Have you ever made something you were pretty proud of only to have your kids turn up their nose? I feel ya, it’s a bummer. Increasing a child’s investment in the food they eat also increases the likelihood it will actually be eaten. A great way to do this is getting your kids in the kitchen cooking with you and muffins are the perfect starter food.
To kids, muffins feel like the perfect hand held treat (think cupcakes). To parents, muffins can be a useful tool to amp up nutrition. These flourless muffins ditch refined flour and sugar in favor of wholesome ingredients packed with vitamins, minerals, fiber and Omega-3s.
Let’s break it down a little bit:
Using almond butter instead of flour is a great way to introduce a high allergen food to “train” the immune system and means each muffin contains 6g of protein!
Research shows blueberries can be helpful in regulating blood sugar and when combined with the 3g of fiber in each muffin you can avoid the sugar rush (and crash).
Spinach and carrots are loaded with antioxidant vitamin A to support vision development, healthy skin, and immune function.
1 cup almond butter
¼ cup maple syrup
3 eggs
2 cups fresh spinach
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
1/8 tsp clove
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1 cup blueberries
1 cup grated carrots
½ Tbs chia seeds
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a standard muffin tin. Recipe makes 12 muffins
Add almond butter, maple syrup, eggs, and spinach to a blender and blend until incorporated. You may need to scrape down the side and blend again.
Move almond butter mixture to a large bowl
Combine cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, clove, and baking soda in a small bowl and pour into the almond butter mixture and stir to combine
Stir in apple cider vinegar and vanilla
Fold in blueberries, carrots, and chia seeds
Pour batter into prepared muffin tin and bake for 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean
After baking, remove from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes
Enjoy!
