The flour blend I used was Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour which I had left over from making the Gluten-Free Baking Powder Biscuits. I added a little psyllium husk powder to help with binding and moisture retention. Be sure to use psyillium husk powder and not the whole husk. If you can't find the powder, grind the whole husk in a blender or spice grinder until powdery. Feel free to try your favourite gluten-free flour blend or even oat flour (omit the psyllium husk powder if you make these with oat flour). If you aren't following a gluten-free diet, you should be able to make these muffins with wheat flour. Use the same amount of wheat flour as gluten-free flour and remember to omit the psyllium husk powder.
For the liquid ingredients, rather than the usual sour soy milk, I decided to try rooibos tea. The tea is slightly acidic and reacts with the leavening ingredients to give some lift while adding a light flavour and keeping the fat content low.
I'm surprised at how sweet these muffins are. I did add a small amount of sugar to the recipe but a lot of the sweetness comes from other ingredients such as the carrots, applesauce, and the masala chai spice blend. I like the dark molasses notes of demerara or coconut sugar. Sucanat would give these muffins a lovely caramel taste. Maple syrup would be good, too.
The muffins will be a little moist in the middle when you remove them from the oven. Let them sit and cool to room temperature before serving.
Double the recipe to make 12 muffins. To make as a loaf, line a loaf pan with parchment paper, double the recipe, and double the cooking time.
makes 6 muffins
120 grams (1 cup) Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoons salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon psyllium husk powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 bag rooibos tea
1/2 cup boiling water
1-1/2 teaspoons ground flax seed
1-1/2 Tablespoons warm water
1/4 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup demerara sugar (or sweetener of choice)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup grated carrot (about 1 medium carrot, peeled)
1/4 cup raisins (optional)
To your health and happiness,
Beans and Rice