Cherry rye muffins

Cherry rye muffins are just healthy enough to feel virtuous without sacrificing flavor or texture. I promise these are worth heating up your kitchen for!

Take me to the muffins, please!

It’s been a minute since I posted something to the blog here and I have no excuse except that… I hate July. Don’t get me wrong, there is A LOT to love about summer. Produce, herbs, ice cream, pick-your-own blueberries, swimming, beach days, later nights, more sunlight, BBQs, a slower pace, vacations, etc. But the bugs and sweat and general malaise that overtakes me when that weighted blanket of humidity settles over the northeast, make it nearly impossible for me to stay productive.

However! I’ve soldiered on behind the scenes and heated my kitchen countless times to get these muffins exactly right.

The rye flour, to me, is just enough to taste the nutty flavor without changing the texture or inhibiting the rise on these muffins.

I also added just enough baking powder and soda to get a good amount of leavening without leaving a weird bitter aftertaste from too much rising agent. A note about rising agents: I’ve been adding the rising agent at the end and letting the batter bubble slightly after learning this technique from the America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook. Does it make a huge difference in these muffins? I’m not sure. But it certainly doesn’t hurt.

I’ve also combined fresh, sweet cherries for moisture and seasonality, but added some unsweetened and unsulfured dried cherries for a concentrated cherry flavor. I haven’t tried omitting either from the batter, but in the coming months, I’m sure frozen cherries could be subbed for the fresh.

How to check fruit desserts for doneness: This can be tricky! When there’s a lot of fruit in a batter, checking with a toothpick or cake tester can be misleading because if you stick it into a piece of fruit, the tester may come out looking wet. Instead, I like to push on the tops of the muffins a bit and feel how firm they are. If the top springs back and maintains its shape after gently squished and the body of the muffin feels lightly firm (like a medium rare steak; you don’t want a hocky puck with no give, but you also don’t want to feel at risk of sticking your finger through the muffin), they’re done.

Also, let the muffins cool completely. Like, really let them cool. I’m the queen of eating muffins too soon and I end up losing half of the crust when it sticks to the baking paper and the muffin can be crumbly when still warm. But if you must, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Cherry rye muffins

Active time: 20-25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 40-45 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

3 Tbsp butter, softened to room temperature for about 1 hour
¾ cup coconut sugar 
2 eggs
¾ cup full fat plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1½ cups AP flour
½ cup rye flour
2 Tbsp flax seed meal
¼ tsp salt
1 cup whole cherries, roughly chopped
¼ cup dried, unsweetened cherries, minced
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda

Streusel topping
2 Tbsp butter, softened to room temperature for about hour
½ cup oats
1/8 tsp salt
¼ cup packed brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a large bowl, mix together the softened butter (no need to use a hand mixer, just elbow grease and a wooden or silicone spatula) and the coconut sugar.

Add the eggs and mix until fully combined.

Add the yogurt and vanilla extract and mix again until fully combined.

Add the flours, flax seeds, and salt to the wet mixture and mix until no streaks of flour remain.

Add the fresh and dried cherries and mix in 10 times.

Finally, add the baking powder and baking soda and mix just until combined. Let sit while you make the streusel topping.

In a small bowl, mix together the butter, oats, salt, and brown sugar until well combined. I like to use my hands for this.

In a greased or baking cup-lined muffin tin, fill each opening to the top with batter. Top with about 1 heaping tsp of the streusel mixture (I usually eyeball this bit and try my best to make the topping equal).

Bake at 400 for 16-20 minutes or until the muffins are lightly firm to the touch and golden brown on top.

Almond butter quinoa muffins

What these muffins have: Good fats, protein, Omega-3s, deliciousness.

What these muffins don't have: Gluten, dairy, refined sugar, wheat, eggs, soy.

Bonus feature: The muffins only require one bowl!

The new school year already started for lots of the country, but here in CT, M's preschool starts again on Monday. I've been thinking about quick ways to begin our day with protein that don't require cooking in the morning. These muffins are the answer!

Half of the flour is ground quinoa, which has lots of protein. The other half is oatmeal. I originally made these muffins with almond flour instead of oats for even more protein, but the almond flour was so dense that the muffins stuck to the roof of your mouth. You could just feed your kid a spoonful of almond butter and save yourself the trouble.

With the oatmeal, the muffins are still substantial, but they're no longer dense. They're actually a smidge crumbly because I omitted eggs and any other binding agent. I wanted them to stay vegan and I don't always have the patience to make a flax egg. Letting them cool completely before eating them made them sturdier too. 

For the first day of school, I thought it might be nice to add some blueberry chia jam and a quick icing to make the muffins more special. (I also called them breakfast cupcakes, which went over VERY WELL.) The jam is simple and free of any added sugar. I used cream cheese and maple syrup for my frosting, but you could also use coconut cream or a pre-made dairy-free topping.

You could also mix the chia jam with some yogurt for a delicious breakfast for the younger set (or the parental set, if I'm honest).

If you're avoiding nuts, substitute coconut or rice milk for the almond milk and use sunflower seed butter in place of the almond butter. Still delicious!

Important note: These muffins are best when fresh, so I recommend freezing 3/4 of the batch and then either defrosting a serving at night for breakfast the next morning, or toasting a frozen one right before eating it.

