New to the Repertoire: Morning Glory Muffins


It is an unfortunate truth that you don't find many Trader Joe's in the city - it was true in Baltimore, it is true here in Boston as well.

The other day, I was perusing the bakery section. The muffin selection seems like it has something for everyone - flavors include streusel, morning glory, banana chocolate chip, carrot ginger, blueberry raspberry oat bran and greek yogurt lemon poppyseed. I've tried several of them, but I always feel like I have to choose between prioritizing whole grains, flavor, or good ingredients.

Finally, this past weekend, I decided to try to replicate one of the TJs muffins, but with my own tweaks to include whole grains, lower glycemic index, and less sugar. If you believe the internet, this recipe came from the Morning Glory Cafe in Nantucket, and it became well known when it was published in a magazine in 1981.

They were a big hit - I just want to figure out a way to up the protein content a tad but otherwise I'm quite satisfied with the results.

Ingredients
1½ cups sprouted wheat flour
¾ cup almond flour
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained
2 cups finely grated carrots (from about 6 carrots)
1 large crisp apple, such as Fuji, Gala, or Granny Smith
¾ cup golden raisins
½ cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
2/3 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts
3 large eggs
1 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Use cooking spray to coat 16 standard-size muffin cups or line them with cupcake liners.

Place the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk well to combine.

Use a food processor, or similar device, to shred 2 cups of carrots and 1 large apple. Add the pineapple, carrots, apple, golden raisins, shredded coconut and nuts and stir to combine.

Place the eggs, oil, and vanilla in a small bowl and whisk to combine well. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them almost to the brim.

Bake the muffins until they are brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.

Place the muffin pan(s) on a wire rack and let the muffins cool for 10 minutes. Remove the muffins from the pan to finish cooling. The muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. Let the muffins thaw in the refrigerator overnight and return to room temperature before serving.

Allergens: wheat, egg, nuts
Nutrition (1 muffin): 170 calories, 11 g fat, 1.5 g saturated fat, 17 mg cholesterol, 132 mg sodium, 124 mg potassium, 16 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 10 g sugar, 2 g protein, 28% vitamin A, 3% vitamin C, 2% iron, 1% calcium
Cost (32 muffins): $15.93 ($.50/ muffin)

P.S. The nutrition info for this may change, as I try to find more accurate nutrition info for the flours I used

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