Coconut & Cinnamon Chai-Spiced Muffins with Pistachios

Cinnamon Chai + Coconut gives this muffin a distinct Indo-Persian flavor profile while filling your kitchen with the warming aromas of the spice mixture. A deviation from the standard muffin flavors and a pop of lightly salted pistachios; this recipe is an elevated spin on your traditional baking repertoire. Serve as a lovely compliment with tea in a brunch or mid-day setting. Note: the muffins are best served at room temperature in lieu of warm from the oven given the texture from the coconut flour.

Speaking of coconut flour - this ingredient is rich in fiber and shown in some studies to stabilize blood sugar, promote good digestion and support heart health. Coconuts also don't require pesticides, herbicides, or insecticides to grow and are harvested by hand in lieu of a gasoline powered tractor or other machinery; it's fairly sustainable. For all it's power in health and sustainability benefits though, coconut flour is my nemesis in the kitchen. This flour is not one you can just "swap out" in a recipe and have it be balanced with your fats, liquids or flavors. Through lots of trials and tribulations, I finally have a winning recipe with coconut flour - I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

• Dry Ingredients:

  • 1 cup all purpose flour

  • 3/4 cup coconut flour

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

  • 1 tsp baking soda

  • 1 tsp baking powder

  • 1/2 tsp salt

  • 4 oz chai tea (finely ground)

  • 1 tbsp ground cinnamon

• Wet Ingredients:

  • 1 can coconut milk (full fat; not lite); shaken

  • 1 tsp cider vinegar

  • 1/4 cup avocado oil

  • 1 tsp vanilla paste

  • 1 cup plain unsweetened applesauce

• Lightly salted, roasted & shelled pistachios (finely chopped) - for topping (optional!)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F; line a muffin / cupcake tin with silicone liners (get great ones on Amazon.com - rainbow!)

2. Whisk all dry ingredients in a large bowl until incorporated; make a "well" in the center

3. Whisk all wet ingredients in a medium bowl until incorporated; pour the wet ingredients into the "well" in the center of your dry ingredient bowl.

4. Mix wet & dry ingredients together just until moist with a large spoon (do not over mix or your muffins will be dense)

5. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full with batter ingredient; pat down pistachios on top of each muffin lightly (so it sticks to the batter while cooking & doesn't "run off" your muffins when they cool).

6. Bake in oven for ~25-30 minutes or until the tops lightly spring back to the touch. Do not use the toothpick method here, you will over bake your muffins; the coconut flour is "springy" and the muffins are very moist. The crumb is not like traditional baking textures when warm so if you check with the toothpick, it will never come out "clean."

7. Let muffins cool completely in pan / liners and serve at room temperature. When the muffins are warm, the coconut flour texture is fairly "grainy" but as the muffins cool and solidify, that texture is incorporated more into your muffins leaving a much more favorable mouth feel.

I hope you enjoy these great breakfast breads (or even snacks!) I'd love to hear how this recipe turned out for you!

With love & hope for a better future for all of us - Jamie