"Heaven On Earth" Chocolate Muffins

These muffins will leave you feeling like you are floating on cloud nine. Well, maybe that is an exaggeration, but maybe not. You will have to try them, and let me know. 

Either way, my family and friends love them. They have become a bit of a staple at our get-togethers, and they disappear almost instantly. Sometimes they end up being an appetizer, instead of a dessert. One time, my friend's 14 year old daughter licked the tops of two of them in an effort to keep the rest of us from eating them. Maybe I should have named them "Finger Licking Good" instead. 

What you'll need:

Muffin Tins

Muffin Papers

Cooling Racks

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup White Rice Flour

1/4 cup Potato Starch

1/4 cup Tapioca Starch/Flour

1/4 cup Ground Flax Meal

1 teaspoon Xanthum Gum

1/2 cup Cocoa Powder (Unsweetened)

1 cup Sugar

2 teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips + some for sprinkling on top (optional)

1 Egg

1 cup Milk

1/4 cup Vegetable/Canola Oil

1 teaspoon Vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400° F. Place muffin papers in muffin tin and set aside.

In a measuring cup, mix milk and vinegar. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch/flour, flax, xanthum gum, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and salt. Whisk together with a whisk to ensure even distribution. Make a well in the dry ingredients. Add milk, and vinegar mixture, egg, and vegetable/canola oil. Whisk together until well blended. Mix in chocolate chips with a spoon or a spatula.

Scoop batter into muffin papers. I use a medium scoop (pictured below), and I'm quite generous with my scoops, usually 3/4 full or more.

Optional - Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with mini, semi-sweet chocolate chips. This makes them look pretty and professional. 

Place muffin tin(s) in oven, and bake for 18-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Baking time with vary depending on the size of your muffins and your oven.

Remove the muffin tin(s) from the oven, and let cool on stove top or cooling racks for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from tin(s), and let cool on cooling racks until completely cool. Eat and enjoy!

Makes 12-18 muffins.

Substitutions:

If you don't have or want to use flax meal, replace it with 1/4 cup potato starch. I add flax to my baked good as often as possible, because it adds valuable omega-3 essential fatty acids, lignans and fiber. I'll take the added nutritional value wherever I can get it, especially when I can't taste the difference.

If you want to kick up the protein, replace the rice flour with soy flour. This version is just as yummy as the rice flour version.

I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we do. Please share your feedback. I would love to hear what you think.

"If you want something in your life you've never had, you'll have to do something you've never done."

Sheryl

Belgian Waffles

This is my very first blog post, and I have to admit I am a bit (Ok, a LOT) nervous. I have been thinking about doing this for a very long time. I have written this post in my head at least a hundred times. The problem is that every time it is different. Anyway, I have decided that it is just time to begin. Here goes. . .

What could be better for breakfast on a Saturday morning with the family than home-made Belgian Waffles? I can't think of a thing. So, almost every Saturday morning I whip up a batch of these bad boys, and we eat them all up. 

Tip: You can mix the dry ingredients ahead of time and store them in plastic baggies to save some prep time in the morning. I do this when we go to our friends' cabin, but mostly I prefer to make a fresh mix every time.

What You Will Need:
Belgian Waffle Iron
Non-Stick Cooking Oil Spray
Cooling Racks

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup Rice Flour
1/3 cup Potato Starch
1/3 cup Tapioca Starch/Flour
1/3 cup Ground Flax Meal
1/2 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Xanthum Gum
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Millk or Buttermilk
1/4 cup Butter (Melted)
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon Vinegar
1 teaspoon Vanilla

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat waffle iron. Spray lightly with non-stick cooking oil spray. 

Place butter in a microwave safe bowl and melt. Set aside.
Mix milk/buttermilk with vinegar. Set aside.

In a bowl, mix together rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch/flour, ground flax meal, sugar, xanthum gum, baking powder, and salt. I use a whisk to mix the ingredients to ensure even distribution. Some people sift their flour. I think that takes way too long, and I am not very patient when I am hungry.

Whisk in the milk/buttermilk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla. Whisk until well blended and smooth.

Follow the manufacturer's directions for your waffle iron to cook waffles. Cool waffles on cooling racks for 2 minutes before serving. This keeps them from getting soggy. Makes 4-6 waffles, depending on the size of your waffle iron.

Substitutions:
If you don't have ground flax meal, replace it with 1/3 cup potato starch.

If you want to kick up the protein, replace the rice flour with soy flour.

Additions:
I always add chocolate chips for my kids. Olivia loves semi-sweet and white chocolate. Tommy just likes the semi-sweet. After much trial and error, I have found the easiest way to add chips. Pour 1/2 a waffle's worth of batter in the iron, sprinkle chips over the batter, pour the remaining 1/2 waffle's worth of batter over the chips. Be sure to cover them completely. Close waffle iron, and follow manufacturer's directions.

You can add blueberries, nuts, cinnamon - whatever you like.

Toppings:
On an average day, I like maple syrup and powdered sugar on my waffles. My hubby prefers honey and powdered sugar. But, on special occasions, I like to kick it up a notch with fruit and whipped cream. 

To make the fruit topping - in a small saucepan, cook a Tablespoon of butter,    2 Tablespoons of sugar, and 1 cup of fresh fruit (sliced strawberries, sliced bananas, blueberries, or whatever you like) until sugar dissolves and fruit is warmed.

That's about it. Eat and enjoy! 

Thanks for reading! I'd love to read your comments, suggestions and feedback! 

"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic."   ~Anonymous

Sheryl