Apple Muffins
There’s a bag of buckwheat flour in the pantry so have been searching my cookbooks and the net for ideas using buckwheat flour.
I came across an Apple, Almond & Buckwheat Muffin recipe from Green Kitchen Stories - it appears to be a well-loved recipe.
These muffins are not at all sweet. The only sweetness comes from the dates - almost what I would call a breakfast muffin.
I have adapted the recipe to suit what’s in the pantry and changed the method into my own style of writing, but I acknowledge the original recipe is from Green Kitchen Stories.
Make up the apple sauce for the muffin mixture and filling ahead of time, even the day before is good, just keep covered in the fridge. I like to cook extra apples and then use in my morning porridge.
Annoyingly, there is too much mixture for a 12-hole muffin tin, but I can’t throw anything away so baked 2 muffins separately.
Makes 14
Apple Sauce
2 Granny Smith apples
1 teaspoon honey or 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup to sweeten, optional
Muffins
1 cup rolled oats (porridge oats)
¾ cup buckwheat flour
2 tablespoons cornflour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup ground almonds
10 Medjool dates, pitted and cut in half
¾ cup thick natural unsweetened yoghurt
50g butter, melted
3 free-range eggs
2 Granny Smith apples
½ cup apple sauce
Topping
2 thin slices apple per muffin, I used a Royal Gala apple as I’m shallow and wanted a good colour on top of muffins for the photograph
ground cinnamon for sprinkling
Make the apple sauce, peel, core and slice the apples and place in a saucepan with a splash of water and sweeten, if wished. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the apples are soft. Remove from the heat and mash with a fork. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with baking paper cases. Place 2 paper cases in each hole for extra protection during baking. The bottom paper case can be used again.
Place the rolled oats, buckwheat flour, cornflour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a food processor and process until the oats are no longer coarse. Add the ground almonds and process until just combined. Transfer to a large bowl.
Place the dates in the food processor and process until chopped. Add the yoghurt, melted butter, eggs and ½ cup apple sauce and process until combined.
Lightly peel and coarsely grate the apples (you should have 2 good cups) and add to the dry ingredients along with the wet ingredients. Mix to combine, making sure you get right down to the bottom of the bowl as you mix. The mixture should be soft but holding its shape.
Half fill each baking paper case with the mixture. Spoon a scant teaspoonful of apple sauce in, then top with more muffin mixture, filling more or less to the top as the muffins don’t rise much during baking. Top each with apple slices and dust with ground cinnamon.
Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until springy to the touch.
Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack.
Tip – work as quickly as you can when filling the baking paper cases with the mixture and apple sauce.