked
    Banana
    Bean
    Biscuit
    Bliss
    Blueberry
    Breakfast
    Cake
    Cardamom
    Carrot
    Cashew
    Cauliflower
    Chai
    Chocolate
    Christmas
    Coconut
    Comfort Food
    Cookies
    Dairy Free
    Dairy Free
    Dates
    Dessert
    Digestive Health
    Dinner
    Donuts
    Doughnuts
    Drink
    Easy
    Egg
    Fall
    Figs
    Food As Medicine
    Gluten Free
    Gluten-free
    Grain
    Granola
    Halloween
    Herbs
    Ice Cream
    Jam
    Low Carb
    Low-carb
    Lunch
    Muffins
    Nourishing
    Nut Free
    Nut-free
    Pancakes
    Pasta
    Peanut Butter
    Pear
    Pie
    Protein
    Pumpkin
    Raw
    Roasted
    Salad
    Side Dish
    Side-dish
    Smoothie
    Snack
    Soul Soothing
    Soup
    Spelt
    Spiced
    Spring
    Sprouted
    Squash
    Strawberry
    Summer
    Sweet
    Sweet Potato
    Thanksgiving
    Tomato
    Valentines Day
    Vegan
    Vegetarian
    Winter