Do you guys listen to Snoop Dogg? haha – growing up in Oakland, hip hop was pretty much my go-to genre as a kid. For some reason, Snoop’s lyrics comes to mind but with this recipe, I’m singing… “with my mind on my muffins, and my muffins on my mind!” LOL. I just can’t resist these cute sweet mini cakes, with perfectly domed tops that I can’t get enough of. Now that all of those fall spices are on sale at the market, I couldn’t help but make a freshly baked batch of vegan pumpkin pear almond muffins right at home. Have you done much vegan baking or want to learn more? Read on my friends!
When I was a kid baking with Betty Crocker cake mixes, I would have never guessed that I’d be making muffins from scratch that were VEGAN. If I were to channel my East Bay teenage self I’d probably be thinking WTF is vegan!? Haha… It was a very unfamiliar category for me, but now it’s a very well-known lifestyle choice that has taken the food industry by storm. Since I’ve “matured” and somehow turned into a geeky scientist, I’m definitely curious when it comes to vegan recipes especially when they surprise me and turn out awesome. I live for these edible fun experiments and I promise you the results are delicious!
To make these muffins extra tasty it all starts with pumpkin puree (tis the season, right?), almonds, fresh Bartlet pears and old-fashioned oats. Apples seem to always be the star during the holidays, but my heart goes out to those gorgeous delicate pears, so many varieties that are so different and delicious!
Okay, so what makes these muffins vegan? I’ve taken out all of the dairy products, typically butter and milk as well as the eggs. Vegan diets typically exclude anything that comes from an animal (meat, dairy, eggs) and even honey. What I’ve substituted instead is coconut milk for butter, almond milk for cow’s milk and I made ground flaxseed
“eggs” to sub for the chicken eggs. Even with all of those ingredient changes, the muffins came out tender, moist, with just a hint of sweetness. What’s even cooler is that it’s safe to taste the unbaked dough before eating to see if the spices are just right. No guilty feelings for licking your fingers!
“eggs” to sub for the chicken eggs. Even with all of those ingredient changes, the muffins came out tender, moist, with just a hint of sweetness. What’s even cooler is that it’s safe to taste the unbaked dough before eating to see if the spices are just right. No guilty feelings for licking your fingers!
I decided to make these muffins two ways, with all-purpose flour and with gluten free flour from Cup4Cup.
Because there is milk powder in this particular gluten free flour blend, this would make the muffins NOT vegan. However there may be other brands who may provide dairy free blends. It’s still a great option for people who are sensitive to gluten, and I wanted to see if I could achieve a nice pastry alternative all in one mighty muffin. If you are sensitive to gluten, make sure to get gluten-free oats as well for this recipe!
Because there is milk powder in this particular gluten free flour blend, this would make the muffins NOT vegan. However there may be other brands who may provide dairy free blends. It’s still a great option for people who are sensitive to gluten, and I wanted to see if I could achieve a nice pastry alternative all in one mighty muffin. If you are sensitive to gluten, make sure to get gluten-free oats as well for this recipe!
I really enjoyed how moist the muffins were both ways, I think the spiced sauteed pears really helped to keep the muffins from getting dried out. I did notice that these muffins were denser and spongy versus crumbly. Probably because there was not very much fat in the muffin batter and no egg proteins. The muffins stuck to the liner a bit so I would try using cooking spray in the muffin tin and remove the liner next time.
Check out all of the awesomeness going on inside those vegan muffins! Each bite is filled with nuts, oats, and fresh pear. They are best enjoyed warm out of the oven, a wonderful healthier breakfast treat or afternoon snack. We gobbled up a couple each, they were hard to resist, especially with the spiced pumpkin batter, yum!
TIP: What is a “Flax Egg”?
A flax egg replacer is a combination of flaxseed meal (must be ground) plus water. It’s used to substitute a chicken egg in baking or for savory applications like breading meat. The recipe for 1 egg is 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed plus 3 tablespoons water, stirred together and allowed to sit for at least 5 minutes. You’ll notice the texture of the mixture becoming thicker and slimy like egg whites. This is a gel forming from mucilaginous material in the flax hull with liquid, this is a hydrocolloid forming within minutes. The gel helps to build structure, emulsify, yet has low foaming ability since no proteins are present. You would then use them in a recipe the same way you would use eggs. They work best for quickbreads like these muffins, pancakes, brownies and cookies.(Source: Veganbaking.net)
A flax egg replacer is a combination of flaxseed meal (must be ground) plus water. It’s used to substitute a chicken egg in baking or for savory applications like breading meat. The recipe for 1 egg is 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed plus 3 tablespoons water, stirred together and allowed to sit for at least 5 minutes. You’ll notice the texture of the mixture becoming thicker and slimy like egg whites. This is a gel forming from mucilaginous material in the flax hull with liquid, this is a hydrocolloid forming within minutes. The gel helps to build structure, emulsify, yet has low foaming ability since no proteins are present. You would then use them in a recipe the same way you would use eggs. They work best for quickbreads like these muffins, pancakes, brownies and cookies.(Source: Veganbaking.net)
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