Summer is officially here! My daughters are out of school, I’ve shed my fleece for a tee shirt and shorts, and this weekend marks the fourth annual Cape Farm Alliance Strawberry Festival!
There’s something magical about the feel of the hot sun on your back and the scent of ripe fruit filling the air. We’ve spent many lazy afternoons in strawberry fields, straw sticking to our sweaty kneecaps as we search beneath the green leaves for the choicest berries. When my daughters were little, they often ate as much as they picked, their clothes, mouths, and hands stained red with the juice. Thankfully they never got weighed at checkout!
Today I’d like to share a strawberry recipe I created especially for the upcoming Everything DASH Diet Cookbook. Whether you use hand-picked strawberries or store bought, you will absolutely LOVE these muffins! They’re vegan (oh yes) but you’d never know it. The taste and texture are identical to “regular” muffins – but better. They’re light and fluffy, subtly sweet, and flecked with soft, juicy bits of strawberry. I’m not embarrassed to say I’ve eaten 3 of them in the past hour. They’re just so good!
I’ve used white whole wheat flour, but they’ll also work well with oat flour, rice flour, or a gluten-free flour blend.
Yields 12
SODIUM CONTENT: 12 mg per muffin
INGREDIENTS
1 c. whole grain flour (see note above)
1/2 c. cornmeal
1/2 c. sugar
1 T. sodium-free baking powder
1 c. chopped fresh strawberries
1 c. nondairy milk
3 T. canola oil
2 t. pure vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 12-muffin tin lightly with oil or line with paper liners. Set aside.
Measure the flour, cornmeal, sugar, and baking powder into a mixing bowl and whisk well to combine. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Pour batter into the prepared muffin tin, filling each cup about two-thirds full.
Place tin on middle rack in oven and bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool. Cool 10 minutes before serving.
