Cherry Almond Muffins! | The Happy Pear

So we mentioned last week that Irish Cherries are coming your way and gave you a little sneak peek of some mighty muffins which we’ll assume you might have guessed were cherry laden….

And today we have the recipe!

These mighty muffins are gluten free, sugar free, dairy free, egg free and can be made nut free if necessary. If you want them a little sweeter add in the sugar detailed in the recipe below.

You might be wondering what on earth is in them aside from cherries…a whole load of whole food yummy goodness that actually tastes subtly sweet. These muffins are coffee shop size, big enough for breakfast or a filling afternoon snack.

A little crispy on top with the classic “muffin top”, light, soft and fluffy in parts with juicy bursts of jammy cherry goodness throughout. They can of course be made in to smaller muffins or even cupcakes to satisfy the smaller appetites out there. Break the recipe down and make 8 or even 12, reducing the cooking time to 15 minutes and 10-12 minutes respectively.

Ground almonds on top and throughout for a little crunch, these muffins are everything we anticipated and then some.

At the moment we have Organic French cherries in store and online which although not half as amazing as the local Irish, as simply nothing could compare, they are pretty darn delicious all the same. The first day they arrived we sold out (having also eaten a fair few of them with the help of two little ladies who we mentioned last week!).

We’re keen to make the most of every last cherry this year and plan on giving you a few more recipe ideas in anticipation of the Irish cherry arrival which is mere weeks away now! Counting down the days! We’ve put together a cherry recipe booklet which will be sent out at the end of this week. To sign up to receive your free copy enter your email address and follow the instructions here! For all things cherry related we’ll be using the tag #happypearcherries on Facebook and Twitter!

What’s your favourite cherry recipe? Leave us a comment below to inspired us!

Cherry Almond Muffins

Serves – 4 large muffins (8-12 small)

Preparation Time – 15 minutes

Cooking Time – 20-22 minutes for large muffins

Ingredients

• 2 large handfuls of pitted cherries sliced roughly sliced


• 2 tbsp (20g) almond meal (replace with more oat flour if necessary)


• 90g (1/3 cup) wholegrain buckwheat flour


• 60g (½ cup) oat flour (ground from oats in a food processor)


• 1 tbsp (10g) ground flaxseed


• 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water (or one egg)


• 40g (1/3 cup) coconut sugar – optional*


• 1 tsp vanilla extract


• 1 tsp almond extract/essence


• 1.5 tsp baking powder


• ½ tsp baking soda


• 2 medium ripe banana blended to a puree (approx. 220g)


• 125ml (½ cup) almond milk


• 1 tbsp almonds – roughly chopped or ground for topping

*If you use ripe bananas you shouldn’t need the additional sugar, we didn’t use any in ours.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180C (350F/Gas Mark 4).


2. Mix together flax and water and set to one side for 15 minutes until “eggy” in consistency.


3. Place the remaining 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed in a bowl and sift in almond meal, oat flour, buckwheat, baking powder and baking soda.


4. Blend together almond milk and banana to a smooth puree with almond and vanilla extract. If using sugar blend in to the mixture at this point. Stir through flax “egg”; or 1 whole egg whisked if using as an alternative.


5. Add wet to dry and fold to combine. Gently fold in cherries before dividing the mix between your desired number of muffin cases. If making four large muffins bake for 20 – 22 minutes. If making 8 muffins bake for 15 minutes, and 10-12 minutes for 12 cupcakes. Top with roughly ground almonds.


6. Allow to cool on a wire rack…if you can resist digging in straight away!

Source: http://www.thehappypear.ie/2013/06/19/cherry-almond-muffins/