Blueberry Muffins (Gluten Free, Vegan & Refined Sugar Free)

Okay let me just go ahead and say this right off the bat - I'm a blueberry muffin snob. For real, I'm picky about blueberry muffins and I'm not easy to please. Hands down, the best blueberry muffin recipe I have ever had are there Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins. But, then I quit gluten and dairy and thought I would never eat a good blueberry muffin again. That is, until I made these muffins!

I brought one of these muffins into work for my boss and she could not believe they were allergen friendly. I frequently hear people say they are trying to cut out gluten or dairy or sugar... but are struggling because their kids/spouse/family/friends... won't eat that way. Let me first say, that I am lucky to be surrounded by people who are adventurous and will try just about anything! But, I really don't think I've made that much of a compromise in the food department. And these muffins are a great example of that - you could easily whip up a batch of them and serve them to any group of people without any questions. They're just good. Period. Let's get to the recipe, shall we?

This recipe is from a blog called Making Thyme for my Health. I made a few adjustments based on suggestions in the comments - all of which I've detailed below. You can find the original recipe HERE.

Start by adding 1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon of non-dairy milk (I use oat milk) and 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice to a small mixing bowl. Leave this to sit for a minute.

Can we take a second to talk about oat milk? You can go right ahead and say I'm obsessed with oat milk. I will own that! I used to use cashew milk for everything, but I've completely switched over to oat milk. I love how it froths when I make chai lattes and peppermint hot chocolates (recipes soon!) and it is by far my favorite non-dairy milk now!

Add in 1/2 cup of applesauce, 1/2 cup of maple syrup, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 3 Tablespoons of tahini and 2 Tablespoons of lemon zest. Stir these wet ingredients together until everything is well combined - make sure there are no chunks of tahini.

Next, in a separate small bowl prep one egg replacer. I use Bob Red Mill's egg replacer - 1 Tablespoon of the egg replacer and 2 Tablespoons of powder. I have not tried other egg replacers in this recipe. If you try this with a chia egg or flax egg, let me know how it goes! Leave the egg replacer to the side so that it can congeal while you combine the dry ingredients.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of oat flour, 1/2 cup of gluten free flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Just fyi - you can make your own oat flour by processing oats in the food processor until they make a fine flour. Make sure you leave the oats in the food processor long enough so you have a flour with no coarse pieces.

Add the wet ingredients and the egg replacer to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Once combined, fold in 1 cup of blueberries until they are evenly distributed. I use frozen blueberries, but you can use fresh blueberries too!

Prepare a muffin tin either with cupcake liners or with coconut oil. Fill each muffin cup to be about 3/4 of the way full.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Once preheated, bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes. I always put mine in the oven for 22 and they come out perfect! I took the pictures for this recipe back in September and I have since made them about 100 times! That is a slight exaggeration, but they are frequently requested in my house. We make them almost weekly.

When the muffins come out of the oven, let them sit in the tin for about 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Gluten free, Vegan & Refined Sugar Free
yield 12 muffins

ingredients
1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon non-dairy milk (I use oat milk)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons tahini
2 Tablespoons lemon zest
1 egg replacer (I use Bob Red Mill's)
2 cups gluten free oat flour
1/2 cup gluten free flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

directions
1. Combine the non-dairy milk and the lemon juice in a small mixing bowl. leave this combo to sit for a minute.
2. Add the applesauce, the maple syrup, the vanilla extract, the tahini and the lemon zest to the small mixing bowl and stir combine. Set this aside until later.
3. Prepare the egg replacer. For Bob Red Mill's egg replacer, use 1 Tablespoon of the egg replacer and 2 Tablespoons of water. Leave the egg replacer to congeal while you combine the dry ingredients.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the GF oat flour, the GF flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt.
5. Add the wet ingredients and the egg replacer to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. When the batter is uniform fold in the blueberries until they are evenly distributed.
6. Prepare a muffin tin by lining it with a cupcake liners or coconut oil. Fill each muffin cup to be about 3/4 of the way full.
7. Preheat the oven to be 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes.
8. Once baked, let the muffins sit in the muffin tin for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Store the muffins in an air-tight container for 4-5 days.

As usual, let m know if you have any questions!