My favorite taste tester is going on a diet. This is not good news.
This diet deal will require some serious re-inventing of the wheel over here. New standards will need to be implemented. No more –he ate two whole trays of that so it must be good– type ratings.
My favorite taste tester is also my best friend and has been for 16 years. He does not like it when I call him my “partner,” says it makes us sound like lesbians. I say it makes us sound like partners. Alas, he actually is my husband. And he is turning 41 tomorrow.
After all these years, I still love to just be with him. Still feel excited when he walks into the room. And of course feel irritated when he runs out of the kitchen leaving every single cupboard door open behind him. What can I say? Nothing. He has had to live with my “cleaning disorder” for years now, so why fret over a few open cabinets and such.
I’m going to make him these Cranberry Lemon Muffins tomorrow for a warm breakfast birthday treat.
Cranberry Lemon Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup grapeseed oil or palm shortening
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup agave nectar or honey
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine almond flour, salt, baking soda and cranberries
- In a small bowl stir together oil, eggs, agave and lemon zest
- Stir wet ingredients into dry
- Spoon batter into a paper lined muffin pan
- Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes
- Cool and serve
Equipment
These gluten-free, dairy-free muffins are on the sweeter side and make a nice festive dish for a brunch or a healthy dessert for a potluck. Because they are more “liquidy” than usual they will sink just a tad after you remove them from the oven.
Mars says
These were amazing! I subbed whole cranberries and reduced the oil a bit and replaced it with fresh squeezed lemon juice (from that lemon I zested). I also subbed 1/2 cup of the almond flour for coconut flour. My daughter and I have nearly downed the whole dozen in minutes! Thank you Elana.
Melanie says
I was so excited to make these muffins for my daughter who is on a restrictive diet thanks to a gazillion food sensitivities however I think I made a mistake somewhere. The batter was very dry and crumbly. i subtituted honey and olive oil for the agave nectar and grapeseed oil. Could this be why my batter was so crumbly?
Jessica says
Any time you’re substituting ingredients there’s bound to be some experimenting ahead… But I know a lot of people sub honey for agave in Elana’s recipes with great results, however, every recipe is different so I’m sure it can’t be said for all of them. I don’t believe I’ve seen olive oil as a sub for grapeseed oil though…
What kind of almond flour did you use? Was it blanched?
Maybe someone in the Forums has a suggestion?
KSM says
My husband and I make these all the time, and we experiment with the recipe quite a bit. We do use about 2 tablespoons less grape seed oil than the recipe calls for, and we like it better. But we put in whatever nuts and dried or fresh fruits we have in the house, and they always turn out GREAT. Last week I made them with fresh blueberries and dried cranberries. Today I made them with my homemade trail mix: dried cranberries, dried apricots, walnuts and dried apples. I chopped the apricots and apples. They’re DELICIOUS. Elana, thank you so much for this recipe! It is versatile, nutritious and delicious. :)
Carolina says
Hi Elana! My name is Carolina, I am 16 and I am chilean. I got diabetes since I was 10 and it has been very difficult for me to change my habits. But visiting your blog has been a light of hope, because I never thought that I could do SO DELICIOUS treats and at the same time being healthy.
I will travel to U.S for my winter vacations (in Chile, winter is now) and one of the first things I will do, will be to visit a Barnes § Noble to buy your cook book.
Thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks for sharing all your recipes, I admire so much your work and your dedication!
Wherever I go (parties, birthdays, dinners…) nobody thinks on having special food for people with diabetes, and I suffer a lot when I was younger and I couldn’t eat cake on my friend’s birthdays… I couldn’t even do sports without been worried of my sugar levels!
I am sure that something similar happened to you…
That’s why I feel so identified with you and your son!
Thanks again,
Carolina
elana says
Dear Carolina,
Thanks for your comment and for sharing your story. I would love to meet you someday if when you come to the US you are in Colorado :-)
Elana
Janice says
Hi Elana,
This is the first recipe I’ve made from your website. My muffins taste a little bit oily and they browned a bit too much on top and the sides. I’m wondering if the problem with the browning is the type of muffin pan I used. The flavor is great! I just wish they weren’t so brown.
Thanks for any advice.
KSM says
We leave them in the oven for 25 minutes and they are quite brown on top, but they’re delicious. Also, we use 2 tablespoons less grape seed oil. They turn out much less oily and they’re GREAT. Hope it helps.
zab says
I love baking muffins and cupcakes– and yours look so good– but I cannot eat eggs, finding it hard to get some light recipes. Suggestion?
Wade says
WOW! These are delicious! I was recently diagnosed as gluten intolerant and thought I would have to end my love affair with muffins. Not so! My wife, who was very skeptical, asked how much butter I used. She couldn’t believe there was no butter, sugar, or flour. We both are amazed at how good these are. I’m so glad I found your website. This is the first recipe of yours that I’ve tried, but certainly not the last. Thank you!
Jose says
Just amazing. I can’t believe how good these are. I don’t think I’d ever want to go back to wheat-flour muffins again. I didn’t have a lemon or dried cranberries so I used orange peel and dried cherries (and a shake or two of cinnamon). So good. These are a new favorite. Thank you Elana.
Susan says
Great recipe. I tried these tonight with a few changes and were the most amazing muffins I have tasted. I substituted lemon olive oil for the grapeseed oil, added a 1/2 cup of pecans, and used 1/2 cup cranberries and 1/2 cup blueberries. Thank you so much for this site. I am loving experimenting with these recipes.
Ben says
Thanks so much for sharing your recipe!
I did several substitutions, but the results were very good.
1 cup of hazel nut flour
1 cup of buckwheat flour
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon of xanthum gum
5/8 cup of brown rice syrup
1 cup of blueberries
Left the salt, baking soda, zest, and oil the same.
This reduced the cooking time by at least 5 minutes. I really enjoy buckwheat and blueberries, and I had to make do with what ingredients were around too. :)