Grain-less, Vegan, Gluten free, Double Chocolate Chip Cupcake/Muffins

It seems like summer came and left in a very short and abrupt manner. Usually by the time that winter rolls close, I'm ready to switch gears, to inside activities and blazing fires to keep the viscous weather amusing to watch out my window. And not terrifying because the threat it may bring. In the middle of -50 weather, I am always aware of how brutal the elements can be to us vulnerable humans, when I'm in my home staring out my windows as warmth from my oven and fireplace fill my house. But this year, I'm not quite ready.  Currently I'm typing away, as I see the pounding fall wind, have it's way with my kale, chard, and the few other items that remain from my constant months of cutting.  I will miss my garden. The carrots and potatoes are still needing to be harvested. And the tomatoes are still giving me sweet treats to munch on, freeze, or to juice. Tomatoes from a grocery story are a terrible representation of what the fruit actually tastes like. I grew my garden with organic heirloom seeds and tested my tomatoes with two kinds of seed view...the hybrids (done through regular, selective breeding, not gmo, but organic) and heirloom (seeds from varieties that have been around for a long time).....there are two sides debating the quantity and quality of each. I will no longer grow anything but the heirloom! It has been such fun seeing colors and odd shapes, plants I never find at that grocery store place that I'm dreading having to go to during the winter :(

my bounty

But onward and upward I strive to climb. My children have all been in school almost 3 weeks! Yaye!! Except that I still haven't felt that freedom, yet, that comes from having some free time. Why? Well because I have had to go and deal with behavior issues from my oldest and youngest kids...my boys. Parenting is a humbling, humbling, job. I was way better at it when I didn't have children and I saw how other people "where doing it wrong". How hard can it be? I'd think, watching a child throw a fit, and wishing the parent would just pick up the child and spank. Needless to say, I'm eating massive amounts of Humble Pie, and I think it has gluten and casein in it, cause I constantly feel crazy and sick. 

I have also started school...I am studying online through this college....I am beginning with the nutritional consultant program. I spent several hours last night studying all the different parasites and yeast overgrowth that can and often does occur in the gut, that goes undiagnosed, and untreated in America....I am pretty convinced I have all of them! (yep, I think that way). The amount of material and information I need to absorb is overwhelming. But what really overwhelms me is the research documents/case studies that I'll have to put together. In case you, the reader, haven't noticed...punctuality, and sentence structure...is not my strong suit....what can I say? I love dots!

So I've been dabbling in tinctures. I grew echinacea this spring, and the plant just has been happy and growing, so I will post what I'm doing with it, soon.

In the meantime I will divulge the recipe you came for. I have been trying to bake just the right chocolate muffin....for years!!! (I think I'm going to use this recipe for brownies, if anyone beats me to it, let me know how they come out) I came up with this recipe tonight, so that I could have something to stick in my children's lunches tomorrow (I know, right?!). But since I have a great amount of zucchini, I feel good about this judgement call. No zantham gum or starch flours, because, I just don't think either is great for your body (I have deep suspicions about where zantham gum is grown)

Side note, I'm still trying to figure out, why my first cupcake had a piece of glass in it? I may never know the answer to the disturbing mystery, but it happened. I bit in the cupcake and a hard piece was in my gooey middle experience....I was confident that it was an isolated peice of glass...but where did it come from?

Double Chocolatey Goodness Muffins, oh wait, Cupcakes?

So here's what I did... set oven to 350 and set aside 1 1/4c of coconut milk (I used So Deliscious) and add a Tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar, the milk will curdle,  (voila, vegan "buttermilk", without puss or blood:) set aside.

Dry ingredients to mix

1/3c of garbanzo/fava bean flour mix (you can use Bob's mill brand) but I simply ground full beans in my vitamix and have a 3/4c of fava to 1c of garbanzo bean mixture, waiting for me in the fridge

1/3c of buckwheat flour (again I grind mine in the vitamix)

1/3c of quinoa flour (it really saves you money to grind your own)

1/4c of ground chia seeds or ground flax (again I recomend grinding your own in a coffee grinder)

1/2c of cocoa powder

1/2c of coconut palm sugar/crystals (low glycemic)

1t of baking soda (aluminum free)

2t of baking powder (see above)

1/2t of salt
mix your dry ingredients nicely....then add

1T of vanilla extract (I make my own...sooo easy, I'll post how with the echinacea tincture blog)

1/2c of coconut oil melted (you can use olive, if you don't have coconut)

now grab a blender (or a grater) and mix some of the curdled milk with a half a medium sized zucchini....(I tend to use about a cup cubed size).... once all blended...add to the batter and mix thoroughly....

scoop up in tins and bake for 22 minutes (fill tins about 3/4 full, they will rise)... this batter made me 15 muffins (be sure to fill the spots without batter, with water, so the heat distribute evenly) ...shout out to my friend, Tiffany Seale for that great tip! 

It's been a full day, good night

  Pin It Now!