Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

Aquafaba, in case you somehow haven't heard of it by now, is the viscous broth from canned or cooked chickpeas and it makes an excellent egg substitute in baking.  (It is so-named because the terms "bean juice" and "brine" just didn't sound appetizing to most of the posters on the facebook page mentioned in the next paragraph.) Use about 3 tablespoons per average egg, or 1/4 cup for a large egg (you don't have to whip it for this use-- just use in its liquid form).  This use for aquafaba as an egg replacer in baking was first posted by author/blogger, vegan cook extraordinaire Somer McCowan here. I've used it successfully in cornbread, too.

If you are unfamiliar with aquafaba egg or egg white replacer, see the Facebook page Vegan Meringue- Hits and Misses! There are about 8,000 enthusiastic members, eagerly discussing the applications, possibilities and  limitations of this seemingly magic liquid that can be whipped into a meringue. There you will find recipes files for meringues, macaroons, pavlovas, nougat, whipped toppings, etc., a;; made with this miraculous elixir! And you will be amazed!

My humble contribution to the files on that Facebook page is how to make your own aquafaba that is viscous enough to whip up nicely like egg whites, or to use in liquid form as a whole egg substitute in baking, and how to store it in usable portions for recipes.


I have not really explored the meringue much yet, since we are not eating many desserts of late-- I'll wait until the next birthday or holiday to experiment!  However, I made some muffins for company earlier this week and worked from an egg-based recipe to devise a low-fat, whole grain vegan muffin that was not only delicious, but moist and tender. They didn't last very long!


Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S MOIST & TENDER LOWFAT WHOLE GRAIN VEGAN MAPLE OATMEAL MUFFINS (WITH AQUAFABA EGG REPLACER)
Yield: 12

Only 2 tablespoons of oil in this recipe for 12 good-sized muffins!

COOKING TIP: Pastry flour makes a more tender muffin, especially in a recipe like this, using very little fat.  You can use white whole wheat pastry flour, if you like-- it's made from white wheat.  But the color of this muffin is brown due to the maple syrup, so ordinary whole wheat pastry flour is just fine.

Dry Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat *pastry* flour (see Cooking tip above)
1 cup quick oats
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp (rounded)  ground nutmeg
Wet Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups unsweetened smooth applesauce
2/3 cup maple syrup (preferably Grade B-- it has more maple flavor)
1/4 cup (4 Tbs)  aquafaba (the broth from cooking chickpeas or drained from canned chickpeas-- see text above) NOTE: No need to whip the aquafaba for this type of recipe-- use in liquid form.
2 Tbs oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Additional Ingredients:
2/3 cup raisins, dried cranberries OR dairy-free chocolate chips
2/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (Optional)
PS:  Feel free to add your own combinations of Additional Ingredients.

1. Set the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.  Oil  a 12-cup muffin pan (or use cake release-- here's my homemade palm oil-free, non-hydrogenated cake release recipe).

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the Dry Ingredients.

3. In a deep pitcher or bowl, mix together the Wet Ingredients and whisk by hand or blend with an immersion/stick blender for several minutes, or until bubbly.

4. Pour the Wet Ingredients into the Dry Ingredients and mix together just until the batter is moistened-- do not over-mix.  (A Danish dough whisk is excellent for this job and other batters which should not be stirred too much.)

5. Add any Additional Ingredients you are using and fold gently into the batter.

This batch was made with chocolate chips and walnuts

6. Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups (using a gently rounded 1/3 cup measure).  Bake for 20 minutes.

7. Place the muffin pan on a cooling rack and loosen the muffins with a table knife, setting them gently on their sides in the pan to cool.


8. Serve warm.

NOTE: The nutrition facts for this recipe were calculated (with Living Cookbook recipe software) using raisins and walnuts. If you use chocolate chips or dried cranberries instead of raisins, the calories and fat will be a bit higher. If you omit the nuts, you will save almost 50 calories and several grams of fat.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per muffin): 244 calories, 63 calories from fat, 7.4g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 201.6mg sodium, 344.4mg potassium, 42.8g carbohydrates, 4.3g fiber, 16.5g sugar, 5.2g protein.

