I love Muffins, don't you? If I had a choice for Valentine's day between fresh flowers and Muffins, hey I'd choose a Muffin any day! But having said that, neither do I want to pile on those pounds- a moment on the lips, a lifetime on your hips :)
I'm no sweet lover, but chocolate is such a weakness, even if it's dark chocolate (which is healthy!), the combination of eggs, flour and butter is too much of a calorie overload for me. After being off white flour for so long, I have lost the interest in all kinds of 'white' baked goods. These so called 'goods' are really no good for your body. Being gluten-free has loads of benefits, the first thing is, you realise that 'real whole foods' have so much more flavor to offer. And a host of benefits too.
Now I wanted to go the whole nine yards to get that perfect Chocolate Muffin which is healthy too. So my chocolate Muffin is grain free, egg free and dairy free. I bet your'e wondering if this is indeed a Muffin I'm talking about or salad. Lolz
Gram flour (besan) is my secret ingredient here, it's a beautiful golden coloured flour made out of ground bengal gram. This recipe is perfect for those on a gluten and grain free diet, or if you have Celiac's disease. Do you have frequent skin issues? Just avoid gluten and dairy and bingo many of your problems are going to be fading away.
Many of the ingredients I have used are easily available in your local supermarket, if in doubt, just ask the store guys to help you out. Stay away from any of the ready mixes of gluten free cakes and breads. This has been exposed to cross contamination. Secondly, to make up for the taste, it's loaded with sugar or artificial sweeteners, lots of it, even if it's not written on the ingredients list. So do give this recipe a try and don't forget to tag it as #saffronbowl when you share it on social media.
Ingredients
2 3/4 cups Gram flour (besan)
1/2 tsp Himalayan salt
3/4 cups cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups raw sugar or brown sugar (feel free to use less)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Coconut Oil (any vegetable oil is fine)
1 cup Coconut Milk/ Soy Milk/Almond Milk
1 cup hot boiling water
2 tbsp flaxmeal (this is the egg replacer)
First thing you do is to mix the flax meal with 1/4 cup water and let it sit a while. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line your muffin pan with cupcake liners. Sift the dry ingredients- Gram flour, salt, sugar, cocoa, sugar, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. Now the wet ingredients- Vanilla, oil, milk, hot water along with the flaxmeal egg. Now gently bind the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Use an Ice-cream scoop to ladle the mixture into each muffin liner, this is much easier when it comes to clean up.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the tops are firm. Insert a wooden skewer to check the muffin for its doneness, it should come out dry. Allow them to cool and serve.
Tip- If you have a special occasion, you can ice these muffins. If not eat them as is to keep your sugar intake to the minimum. The same batter can be used to bake a 8" cake.
