We make a lot of muffins in our house. My kids have food allergies so bakeries and store bought bakes are off limits to us which result in a great deal of experimentation in my kitchen. Sometimes I wish I could take short cuts but when you care for children who have food and environmental allergies, it means that you have to slow life down in order to make room for things that will keep them safe and healthy- like these muffins.

These sweet potato-coconut muffins are made with roasted sweet potato, spelt & almond flours and shredded coconut. I’ve added millet seed for crunch, which also makes a great replacement for those with nut allergies.  They are flavored with cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice & vanilla. Even if you have no dietary requirements, you will find that these muffins are deliciously moist and lightly sweet with wonderful fall flavors in each bite.

In order to save time, roast the sweet potato a few days in advance and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake.

In addition, I prepare batter the night before (the flavors actually get better overnight) and scoop into my muffin tin in the morning. You can make a double batch for a leisurely Sunday morning breakfast and throw the rest in the freezer to enjoy on a hurried weekday morning. ❤️

Sweet Potato-Coconut Muffins

Free from: Dairy, Soy, Peanut, Sesame, Refined Sugar. Nut Free option

Makes 12 large muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup spelt flour or whole wheat. *See Notes.
• 1 cup almond flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinammon
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
• 3 tablespoons millet seed, uncooked
• 1/3 cup turbinado sugar.  Use coconut sugar for a refined sugar-free option- *See Notes
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (use the type for drinking)
• 2 eggs, beaten one at a time
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1/3 cup olive oil or avocado oil
• 1/2 cup sweet potato, mashed. *See Notes

Garnish/Toppings:

• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds, crushed
• 1-2 tablespoon turbinado sugar, or to taste

To roast sweet potatoes:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  You will need 1 small/ medium size sweet potato.  Using a fork, poke a few holes on each side.

Wrap sweet potato, tightly, in 1 layer of parchment paper and 1 layer of tin foil. Lay flat on a small cookie sheet. Roast for 1 hour or until tender.

Remove foil and let cool. Peel skin off – it will come off easily. Mash sweet potato with potato masher or fork. Measure 1/2 cup. Set aside in a small bowl.  If any of the sweet potato is leftover, freeze remainder or use for cooking/baking later.

Sweet potato can be roasted a few days in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator.

To make muffins: 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a muffin tin with twelve parchment liners. Using a stand mixer or electric beaters, stir dry ingredients together; flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, coconut, millet, and sugar.

Add coconut milk, eggs, apple cider vinegar, vanilla, maple syrup, and oil. Beat on low until incorporated. Add sweet potato, increasing speed to mix thoroughly if necessary. Do not overmix.

Let batter sit for 5 minutes or overnight, in a covered container in the refrigerator. *See Notes.

While batter rests; crush slivered almonds and measure out turbinado sugar. Set aside.

Use a medium size ice cream scoop (about 2-3 tablespoons), fill batter to the very top of each muffin cup.  Scrape any remaining bits from bowl with a silicone spatula and add to muffins.

Top each muffin with crushed slivered almonds and turbinado sugar.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Rotate pan halfway for even browning. My muffins are done at 18 minutes but check early because each oven bakes at different speeds.

Let sit in tin for 5 minutes. Remove and transfer to a wire cooling rack.

Serve and enjoy with a smear of cream cheese, creme fraiche, butter/ghee. Or dollop a spoonful of coconut yogurt on top.

*Notes: 

• I use the deep orange hued flesh of the yam in this recipe which is also known as sweet potato.
• I prefer spelt flour in this recipe. Spelt flour is similar to whole wheat flour but it produces a lighter, less dense crumb. It can also be more digestible than whole wheat.
• For a nut free option, replace almond flour with spelt or all purpose flour.
• If using coconut sugar, muffins will be slightly darker than turbinado sugar. I like to grind my coconut sugar in a spice grinder so that muffins bake evenly.  I do not grind turbinado sugar for baking.
• For easy prep, make batter night before. Leave batter in a covered container in the refrigerator. In the morning, let batter come to room temperature( about 10-15 minutes), stir and scoop into muffin tins.
• Muffins freeze well. Remove liners and place in a freezer safe bag. Defrost at room temperature or microwave.

 

 

 

 

 

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