Saturday we were expecting a big storm (which never really developed) and we had prepared accordingly.  DH suggested that I bake something before we lost power (which we never did, this time).  I decided on muffins, since I haven't made them in a long time.  I  had a bit of a craving for a maple/walnut treat, so here's what I came up with-- a light, moist whole grain muffin with just a little oil added to the batter. A great treat with tea or coffee.

UPDATE: For people dealing with high blood sugar, pre-diabetes, weight issues, or diabetes, I have added some notes to the recipe about replacing all or some of the sugar and maple syrup in the recipe with sweeteners (not artificial) that have are lower on the Glycemic index or have a lower Glycemic Load. (See http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm for a list of 750 foods.)

See also https://www.healthcentral.com/article/adding-substance-to-the-glycemic-index


Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S VEGAN MAPLE WALNUT MUFFINS 
    Yield: 12 , or  8 larger muffins 
Nutrition facts calculated using the unbleached sugar and nuts.

For a lower glycemic recipe, use 1 cup oat flour and 1/2 cup chickpea or white bean flour instead of the wholewheat pastry flour. 

Mix A:   
1 1/2 cups    whole wheat PASTRY flour (be sure to use pastry flour for a light muffin)
1 1/2 tsp    baking powder   
1/4 tsp    baking soda   
1/4 tsp    salt   
Addition:   
3/4 cup    chopped walnuts-- pecans would be good, too   
Mix B:   
7 Tbs    UN-sweetened smooth applesauce   
1/4 cup   maple syrup (the darker type-- Grade B) 
1/4 cup    unbleached organic granulated sugar OR your favorite granular sugar alcohol-based  sweetener
OR use 4-6 T. Date Puree instead of sugar-- see NOTE below for Date Puree recipe-- and use only 5 Tbs. applesauce.
1/3 cup  soy milk or nut milk or your favorite vegan creamer (one that is not sweet-- here's an easy, inexpensive nut-free homemade creamer recipe)
1/2 Tbs    lemon juice   
2 Tbs    oil   
Additional, but optional:   
   a few tablespoons more maple syrup for brushing 
  
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with oil from a pump sprayer, or grease with Cake Release (here's my homemade version). 

In a medium bowl, mix together the Mix A ingredients. Stir in the walnuts. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the Mix B ingredients. Pour Mix B into Mix A and stir briefly. Divide the batter between the 12 prepared muffin cups. Bake for 15 minutes. Test one of the muffins with a toothpick to make sure they are cooked through. 

Brush the muffin tops lightly with the extra maple syrup. Loosen the muffins with a table knofe and turn them on their sides to cool until they can be handled. 
   
 Nutrition Facts 
Nutrition (per muffin): 170 calories, 62 calories from fat, 7.3g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 68mg sodium, 184.1mg potassium, 24.6g carbohydrates, 2.4g fiber, 10.8g sugar, 3.2g protein, 4.9 points.

NOTE: About using Date Puree instead of sugar (this is much cheaper than using date sugar)--
 The Date Puree can replace sugar using a 1:1 ratio, or it can be used in combination with a reduced amount of sugar in a recipe.
To make date puree, see this easy recipe:http://nutritionstudies.org/recipes/sauce/two-minute-date-puree/
Are dates really better than  sugar for diabetics or those with blood sugar issues?
"Dates are actually on the lower end of the GI. There are a variety of dates available and most of them have a GI of less than 55 (some with a significantly lower GI)." From: https://diabetickitchen.com/the-best-sugar-substitutes-for-people-with-diabetes/
(GI stands for Glycemic Index)
See this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3112406/

Another Note: Just because dates have a lower glycemic load doesn't mean that you should eat them or use them in baking and cooking with abandon!



Enjoy!