A few weeks ago, I mentioned my recipe fail for Strawberries and “Cream” Muffins I was trying to make. In case you forgot, you can see the instagram pic here.
Well, I was determined to make it work because even though they looked horrible, they tasted really good.
And I loved the idea of a creaminess to add to the strawberries without having to use dairy. I’m really trying to avoid it since my allergy panel said I was allergic to cow’s milk. But I am not allergic to cheese according to that piece of paper. So, I still eat cheese here and there. Haven’t noticed any issues with cheese but I do with milk. Weird. I think it’s in my head. My brain (and palette) doesn’t want to give up cheese, but I can do without milk.
So, anyway. Back to the Strawberries and “Cream” Muffin Recipe. The last batch blew up like a balloon in my oven and went all over the place. Like an oozing volcano. Um, yeah…. nope. Don’t need that.
But they had the creamy taste I was looking for.
Back to the drawing board.
Did a few more tweaks to the recipe. A little less of the “creamy” ingredient. A little more of the dryer flour to soak it up. I baked the “new” muffins, and they looked beautiful.
But when I took one out to try, half of it stuck to the muffin pan. What the…?
I know I remembered sugar, unlike the Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Muffin try.
I sprayed the pan. Why was it sticking?
Then I pulled another one out. It wasn’t really sticking to the pan. But it wasn’t really sticking together as a muffin, either. Let me look in the fridge for something.
Oh. Whoops.
There on the shelf was the flax egg that was supposed to go in the “wet ingredients.” Hmmm…
Let’s try that one again.
They still tasted good, so I knew I was on the right track. Now, I really just need them to look like muffins instead of a natural disaster. First I had a volcano. Now, I had the aftermath of an earthquake. (Sorry. I didn’t take pictures. It was late.)
I kept trying, and I finally got it right. So, without any further ado, here is the Strawberries and “Cream” Muffin Recipe. I hope you like it.
Strawberries and “Cream” Muffin Recipe (Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan)
- Total Time: 44 mins
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
Ingredients
- 2 Flax Eggs
- Dry Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups Almond Flour
- 1 cup Rice Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 3/4 cup Brown Sugar
- 1 tbs Cinnamon
- Wet Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups Strawberries (chopped and divided)
- 1/2 cup Silken Tofu
- 1/4 cup Grapeseed Oil
- 1 tsp Vanilla
Instructions
- Make flax eggs. (Check this post for how to make a flax egg.)
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Grease muffin tin. I use coconut oil spray.
- Mix all dry ingredients together, very well, in a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, mix 1 cup of the strawberries, tofu, vanilla and flax eggs.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Scoop out batter into muffin tin. Should make 12.
- Use the 1/2 cup of strawberries left to place pieces on top of the muffins before baking, as shown in the pictures. You can also add sliced almonds if you choose.
- Bake for 22 – 22 minutes.
- Check with a toothpick for doneness.
Notes
Almond Flour – I have only ever used Honeyville Blanched Almond Flour. I was informed the other almond flours maybe a bit too wet one their own. You might want to sub part of the almond flour for a drier flour such as rice or coconut flour.
Eggs – If you can eat eggs and want to, just sub 2 regular eggs for the flax eggs.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 24 mins
These strawberry muffins look and sound seriously delicious… I have a feeling that they would be perfect for breakfast or even afternoon tea. I must try the recipe, thanks for sharing!
Hi Thalia,
These muffins are good for just about anytime. I like the idea of breakfast or tea. Hope you like them.
~Tia
Glad you were able to weather through the volcano and earthquakes to arrive at the paradise of these muffins. They look splendid!
Thanks, Steve! Just glad I didn’t get a typhoon or a tsunami. 😉
~Tia
They look amazing and I love the healthy recipe you shared! Testing muffin (pretty much any baking) recipe can be frustrating, but you were dedicated to develop this one and they look perfect!
Hi Mira,
Thank you! Testing the muffins can be a a bit frustrating, but usually I at least get the taste ok, even if it takes a few tries to get them to look like “muffins.” 😉
~Tia
There are a few chemical/nutrient differences between cheese and milk that probably make the difference for you 🙂
Most cheese has little to no lactose, because the cultures eat up the sugars. If you find you do better with aged/cultured cheeses versus ‘fresh’ or uncultured, that indicates it is probably something to do with the sugars in milk that get digested during aging.
(My spouse has trouble digesting milk, and has noticeably more reaction to younger cheeses like mozarella or ricotta than to cheddar or other aged stuff)
That is really interesting, Sarah. Never thought about all that. I do mostly eat cheddar when I eat cheese. Thanks for the info.
~Tia
Hi, I would love to try your recipe for my 2 yr old daughter who is gluten free, egg free & vegan. I had a question though. What is the purpose of include silken tofu? Can I substitute with soy or almond milk? Also instead of grape seed oil , can I add coconut oil?
Hi Preeti-
Well, the tofu was to give it a more “creamy” texture. If you don’t use it, it will just be more muffin like. But I think you will have to up the oil a little bit. Maybe more like 1/2 a cup. And I am not sure about coconut oil vs grapes oil. I haven’t tried it. I’m thinking it shouldn’t be a problem, but I just don’t know since I haven’t used it.
Sorry if that doesn’t help at all. It’s just so hard to say for sure unless I try it out. I do have a few other muffin recipes on here, if you want to try. http://tiaskitchen.com/?s=muffins
~Tia