Almond butter quinoa muffins

2 large mashed banana
1 cup creamy natural almond butter, well mixed (or nut butter or seed butter of your choice)
½ cup maple syrup
¼ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or rice, coconut, or other non-dairy milk of choice)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup quinoa flour
1 cup quick oats
½ tsp salt
1½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pie spice (or cinnamon)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Add the almond butter, maple syrup, almond milk, and vanilla extract and mix well.

Add the flours, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Mix well. Add the apple cider vinegar and mix again. Let the mixture sit while you prep the muffin tin and prepare the jam and icing (if using).

When ready, spoon the mixture into your muffin tin until each opening is half full.

Bake for 12-14 mins or until the tops turn golden brown and the muffins are firm to the touch.

Let cool completely in the muffin tin before serving.

Yield: 18 muffins

For the Blueberry chia jam:
1 pint blueberries
1 ½ Tbsp chia seeds

Put the blueberries into a small sauce pan and cook over a medium low flame until the berries have broken down and become syrupy, about 15 minutes.

Let cool for 5 minutes and add the chia seeds. Mix well.

Place the mixture in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes or until ready to use.

Yield: 1 Tbsp per muffin

For the frosting (optional):
2 ¼ cups whipped cream cheese
6 Tbsp maple syrup

Mix the cream cheese and maple syrup well with a spatula. The mixture will look curdled at first. Continue mixing until the two ingredients have come together. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Yield: 2 Tbsp per muffin

DIY Stonefruit crumble

Chopped fresh fruit, a simple buttery cookie crumble that bakes quickly, and a honey-sweetened whipped cream result in a perfect summer crumble that is quick, fresh, and delicious. Me & The moose | DIY Stonefruit crumble #meandthemoose #crumble #peaches #nectarines #plums #fruit #summerbaking #dessert

The easiest, make-ahead, assemble-yourself dessert that celebrates summer produce and lets guests (or picky kids) customize it to their liking.

Take me to the recipe!

Chopped fresh fruit, a simple buttery cookie crumble that bakes quickly, and a honey-sweetened whipped cream result in a perfect summer crumble that is quick, fresh, and delicious. Me & The moose | DIY Stonefruit crumble #meandthemoose #crumble #peaches #nectarines #plums #fruit #summerbaking #dessert

What's better than a summer crumble, amiright? It's the easiest dessert because you don't have to deal with a finicky pie crust or fish out any special kitchen gadgets (or even non-special ones like the mixer). However, the downside of a crumble is that it often requires 40-50 minutes in the oven, which means 40-50 minutes of heating up your house. No thanks!

This "crumble" lets the ripe seasonal fruit be the star— it's just chopped and mixed with a little lemon juice to prevent browning— while a quick bake of the crumble topping adds crunch and a fresh honey whipped cream adds a little decadence. And ALL of this is toddler approved, especially the part where you get to DIY the toppings.

Chopped fresh fruit, a simple buttery cookie crumble that bakes quickly, and a honey-sweetened whipped cream result in a perfect summer crumble that is quick, fresh, and delicious. Me & The moose | DIY Stonefruit crumble #meandthemoose #crumble #peaches #nectarines #plums #fruit #summerbaking #dessert

Chopped fresh fruit, a simple buttery cookie crumble that bakes quickly, and a honey-sweetened whipped cream result in a perfect summer crumble that is quick, fresh, and delicious. Me & The moose | DIY Stonefruit crumble #meandthemoose #crumble #peaches #nectarines #plums #fruit #summerbaking #dessert

The crumble topping was a bit of an experiment. I started with a recipe from King Arthur Flour. Initially, I used all coconut sugar and tried to sub in coconut oil for the butter, but it burned almost every time and tasted burned even when it wasn't quite baked yet. Gross. The proportions I landed on are buttery and caramel-y and form a crispy cookie that’s easy to break once it cools. But, if you don’t have coconut sugar, using all brown sugar works well too!

Chopped fresh fruit, a simple buttery cookie crumble that bakes quickly, and a honey-sweetened whipped cream result in a perfect summer crumble that is quick, fresh, and delicious. Me & The moose | DIY Stonefruit crumble #meandthemoose #crumble #peaches #nectarines #plums #fruit #summerbaking #dessert

DIY stone fruit crumble

3.5-4 lbs mixed stone fruit (I used 6 peaches, 6 plums, 5 nectarines, and 6 apricots)
1 large lemon or 2 Tbsp lemon juice

Chop the fruit (leave the skins on) and cover with lemon juice to prevent browning. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

For the crumble:
Adapted from King Arthur Flour

½ cup melted butter
½ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup brown sugar, loosely packed (or, use 3/4 cup loosely packed brown sugar if you don’t have coconut sugar)
¾ cup whole wheat or AP flour
½ cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt

Preheat oven to 300.

Melt the butter in a large bowl. Add the dry crumble ingredients to the bowl and mix well. Spread onto a baking sheet in a thin, even layer.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, checking every 5 minutes to prevent burning.

Let cool for about 30 minutes or until the cookie can be easily snapped into pieces.

Yield: 3.5 cups crumble

For the honey whipped cream:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Whip the cream until soft peaks form, about 5-6 minutes. Add the honey, vanilla, and salt and whip for 3-4 more minutes, until the cream has reached your desired consistency. Don’t overmix or the cream will turn into butter.

Yield: 3 cups

Serves: 6-8