Can you believe there are 9 fruits and vegetables stuffed into these little muffins? Let me tell you, that fact makes it soooo easy to justify cake for breakfast! But they’re amazingly delicious, pretty filling, and only 191 calories each – so not a terrible option for something sweet and decadent, or breakfast on the run. A big shout out to Smitten Kitchen for the recipe – mine is an adaptation of an adaptation, which is pretty much the joy of cooking: no one does things exactly the same, and that diversity is beautiful.
This recipe yields 16 small muffins, which is perfect for me because I have one with coffee an hour or so after a bowl of Weetbix and berries, but making 8 larger muffins to have as a full breakfast is a viable option, as well. Just adjust the cooking time, and start checking on them afyer about 30 minutes. They’re a super moist muffin, but a skewer should still come out clean.
Ingredients
1.5 Granny Smith apples, grated
1 large carrot, grated
225g can crushed pineapple, drained well
1/3 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 cup dried fruit (I used a mix of dried apple, beetroot, craisins, blueberries and sultanas)
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2/3 cup raw sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups self raising flour
2 tablespoons pepitas
Method
- Preheat oven to 180C. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with paper cases.
- Place apple, carrot, pineapple, coconut, dried fruit, lemon zest, sugar, spices and oil in large bowl. Add eggs, and stir to combine.
- Add flour, and mix very gently.
- Fill paper cases to about 3/4 capacity, and sprinkle with pepitas, making sure to save some for the next batch.
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, and transfer to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining batter and pepitas, remembering that cooking time will be slightly less due to a smaller amount of muffins being cooked in the pan the second time around
