Everything Grain Free Muffins

Using Coconut and Almond Flours

These muffins came from an experiment using a grain free flour blend. There is a grain free flour blend, with slight variations, on several websites. Some of the bakers who include this grain free flour blend of coconut flour and almond flour, have no recipes for the blend on their website.  Some have no recipes but are selling cookbooks using the flour blend and some have a few recipes using this grain free flour blend. Some state that this flour blend can be substituted cup for cup for wheat flour or other gluten free flour blends. NOT! 

Some use this blend without the use of the arrowroot or starch. Starch in any blend adds lightness and fluffiness to the blend. It seems that fewer eggs or less liquid is need if a starch is used.

Coconut flour needs more eggs and more liquid than other blends. The general rule from Tropical Traditions is 4-5 eggs for every cup of coconut flour. The eggs are needed as a binder. Fewer eggs can be used if almond flour or starch is used. Using flaxseed or seed dust can reduce the number of eggs needed. Tropical Traditions states that even the rule can be adjusted with the addition of other binding ingredients such as a liquid sweetener. A list of liquid sweeteners can be found here. There are many choices.

Tropical Traditions states that using coconut flour may take time and patience. Experience using the blend will give a feel of how the batter should feel and look and how much liquid is needed to get the right texture. Each brand of almond flour and coconut flour will be slightly different. Do not be afraid to experiment. To prevent waste in experimentingwith a recipe, cut the recipe in 1/4 or 1/2. 

The "Everything" Muffin

The reason I call them "everything muffins" is the need to use up some "everything" ingredients in my kitchen: half an apple, a few carrots in the bottom of the bag, half a zucchini, 1/2 very ripe banana, 1 cup of frozen blueberries almost at freezer burn, and some currents that need to be used. Time to try out a new recipe because there isn't much to lose. If it works, nothing is wasted! 

Any of the "everything" ingredients can be eliminated or other "everything" ingredients can be added, such as, nuts, seeds, cranberry, dates, figs, pumpkin, etc. I'm sure that you can think of many others.

I found that the muffins need to sit and cool before serving. They will hold together better and have a better texture after cooling. They will fall apart when hot or warm. While baking, the muffins may need to be tented with aluminum foil because they may brown too fast before they complete baking. Found this out through experience. There are some good hints for baking with allmond and coconut flours at this site. This site has a few recipes for using this flour blend.

Grain Free Flour Blend

1 cup blanched almond meal (the almond skins removed)

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/2 cup arrowroot starch or tapioca starch

Everything Grain Free Muffins

Ingredients

2 cups Paleo Flour Blend

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 tablespoons butter, melted

3/4 - 1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons sugar or equvilent of sugar substitute of choice

1/2 cup grated carrot

1/2 cup grated zucchini

1/4 cup grated apple

1/2 mashed banana

1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen unthawed)

1/4 cup currents or raisins

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350℉. Spray paper cups or spray the muffin pan.

Whisk the flours, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon together.  

Mix the honey, butter, milk and eggs together.  Mix into the dry ingredients, adding more milk if necessary to make a typical muffin batter. Fold in remaining ingredients.

Bake 30-35 minutes. When toothpick in center of muffin comes out clean, the muffins are done. Check at 25-30 minutes. Tent with aluminum foil if necessary to keep tops from over-browning.

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Resources:

"Baking My Way." Baking My Way. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <http://bakingmyway.com/>.

"Coconut Flour - Gluten-Free Living." GlutenFree Living. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <http://www.glutenfreeliving.com/gluten-free-foods/ingredients/gluten-questions-and-answers/coconut-flour/

"Liquid Sweeteners | CraftyBaking | Formerly Baking911." CraftyBaking. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <https://www.craftybaking.com/learn/ingredients/sweeteners/liquid>.

"Low Carb Flour: Baking with Coconut Flour & Almond Flour | Atkins." Atkins. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <http://www.atkins.com/how-it-works/library/articles/low-carb-flour-baking-with-coconut-flour-almond-flour>.

"How To Use Coconut Flour." Free Coconut Recipes. N.p., 05 Aug. 2009. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <http://freecoconutrecipes.com/how-to-use-coconut-flour-2/>.

"The 3 Best Paleo Flours - Paleo Blog." Paleo Blog. N.p., 03 Oct. 2013. Web. 02 Apr. 2015. <http://blog.paleohacks.com/3-best-paleo-flours/>.

Shepard, Jules. "Jules' Homemade Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend." Living Without's Gluten Free & More 18.5 (2015): 61. Web. 1 Apr. 2015. <http://www.glutenfreeandmore.com/recipes/Gluten-Free-Flour-Tortillas-4165-1.html>.